Myth: People with diabetes should never have sweets!
Truth: Good news folks! People with diabetes can have sweets occasionally. American Diabetes Association advocates that desserts and sweets are to be relished and consumed on special occasions and festivals albeit, your blood glucose level are under control and you are taking prescribed medicines regularly.
Myth: People with diabetes cannot have juices.
Truth: People with diabetes can very much enjoy fresh juices, but they definitely need to avoid canned and packed juices because of its added sugar content and high glycaemic values.
Myth: People with diabetes cannot have fruits.
Truth: People with diabetes should offcourse have fruits keeping in mind the glycaemic indexes. According to National Institute of health, USA fruits are a very good source of fibres and vitamin C “ascorbic acid”. All citrus fruits are rich source of vitamin C which boosts our immune system to fight against common diseases.
Myth: A big NO-NO to potatoes
Truth: People with diabetes may have potatoes (baked, grilled or steamed) in meals. Potatoes are to be ideally consumed, along with non-starchy vegetables and salads.
Myth: Diabetes diet is a very strict diet
Truth: A Diabetes diet is one of the healthiest diets, and has no hard and fast rule. Diabetes diet can be even followed by people without diabetes. You may select from a variety of options like the Mediterranean, flexitarian, vegan, Ornish to know more refer to Diet options in Famhealth.
Myth: Say no to all carbohydrates and yes to proteins
Truth: Yes carbohydrates do turn into sugars, but having overload of proteins and no carbs may lead to fatigue and cardiovascular diseases. Having more of proteins eventually leads to accumulation of fats in the body leading to cardiovascular diseases. ADA suggests, making a smart choice of having low carbohydrates will keep you energetic and prevent you from feeling low and tired.
Myth: Diabetes diet does not contain eggs, as they contribute to high cholesterol levels in the body
Truth: People with diabetes may have eggs, as eggs are a good source of protein and vitamin D. ADA says, “What really matters is the way it is cooked”. Boiled eggs with yolks removed can be consumed, to ensure that it does not aid to cardiovascular complications.
Myth: You can eat whatever you want if you are taking medications
Truth: This is one of the major myths associated with diabetes. Medications only help you to convert sugar to energy, but if you supplement your body with more than required amount of food then, it will lead to spiking of blood glucose levels and poor diabetes management.
To read more on Diabetes, click on the link below.
7 Smart Eating Strategies To Lose Weight And Reverse Diabetes
1. Keep a Diary:
One of the smartest ways to begin with, is to record what you are eating throughout the day. Leading dieticians all-round the globe recommends maintaining your own small diary, to keep a check and analyse the food items you are consuming. Studies in the U.K confirm, people who maintained food records lost extra amount of weight, than people who didn’t record.
2. Watch your food labels:
Picking up a fruit juice can? Or your favourite soft drink? You’re advised to read the nutritive label. Knowing the calorie content and glycaemic index can get a little cumbersome, but research suggests, awareness of the calorie content and high sugar levels help people living with diabetes in keeping away from harmful food items which may spike their blood glucose levels.
3. Start with a good breakfast:
Research is on our side, starting the day with a good breakfast powers you with high energy and helps you maintaining your blood glucose levels throughout the day. The old saying “breakfast like a king” stands correct if you choose low carb breads & cereals, fresh juices, boiled eggs, nuts, oats, yogurt, cheese, milk and not to forget your medicines.
4. Eat by the plate method
Eating by the plate method advocated by ADA recommends, filling half of your plate with non-starchy fruits and vegetables, one fourth of your plate with lean proteins like grilled fish or chicken and the balance with low carbs. This is a popular model which not only aids in weight loss, but also keeps the blood glucose levels on check.
5. Carb counting
Carbohydrate counting, also called carb counting, is not a diet plan, it is a meal planning strategy for people with type 1 or type-2 diabetes. Carbohydrate counting involves keeping track of the amount of carbohydrate in the foods you eat each day.
