Diabetic Diets

Sunday, January 25th, 2009

According to Medline Plus, a diabetic diet should consist of 50%-60% complex carbs, no more than 30% fat and 10%-20% protein. (Medline’s Diabetic Diet PDF format) Of course, they are insane and are trying to kill all the Type 1 diabetics in the world….

OK, their diet might work for some people, but it doesn’t work for me. I stay away from all grains and products made with grain, like breads and pastas, because they just wreak havoc with my blood sugar control. To me, a carb is a carb. Just because a carb is complex, and takes a little longer to turn into sugar in my system, it will eventually turn into sugar. And, as a sugar, I’m going to have to take the insulin to cover it.

I eat all the protien, salad and vegetables I can hold, and you’ve got to remember, big fat root tubers don’t count as vegetable in my book. The big fat root tubers turn into starch, which is just another word for sugar. But, you can fill up on stuff like cabbage, broccoli, cellery and any of the other types of vegetables that have more fiber and water in them than carbs.

You can sort of do the same thing with fruits, but to a limited degree, as there’s a lot less to choose from that are low in carbs. With fruits, I usually just eat mellons and berries, since they tend to have a higher water content and lower carb content that fruits like apples and oranges.

The bottom line is that you are trying to keep a constant, healthy, blood sugar level, and the best way to do that is to eat less carbs. Lots of dieticians will disagree with me, since to them, they can just tell you to take so many units of insulin per carb, and if you count carbs correctly, your blood glucose levels will stay where they’re supposed to, but they are wrong.

The reason they are wrong, is because foods degrade and release their sugar content at different rates. The more foods you eat that have a carb content, the less blood sugar control you will have. If I eat rice or potatoes, it’s just like pouring sugar into my veins, and my Humalog can’t keep up.  And the same thing happens with whole grain products, but it doesn’t happen for hours. The bottom line is that you are going to get more highs and lows. at different times, the more carbs you add to your meals.

The best way I’ve found to control my blood sugars is to eat the same amount of carbs at every meal. I try to eat 40 carbs per meal, which needs 10 units of Humalog to maintain. Sure, I’m mixing different types of carbs in there, but since I’m not eating the 150 carbs that the dietician’s say I should be eating, I have a much lower high and low range to worry about.

Tags: diabetic diets, low carb, Type 1 Diabetes
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Diabetic Diets

Wednesday, January 14th, 2009

When I was a kid, the diabetic diets that the Doctors gave out were a joke. They were 50% carbohydrates, 30% protein and 20% fat. (Or maybe it was 60%, 30% and 10%.) That type of diet will send a diabetic to an early grave. Last time I checked, the definition of someone with diabetes was a person who couldn’t process sugar correctly because they don’t make enough, or any, insulin. If your body doesn’t make any insulin, eating a diet that is 50% sugars doesn’t make any sense.

Of course, if you tell your Doctor that you want to eat a lower carb diet, most of them will freak out and tell you how your body needs the sugar to function. And if you go too low carb, you will go into ketoacidosys and ruin your kidneys. The answer to that is to just drink more water, which, last time I checked, was supposed to be good for you anyway. The thing is, if you’re eating low carb, then you don’t need very much insulin and it is much easier to maintain good blood glucose levels.

I will get into the low carb, good blood glucose, discussion in more depth later.

Tags: diabetic diet, low carb
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