Was a family wedding or special birthday party a feast with too much temptation to resist? Cake, or special pudding, rich pasta or sweet and sour pork? Have I got your mouth watering and your fingers twitching to cheat on your strict diabetic diet?
First of all, stop beating up your conscience and start adopting the attitude that tomorrow is a new day and the best time to make a fresh start, to try new strategies to satisfy a sweet tooth or cravings for favourites not on your “allowed occasionally” list.
I’m writing this as a type 2 diabetic who has managed to control my diabetes for over 25 years with pills, diet and exercise – at 70, I still don’t need to use insulin. My endocrinologist says “At this rate, you may never need to take insulin.” I plan on living up to that prediction. The following tips come from this patient, not a doctor, but they have been checked and discussed every year with my specialist, dietitian and GP.
TIP #1
From the day you are first diagnosed, don’t skip medical appointments, medications or instructions, and apply advice for maintaining suitable sugar levels. No one is perfect. I tend to sleep late in the morning because I’m a night owl who writes and edits in the quiet hours of the night. So I sometimes forget to take pills and have to follow the advice on how to put that right appropriately. Just don’t take doses too close together, and get back on track the next day.
TIP #2
Exercise is part of your treatment and essential for maintaining good health. But don’t get into a frenzy of activity in an attempt to lower your sugars and your weight as quickly as possible. Why? Because you could hurt yourself by overdoing things. Then you get a set back and have to start all over again. Slow, steady effort wins the results long term. If you aren’t athletic anyway, start with walking. Time yourself for 10 mins in one direction, then turn around and walk for 10 minutes back. Each time try to cover more ground in the same time. In a week or so, increase it to 15 minutes each way. When you’ve increased the distance you cover and feel up to walking more, go up to 20 minutes and so on. Don’t exhaust yourself, but 30 mins to 1 hour is a reasonable goal to achieve for an every day form of exercise.
If walking irritates your weak ankles, sore knees or painful hips, consider going into the nearest pool. If you are not much of a swimmer, just walk across the shallow end, then around the shallow end, just fast enough to feel the pressure of water as you pull your legs forward. To progress, join an aqua fit class at your local public pool. That’s a good idea even if you are a swimmer. You can vary your exercise with lengths and different strokes. This way you get to exercise your whole body, improve your muscle tone, increase your heart rate and yet you don’t suffer from the grinding pounding effect of movement on hard surfaces. It is easier on your joints. Believe me, once you get used to regular exercise, you miss it when you have to skip it for some reason.
TIP #3
Pay attention to what and when you eat. Skipping meals is actually dangerous for diabetics because it messes with your sugar levels. Here’s the basic formula. At least one small serving of protein and one of carbohydrates every 4 hours keeps your sugar levels from dropping. Miss one meal and go for 6 hours or more with just a coffee or water and your sugars will drop. You’ll notice because you’ll get dizzy, feel faint or weak in the knees – dangerous conditions. Chomping down a protein bar or an apple will up your sugars with a spike – but it won’t maintain your sugar at the stable level that’s the goal of a diabetic diet.
If you know you are going to have a long busy day, get prepared for it. Eat a proper breakfast – preferably with an egg and a piece of toast (Note: 1 protein +1 carb). Take a snack of cheese and crackers in your bag or briefcase. Make sure you have it with milk or creamy coffee or tea at about the 3 or 4 hour point in your morning. Have another snack if you’re going to need it in the afternoon 3 hours before a late supper. And of course, have a proper lunch – not just an all veggie salad. A bowl of hearty lentil soup is a good idea, even in the evening if you’re just too tired to cook supper. I cook for myself, but make enough for 4, freeze 3 portions so I always have a microwavable meal for those “too pooped to juggle pots” kind of days. If you have an early dinner, then go for a protein dessert later. My favourite is a small portion of cut up fruit with Greek yogourt and a sprinkle of nuts. After a while, preparing and planning your food intake becomes a habit and easy for you.
TIP#4
Avoid and/or make every effort to deal with stress. We all live in a world where stress is viewed as a normal part of a successful career. There are still stresses to plague you when you retire. Life shouldn’t be like that. The truth is stress is a killer. Ask someone who survived a heart attack. They’ll tell you stress had something to do with their condition. If you can’t walk away from a source of stress, ask for professional help to develop strategies for dealing with it effectively. My GP was of the opinion that my crazy schedule juggling 4 part-time jobs to cover my living expenses back in my 40’s had a lot to do with my early signs of diabetes. By the time I managed to get one steady job, it was too late. I was avoiding every sugary treat tempting me all day long, but I had those dizzy feelings too often.
I’ve become aware of how much a serving of fruit is appropriate for me to have. I now don’t need much sweetener in my tea or coffee. And as a semi-retired teacher, I’ve more control over my time, and meals. And I have much less concern about my health and my sugar levels. You can achieve this kind of balance by paying attention to your food intake and lifestyle.
FRUIT PORTIONS
Fruit is an important part of a diabetic diet. But portions are really important as fruit tends to have lots of sugar. Use this list as a guide of how much of each fruit you should have at a time.
Suggestion: Take a fruit salad as your contribution to a pot luck gathering. That way you can avoid the cakes etc. and still have dessert.
½ a banana ½ an orange or mandarin 1 small plum
10 – 12 grapes ½ a medium apple or pear 1/3 a large mango
10 cherries ½ cup of cantaloupe or melon ½ cup of blueberries
1/3 cup of strawberries ½ a large peach or nectarine ½ cup of other berries
Disclaimer: The information presented by the author has not been verified for accuracy and is solely the opinion of the author. Do not rely on the information on this website as an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or other professional healthcare provider. If you have any specific questions about any medical matter you should consult your healthcare professional.
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