Carbohydrates are one of the main nutrients found in food and drinks and it is very important. Completely cutting down on carbs may lead to fatigue and restlessness. One must choose wisely and replace with diabetes friendly and healthy low carbs.
According to National Institute of Health USA, healthy carbohydrates, such as whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, are vital part of a healthy eating plan because they provide both energy and nutrients, such as vitamins and minerals, and most importantly fibre. Fibre can help you prevent constipation, lower your cholesterol levels, and control your weight.
Unhealthy carbohydrates are often food and drinks with added sugars. Although unhealthy carbohydrates can also provide energy, they have little to no nutrients and they often spike your blood glucose levels leading to poor diabetes management.
6. Eat more small meals
People with diabetes should eat 4-5 small meals during the day instead of three larger meals, says the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Eating small meals allows replenishment along with slower, continuous absorption of food, which prevents you from cravings and hunger pangs. Among the benefits are also decreased blood sugar levels after meals, reduced insulin requirements during the course of the day, weight loss and lower blood cholesterol.
7. Always stock up your refrigerator:
Stocking up your refrigerator with healthy food items is more or less like keeping your supplies ready. This prevents you from eating high calorie and sugary food items in times of hunger. You may choose from a wide variety of fruits, nuts, cheese, and low carb multigrain breads and protein shakes to quickly make minimeals and avoid binging.
To read more on Diabetes, click on the link below.
Hello everyone! Here’s introducing everybody, to absolutely amazing diet options you may wish to choose. We all require a break from the monotony of the diet plans we are currently following, so read on to pick your option this month. Remember before you switch to any plan or diet options, it’s always wise to check with your doctor/dietician and be doubly sure if this plan will work effectively for you.
DASH Diet
Did you know along with diabetes you can keep your blood pressure under control?
Try the DASH diet, best known for keeping high blood pressure in check; Dash diet has been one of the favourites of people with diabetes, research reveals majority of people have come on top of their condition following a blend of Dash Diet, workouts and lifestyle changes.
Diet Composition:
“It’s a plant-focused diet that’s rich in fruit, vegetables, nuts, and legumes, as well as low-fat dairy, lean meat, fish, poultry, whole grains, and heart-healthy fats,” says Sonya Angelone, RD, a consulting nutritionist and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “It’s easy to follow, healthy for the whole family, and great for weight loss.”
The Mediterranean Diet
Cholesterol problem? Now no problem, follow the Mediterranean diet.
One of the favourite healthy diets followed globally by people with Diabetes and without diabetes. Mediterranean diet comprises of cooking meals with the goodness of “olive oil” to keep cholesterol at bay.
Lots of fresh, seasonal food, plenty of produce, heart-healthy olive oil, and a little wine make the Mediterranean Diet an enjoyable choice for people with diabetes, says Constance Brown-Riggs, RD, a certified diabetes educator and author of The African American Guide to Living Well With Diabetes.
This style of eating can help with blood sugar control, as well as heart disease risk, according to the American Diabetes Association.
Studies show that people are more likely to stick to this plan, “so it may help you avoid yo-yo dieting,” Smithson says.
Vegan Diet
Tried eating meals minus dairy products and meat?
The theory behind vegan diet is simple and healthy. You can cook a healthy meal without adding dairy products such as milk, cream, butter, yogurt, cottage cheese. Vegan diet also does not comprise of any kind of animal products a no-no for any meat. Research suggests, vegan diet aids in weight loss, reduces the risk of heart diseases, diabetes and cancer.
The Flexitarian Diet
Do you want to try some flexible option? Here you go
Flexitarian as the word suggests, is a concoction of two words: “flexible and vegetarian”. Wait! there’s more to eat …….Along with eating veggies one can easily flip to eating lean meat and eggs as and when required by the salivary juices in our stomach.
The term was coined more than a decade ago, “The Flexitarian Diet: Research is on our side as this diet mostly aids in losing weight, keeping healthy, building immunity and Adding years to our lives.
