Diabetes--how to control sugar with FOOD not Rx?

[Sunny Side Up]

Today the doctor says my blood tests show that my sugar level is too high. I'm in the risk category for diabetes, over 50, overweight, mother had it, & I struggled with it during my pregnancies. The doctor was going to prescribe an Rx, then said let's see if you can get it to go down with diet & exercise. This is what I would prefer to do.

During my first pregnancy I gained a lot of weight and so did my baby (11 lbs 4 oz!). During the other two I was under the care of a great midwife who kept me on a strict low-carb high-protein diet with 30 minutes of aerobic exercise daily and kept my weight, blood sugar, and the babies' weights down to a normal level.

I can go back to the 30 min of aerobic exercise daily, it's a great time of year to begin this healthy habit. Here in South Florida the weather is ideal for walking/biking and I hope to have the habit firmly in place by the time summer clamps down.

But I'd like a less restrictive diet to keep for the long run. I could do 9 months of really restrictive eating for a baby's sake, but would rather not have to be that strict forever. What do you do for yourself or someone you cook for to keep the blood sugar down?

I like to eat wholesome balanced meals, whole grains, low fat/sugar/salt, natural & not artificial. I don't drink alcohol, sodas, coffee, and not many juices. I drink a cup of hot tea & a glass of OJ each morning and water for the rest of the day. I know I'll have to limit/restrict sweets, and cut down portions of bread, pasta & rice.

What else should I do to help lower my blood sugar without having to take a prescription drug?

 

[annaraven]

Meet with a nutritionist. Start measuring your blood sugar levels.

When my DH got diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, he at first kinda blew it off. More recently, he got told his A1C was too high and he had to go on meds. We've been working really hard since then.

1. I *weigh* everything that I feed him. Pasta, bread, rice, anything that has carbs. I read the labels and am very careful to avoid him getting more then 45g of carbs at a sitting.
2. Always combine carbs WITH fats/proteins. Don't ever eat just carbs alone.
3. Stop with the low fat gig. Moderate amounts of good fats (controlled portion sizes of course) is better with the carbs than a low-fat diet. Fat and protein helps control the sugar spikes.
4. Watch out for legumes/beans. Lentils are wonderful, unless you're diabetic. Then they can be too carby. So you have to be very careful how much beans and lentils and such that you eat.
5. Measure measure measure. Portion control is king. Really take it seriously. Get out those measuring cups and that kitchen scale and measure every portion that goes onto your plate. Use a smaller plate so it doesn't look too small.
6. Eat more often, smaller amounts. Keeping your blood sugar controlled by eating good snacks helps you avoid spikes.
7. Measure after every meal and snack, to start with, and any time you eat a new food that you're not sure how it affects you.

Good luck! And yes, exercise is good.

 

[TrystInn]

Diabetic here.

First off, you gotta lay off the whole grains. Carbs equal sugar.

Secondly, add cinnamon to nearly everything you cook. It naturally lowers your blood glucose.

Thirdly, replace your sugar in the house with Stevia or similar. You can bake with Stevia at a one-to-one basis, so its good for bakers.

Good luck!

 

[rubyrogue]

watch your carbs, excersise often. my dad is unmedicated. his nutritionist gave him a booklet with what the portion sizes needed to be. he takes a walk almost everynight to help lower his sugar. he also does the cinnamon thing

 

[BettyR]

I'm also diabetic... and like everyone else I watch the carbs. Fill up on meats and veggies......cut way back on the amount of starches you eat.

If you eat bread eat only one slice or buy a low carb bread and you can have two.

Eat salads instead of sandwiches.

There are a lot of diabetics whole post on a forum called lowcarbfriends.com

This is the cooking section ... lots of great recipes. http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/lowcarb-recipe-help-suggestions/

This is a recipe site with a bunch of low carb recipes. http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/recipes.html

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

would you like a flyer/diet I have from the 40's and 50's, I bought a whole bunch of old recipes and there are diabetes recipes/diets in there, it might take a couple days to dig them out, there are about 15 boxes of recipes. then i can scan them and email you.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Wow, Buck Creek, that's a generous offer. But I think I will wait for now, and see what I can do with portion control on the meals I already prepare for me & the family. I remember a lot of the advice my midwife gave me when I was watching my sugar during my last 2 pregnancies. I'm going to try that first, but if I need to try different recipes, I'll let you know. Thank you!

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

just let me know, i'll start digging them out, I'm just glad i found someone that can use the info. i love old stuff like that, some of the info is better than what you get now days. most doc's push pills

 

[Sugar Sand Farm]

Check into the adkins diet you can do it online for free MY BIL was told he needed to cut his levels or go on meds He went on the diet and has been on it for 2 years. He has lost weight but his sugar levels are much better and theres no more talk of diabeties. Also check that lowcarbfriends website they have some of the best lowcarb recipes that I have seen. I make several of their meals for the whole family and they are not aware its lowcarb. THere chicken chow mein is excellent.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

The Atkins diet just about did me in, be carefull and work with a nutritionist if you want to try something like that. The interenst I had to see after spending too much time on that diet told me it was the biggest cause for gall bladder attacks in women of my (and your) description. She suggested as a better alternative the South beach Diet if one is inclined to diets.

I had to go on the meds (awful) but have since corrrected my diet & exercise to get off of them and have been improving every year.
This is what I did:
cut out "empty" carbs (sugar, white bread, white rice, potatoes, SODA, alcohol) NOT whole grains
Cut out caffine (Coffee drinks, SODA)
add cinnamon - DO THIS, if you do nothing else do this it really does work. start with one caplet at breakfast for a week, add a caplet at lunch as well the following week and increase to one at dinner the week after so that you are taking 3 a day with meals.
It takes about 3 months for the empty carb cravings to go away and I even had to eliminate only one thing at a time. Soda took me two years - amazing how addictive some things are.
add vitamins supplements - I was shocked at how much better I felt one I started taking ALL of the B's every day, especially the niacin.
Drink a bottle of water between meals.

I hope this helps, I've been there.