Controling dibetes with diet - need help

[cackle]

My husband was told he is diabetic and we were told to try to keep his numbers down with diet. After a month we did not do very well. They want his resting number 80-120 and his after meal numbers at 120-140. His numbers were hardly ever under 100 and often almost 200.

He is suppose to have no more than 60 carbs, 15 grams fat and 2-3 ounces of protein a meal. Limit to one snack a day with less than 35 carbs. And they had rather he not have the snack.

I am just having problems with coming up with ideas. He can't seem to cut out the snack or limit to one 35 carb snack. He figures a 20 and a 15 is the same.

The other thing is they don't want him losing weight.

So he is suppose to get all 60 carbs a meal. He is 5'11" and weighs 180.

Any suggestions/recipes/mealplans would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Susan

 

[jenjscott]

On that kind of diet its very difficult. and as far as the snacks go, a 15 and a 20 is actually probably better than a 35 because it doesn`t all hit the system at the same time. I am surprised at this diet because the best way is to divide your daily allowances into 5 smaller meals to sort of levelize the blood sugars. I am not saying to go against dr`s orders, but after researching, if you find this to be true, you may want to talk to who ever is putting him on this diet and try it another way. Also a regular exercise program is the most important factor in regulating this outside of the diet, it helps to decrease depression that often accompanies the trials of diabetes and somehow makes the body more efficient. I`m not talking aerobics or anything, walking a mile or two a day or every other day is enough to make a difference.

 

[PurpleChicken]

There are several members here who deal with sugar problems. Hopefully
bumping this thread will get them to chime in.

5'11 & 180 pounds seems like an OK weight.

My suggestion on carbs would be to make sure he gets them with natural
carbs like fruit and avoid the bad carbs like flour or any wheat products.


We've been talking a lot about it on this thread:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=144597&p=1

 

[MissPrissy]

Those are hard diets.

So that we might better help you can you give us an example of what meals you are preparing?

I found with gestational diabetes in one of my pregnancies it was easily controled by making sure nothing I ate was prepackaged or easy.

For me carb loaded foods did not work at all - bread and grits or oatmeal etc sent my blood sugar high. 1 hour after eating I was supposed to be under 100. No way I could do that eating carbs like they insisted I needed to eat.

The only way I could control my blood sugar was eleminate bread, potatoes, oatmeal all sort of 'white' foods. I was instructed to eat X number of carbs through the day so that the blood sugars were a slow digest and they stayed level. Nice in theory but it did not work at all for me. There was no way I could eat the carbs all day long and stay at the levels the doctor was requiring.

Breakfast - no fruit - it send the blood sugar too high. Save the fruit for a snack. I usually would have omelettes - eggs with spinach and a little cheese or tomato and basil or even salsa. Decaf coffee and tea without sweetener help prevent the insuline dump too.

Lunch - spinach salad - lots of cgreen leaf vegetables - spinach and romaine with a few dried craisins, a little feta cheese, a bit of walnuts or pecans, a boiled egg, a couple madarin orange slices, 2 small cherry tomatoes cut in wedges, a few cucumber slices - think fresh, eating raw vegetables helps more than anything.

I saved my carbs for supper - I used dreamfeilds pasta - low carb - for spaghetti suppers. Roasted chicken, beef etc, with steamed veggies and a sprinkle of Mrs. Dash was always plenty. There are many options for pasta.

Snacks - an apple, a pear, a half of a banana etc. Or you could keep a mixed dish of fruit and make him fruit cups. Also - sugar free jello really does help when you want something and are at your limits.

Decaf coffee and tea and lots of water help too.

Your menu will seem to get old quick but you can do alot with fresh veggies, low carb pasta and fresh lean meats and eggs.

Salad dressing shave come a long long way too. Ken's Steakhouse makes awesome salad dressings and they are not carb loaded either.

 

[mom'sfolly]

I had gestational diabetes as well. One thing that helps alot is to pair every carb with some protein. It slows digestion and helps eliminate spikes in blood sugar.