Dietician Dawn Jackson Blatner says you don’t have to eliminate meat completely to reap the health benefits associated with vegetarianism – you can be a vegetarian most of the time, but still chow down on a burger or steak when the urge hits.
Vegetarian Diet
People with diabetes “Old is Gold”……..but its Famhealth we will make this extra interesting
This diet as the name suggests, comprises of vegetables, dairy products, legumes, pulses but no meat. This Diet helps in checking in blood glucose levels, obesity and keeps cardiovascular diseases at bay.
We shall share some interesting, amazing mouth-watering vegetarian recipes with you on Famhealth recipe corner. We bet you cannot resist Do check out!
Mayo Clinic Diet
“Watch your calories” and eat smartly!
This diet has been specially designed for diabetes and people with a risk of cardiovascular diseases and obesity.
We recalibrate our eating habits, breaking bad ones and replacing them with good ones with the help of the Mayo Clinic’s unique food pyramid.
The pyramid emphasizes fruits, veggies and whole grains. In general, these foods have low energy density, meaning you can eat more but take in fewer calories. Think of it this way: For about the same amount of calories you could have a quarter of a Snicker’s bar or about 2 cups of broccoli.
American Diabetes Association Carbohydrate Counting
This is not a Diet! Its traditional sense!
The famous American Diabetes Association advocates, that nothing can go wrong if you count carbohydrates you are consuming. The main purpose isn’t weight loss but consuming only the amount of low carbs which is required by the body to convert into energy form.
Carb counting is a great way to manage your blood glucose levels. Many high-carb foods also tend to be high in calories, so cutting back on them often leads to shedding pounds resulting in weight loss.
If you choose this approach, remember to ask your doctor or a diabetes educator how many carbs to eat at each meal (for example 45-60 grams per meal is an average, but your number could be different because body types and conditions are always not the same for everyone.) A lot depends on the physical activities and body requirement of the person. “An exclusive individualized meal plan must be designed based on your nutritional requirements, caloric needs, medications, and exercise routine.
The Fertility Diet
As the name suggests, fertility diet enhances the strength of reproductive organs in the human body and increases the chances of becoming parents of offspring to manifolds.
Research is on our side, a health study conducted in USA from the Nurses which began in1976 and grew to include 238,000 female nurse participants aged 30 to 55 has shown that tweaking aspects of your diet, from fats to beverages, can increase ovulation and improve your chances of getting pregnant.
In “The Fertility Diet: Ground breaking Research Reveals Natural Ways to Boost Ovulation and Improve Your Chances of Getting Pregnant,” Drs. Jorge Chavarro and Walter Willett of the Harvard School of Public Health created a diet plan based on the study, which showed that women who consumed “good” fats, whole grains and plant protein improved their egg supply, while those who ate “bad” fats, refined carbohydrates and red meat may make fewer eggs, thereby increasing the risk for ovulatory infertility.
Fertility diet also hints that full-fat dairy products are good for fertility compared with skim milk and sugary sodas.
Ornish Diet
Want to reverse your condition? Good news follow Ornish Diet.
Research is on our side, studies have revealed that people who followed the Ornish Diet (which is essentially a vegetarian diet) for a year lost an average of 5-7 kgs, and many of them specially Prediabetes and type 2 diabetes were able to lower their dosage of diabetes medication or switch from insulin to an oral drug.
The catch, however, is that this diet may be a little too restrictive for some people, which means it could be difficult to maintain if you’re not used to eating only plant-based foods.
“Most people aren’t able to make a 180-degree turn,” Brown-Riggs says. A more flexible version, called The Ornish Spectrum, might be easier to follow.
MIND Diet
Sharpen your brains!
The MIND diet takes two proven diets – DASH and Mediterranean – and zeroes in on the foods in each that specifically affect brain health.
