Good Diet For Diabetes
Diabetes alone is bad enough, but those who have the disease are at a higher risk for heart attacks
, strokes and blindness. Diabetic neuropathy can cause pain sensations where there has been no injury and numbness to the feet and lower legs. It takes longer for wounds to heal, in part because of reduced circulation to the feet.
Because of the numbness and the increased healing time, any wounds on the lower legs and feet can lead to infections, gangrene and amputation. That's one of the reasons you see instructions for all diabetics to remove their shoes and socks at each visit.
Now that you know the scope of the problem, it's time to fight back. There are a lot of things you can do to prevent diabetes and to mitigate its effect on your life. In some cases, you may even be able to recover. It will, however, take an effort.
Diet: The next time you go out to eat, look around you. You will be able to see part of the problem spread out in front of you in a way that you can't otherwise. Look at the size of the plates being served and the food that is on them. This is a serious problem, and it's not just when we're out. Our plates at home may be just as bad.
What, when and where we eat are all issues in this battle. I encourage everyone to pay attention to these points, as they will be half of the battle, literally.
Until I was talked into cooking healthier dinners for our family, I didn't read nutrition labels, look up calorie counts or pay attention to the fats in our diet. I had studied several different cooking styles, and these were heavily dependent on pork fat and butter. Then I looked at the numbers and cut most of that out completely.
It's important to know what's in the food you put into your mouth. Is that packet of French fries worth the 380 calories and 19 grams of fat? Not for me. In fact, there are a number of things I don't eat any more because they just aren't that valuable, taste wise and they are very expensive in calories, fat and other ingredients I'd rather avoid.
There are two tools that can help you in this project. One is the nutrition labels found on many products. For foods served in restaurants, many have this information on their web sites. Some states require this information to be on the menu, at the table or otherwise easily reached by the consumers. This tool lets you know how much is a serving size, and what is in the food.
The second is a calorie calculator. There are several on-line, and they can help you know how much you take in and how much you burn up. This can also double is a food diary, because you will need to put in everything you eat for it to be useful.
When you eat is important two ways. The first involves emotional eating. We reach for comfort foods when things are rough, which happens on a regular basis for most of us. These comfort foods are not usually healthy. Knowing that can help you prevent gaining a lot of weight, as you are more likely to reach for some fruit or sliced vegetables rather than the mac and cheese.
It's also important to eat at specific times of day. Six small meals are ideal, though not many of us have the time and availability to do it. Breakfast is extremely important, as you haven't put anything into your stomach for several hours. Eating dinner before seven p.m. is also a wise idea, as it gives you time before bed for your body to digest food.
Do you eat at your desk at work? Is dinner served on a tv tray in front of the television? Both of these are bad ideas, and not just because what we tend to munch on is unhealthy. Studies show that eating in front of the television causes us to consume more calories, fat and sodium than eating in the well lighted table in the kitchen or dining room.
If you must eat at your desk, and it is a growing phenomenon, brown bag it instead of going to the cafeteria or the lunch truck. There are some fairly healthy frozen dinners available now, and you can pop it into the microwave and head back to the desk. Put in some sliced fruits or vegetables as snacks, and you'll have a fair start on a good diet.
Good Diet For Diabetes
By: jackzhu
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