So...for a snack veggies with bean dip, a hard boiled egg on toast, cheese and whole wheat crackers (make sure you know the serving size, usually 2-5 crackers).

Meals combine low-fat meats with veggies and whole grains....fajitas on corn tortillas, salmon with wild rice and a salad, stir-fried beef with veggies over brown rice. Some diabetics can't handle fruit at all, it raises their blood sugar too quickly.

I would recomend keeping a food diary, note the exercise, amount of food eaten, when eaten and note the blood sugar levels as well. This will be a major pain initially, but after a couple of weeks you should be able to see what works and what doesn't. My friend is going through this and has found that alcohol and potatoes spike his blood sugar. One month is not very long to get the hang of all this, so don't worry to much. If you sweat it too much, it will become a point of contention, a chore no one is interested in, and health issues could be the result.

I need my coffee. My typing is suffering.........

 

[EllyMae]

Stick with low glycemic carbs when choosing carbs to eat. Stay away from products that are made with enriched flours because they cause a spike in blood sugar. You want to eat whole grain/wheat, brown rice, sweet potatoes(yes, sweet potatoes, look it up, lol), whole grains pastas, etc. That is just a tip of the iceberg, do a search on low glycemic carbs and you should get some ideas.

 

[cackle]

Quote:
Miss Prissy,

An average day he has eggs and toast for breakfast or the crustless quiche madde in muffin tins(2) with low carb toast.

Lunch a sandwich with baked chips or baked pitas or a salad his salads do tend to be skimpy he does not eat tomatoes or cucumbers so they are usually just lettuce and mushrooms. I guess I need to buy and grill some chicken breast to go in his salad. He could do the chicken salad with almonds and kens dressing or oil and vinegar.

Supper is usually a protein and a couple veggies with a carb. If I give make carrots or corn then those become the carbs.

His snacks are a small amount of licorice or Neco wafers. He was told okay as long as he keeps them under 35 carbs. She even told him a snack size snicker at 9 carbs was good once a day.

We havve lots of venison and fish in the freezer along with some chicken. We are running low (time for more cornish cross). One problem I am having she seem to think was fillinng him up at meals so he won't snack.

Foods he does not like include:
Broccoli (I can get him to eat twice a month).
Cabbage of any kind
Beets
Tomatoes
squash (unless a casserole)
radishes
cucumbers
avacado


Other than that he eats pretty much anything.

Artichokes and aspargus are favorites around here.

 

[EllyMae]

Another bit of input...I see countless numbers of patients each week that are sent home with the new diagnosis of Diabetes and they are really at a loss of where to start...from diet to exercise. It seems like unless you pin down the health care clinicians for info, you are left scratching your head. (this is one of my pet peeves) But anyway, if you can't get the answers you are looking for from your MD, FNP, PA or whatever, check you area for diabetic support groups, talk with a registered dietician. That way you can be sure you are getting the CORRECT info because this is something you don't want to guess at. I hope you and your husband find a diet plan that works and the info you are looking for.

 

[MissPrissy]

Grilled veggies and lean meats will go along way. You might find it easier to prepare several peices of meat at a time and save the leftovers for cold lunches over salads or as a meat and cheese dish with a few crackers on the side.

Chicken and beef are great sliced thin as leftovers and eaten as a salad topping -

How about a bed of baby spinach leaves and romaine (or some other other mixes that places like Sam's and Costco sell in bulk at a great price) with roasted asparagus and very thinly sliced steak laid over the bed of greens with a squeeze of lemon and a tiny drizzle of olive oil ?

Trade the steak for chicken, slice a boiled egg on the side, add some broccoli flourettes and red bell pepper strips. Again lunch or dinner.

It may seem the same old same old but you can change the flavors so much that even a salad twice a day every day can be new and different.

I have just made myself very very hungry for a huge supper salad.

 

[mom'sfolly]

Many insurance companies will also pay for diabetic education. You might want to look into something like that. Most doctors have very little training in nutrition, an may not be up on the latest research.