The emphasis is on eating from 10 brain-healthy food groups: green leafy vegetables in particular, all other vegetables, nuts, berries, beans, whole grains, fish, poultry, olive oil and wine. Meanwhile, MIND adherents avoid foods from the five unhealthy groups: red meats, butter and stick margarine, cheeses, pastries and sweets, and fried or fast food.
Keto Diet
As per NCBI Ketogenic diets may even have benefits against diabetes, cancer, epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease.
The Keto diet emphasizes weight loss through fat-burning. The goal is to quickly lose weight and ultimately feel fuller with fewer cravings, while boosting your mood, mental focus and energy. According to Keto proponents, by slashing the carbs you consume and instead filling up on fats, you safely enter a state of ketosis. That’s when the body breaks down both dietary and stored body fat into substances called ketones. Your fat-burning system now relies mainly on fat – instead of sugar – for energy.
While similar in some ways to familiar low-carb diets, the Keto diet’s extreme carb restrictions – about 20 net carbs a day or less, depending on the version – and the deliberate shift into ketosis are what set this increasingly popular diet apart.
The Keto diet has its roots in the decades-old therapeutic ketogenic diet. Clinically, the ketogenic diet is used in neurologic medicine, most notably to reduce hard-to-control seizures in children. Studies also suggest possible benefits in other brain conditions such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.
To read more on Diabetes, click on the link below.
The Correlation Between Diabetes And Food by Famhealth
As Diabetes is a disorder due to the body’s inability to process sugar, there is a direct and intrinsic relationship between Diabetes and food. In fact, managing food intake is also one of the first steps in managing and living with Diabetes.
Once you have received a positive diagnosis for Diabetes, one of the first things the doctors advise is managing your diet and nutrition. At this point, it’s helpful to become aware of the term “Glycaemic Index” and what that means for your diet plan. Glycaemic Index is a value associated with food items that indicates the food’s effect on an individual’s blood glucose levels.
Selecting the right food items by checking out their Glycaemic Indices is very important in managing Diabetes with diet and nutrition. Choice of low glycaemic value foods can help you come out a winner and stay on top of your condition!
What to eat?
One of the first questions that comes to the mind of people and families living with Diabetes is: “What to eat?” The good news is, people living with Diabetes can, in fact, eat almost anything, as long as it is in small portions, barring selected high processed sugar items, discussed in our food corner of Famhealth,s diabetes community.
The term “diet plan” can be a stress point in itself, as it hints at the need to change established eating patterns. However, if you have been diagnosed with Diabetes, this is one stress you need not take, as the “Diabetes diet plans” are some of the healthiest plans and can easily be followed by anyone, with the possible exception of small children.
In fact, there are no specific, rigid meal plans that are to be followed. People living with Diabetes can eat almost anything –moderately.
Do you want to control fluctuation in your blood glucose levels?
Sometimes you will note your blood sugar levels are fluctuating form high to low. There is a simple reason behind this – chances are there is something that you have been eating that is not fitting in with the management of your condition.
Blood sugars are affected by many things that include the food you ate, how long ago you ate, your physical activity, stress levels, sleep patterns, and your emotional wellbeing. If you use Insulin to address these fluctuations, chances are you may get stuck in a high-low cycle that is bad for your long-term health.
It is a good idea to keep a daily record of your meals and physical activity levels as it has an impact on how stable your blood sugar levels are. People with diabetes need to eat small meals frequently, especially when they are on medications such as Insulin, to watch out for low blood glucose levels. According to the American Diabetes Association, a daily intake of 1400-1500 calories is a must, in accordance with the individual’s BMI and physical activity levels.
Do check with your doctor about how much activity and how many calories your body needs daily as you plan your diet and exercise routine. An ideal diabetes meal includes a variety of low carbohydrates, proteins, fibrous non-starchy fruits and vegetables. However, before we delve into the list of suitable food items, let us take a quick look at the myths and facts surrounding Diabetes-friendly foods.
Smart Eating Strategies
Keep a Food Diary
One of the smartest ways to manage your condition is to record what you are eating throughout the day. Leading dieticians around the world recommend keeping a detailed record of what you are eating so as to better understand how they impact your condition. Studies in United Kingdom confirm that people who maintained food records lose the extra weight, and keep it off better than people who did not record their intake.
Watch your food labels
Want to grab your favourite drink or take a bite of the potato chips? It is a good idea to read the nutritional information given on the package label. Knowing the calorie content and glycaemic index can get a little cumbersome, but research suggests that awareness of the calorie content and sugar levels helps people living with Diabetes keep track of unsuitable food items that may spike their blood glucose levels.
Start with a good breakfast
Starting the day with a good breakfast powers you up with energy and helps you maintain your blood glucose levels throughout the day. There is enough research out there to support this statement. The old saying “breakfast like a king” stands correct if you choose low carb breads & cereals, fresh juices, boiled eggs, nuts, oats, yogurt, cheese, and milk.
Eat by the plate method
This is an interesting method advocated by ADA, which subscribes filling half of your plate with non-starchy fruits and vegetables, one fourth of your plate with lean proteins such as grilled fish or chicken and the balance with low carbs. This is a popular model which not only aids in weight loss, but also keeps the blood glucose levels under check.
Carb counting
Carbohydrate counting, also called carb counting, is not a diet plan, it is a meal planning strategy for people with Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes. Carbohydrate counting involves keeping track of the amount of carbohydrates in the foods that you eat every day. Carbohydrates are one of the main nutrients found in food and drinks. Completely cutting down on carbs may lead to fatigue and restlessness. One must choose wisely and replace unhealthy carbs with Diabetes-friendly and healthy low-carb foods. According to National Institute of Health, USA, healthy carbohydrates, such as whole grains as well as fruits and vegetables are a vital part of a healthy eating plan as they provide both energy and nutrients such as vitamins & minerals and most importantly fibre. Fibre can help in preventing constipation, lowering cholesterol levels, and controlling your weight. Unhealthy carbohydrates are often food and drinks with added sugars. Although unhealthy carbohydrates can also provide energy, they have little to no nutrients and they often spike your blood glucose levels leading to poor diabetes management.
Eat more small meals
People with diabetes should eat four to five small meals during the day, instead of three large meals according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Eating small meals allows the body to replenish itself, while at the same time slower, continuous absorption of food prevents cravings and hunger pangs. Among the benefits associated with this are decreased blood sugar levels after meals, reduced insulin requirements during the course of the day, weight loss and lower blood cholesterol levels.
Always stock up your refrigerator
Stocking up your refrigerator with healthy food items is all about keeping your supplies ready. This prevents you from eating high calorie and sugary food items when you feel hungry or have any cravings. You can choose from a wide variety of fruits, nuts, cheese, and low carb multigrain breads and protein shakes to quickly make mini-meals and avoid binging.
To read more on Diabetes, click on the link below.
4 cups mixed green leaves (cabbage/lettuce/spinach)
½ large cucumber
1 cup chopped tomato
½ thinly sliced red onion
½ cup crumbled cheese
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic minced garlic
¼ teaspoon black pepper
4 light tomato-flavour oval multigrain wraps
2/3 cup hummus
Directions
In a large bowl combine all the greens, cucumber, tomato, and red onion and cheese. In a small bowl whisk together vinegar, olive oil, garlic and black pepper. Pour dressing mixture over greens mixture. Toss to combine
Spread each wrap about 2 & ½ tablespoon of Hummus. Top each with 1/4th of dressed greens mixture roll up and serve immediately.
Nutrition Facts
Make 4 servings (Amount per serving)
Calories (Kcal)
269
Protein (g)
16
Carbohydrates (g)
35
Total Sugars (g)
3
Cholesterol(mg)
3
Total fat (g)
12
Sodium (mg)
574
Note
Remember to manage your portion sizes. Recommended portion size should not exceed 2 servings/helpings. Consuming diabetes friendly recipes in inappropriate portion sizes may lead to spiking of your blood glucose levels.
