Diet Help needed

[susieq67]

I've always thought that my diet was relatively healthy - but as I've just been diagnosed with type 2 obviously not !
For the last couple of months (pre-diagnosis) I have been trying to lose weight by calorie counting (always successful in the past) but it now seems that I need to re-think my diet regime !

Yesterday was a fairly typical 'diet' day:

Breakfast - tea (no sugar), 1 Weetabix with 1 fat-free fruit yoghurt, half a dozen strawberries and a handful of blueberries
Mid-morning - coffee (no sugar)
Lunch - sandwich made with 2 slices from a small Hovis wholemeal loaf (no butter or spread) filled with a small portion of cheese, lettuce, watercress and sliced tomato, 1 nectarine, plus another coffee with no sugar
Mid-afternoon - cup of tea (no sugar) and plain rice cake with a smearing of reduced sugar jam
Diner - small salmon fillet with 2 small new potatoes and green vegetables followed by a handful of grapes and 2 fresh apricots
Evening - cup of tea (no sugar)

I don't eat red meat so my protein comes from chicken, fish, cheese or eggs (nuts give me indigestion !)
I don't drink alcohol
I don't have sweet or 'soft' drinks 'cos I don't like them
I haven't eaten sweets, chocolates or cake for months as I was been trying to lose weight pre-diagnosis anyway - but I do enjoy the occasional garibaldi or rich tea biscuit !
I do eat my '5 a day' - more like 7 - 10 a day
I do eat a lot of fruit - at least 4 - 5 portions a day
I'm half Italian so do like my pasta, but restrict myself to once a week and use Quorn mince in the sauce
I also enjoy a small jacket potato with either a small portion of baked beans or small tine of tuna occasionally

For various reasons (high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels) I also try to limit the amount of animal fats and salt in my diet. I'm having difficulty getting my head around the thoughts of a permanent low carb diet and a lifetime without the foods I really love (especially fruit and pasta !).

 

[sally and james]

It's surprising how easily you get used to low carb. Several months in, we decided to have a modest pasta meal and check blood sugars. After loving pasta, in the past, I found I really couldn't be bothered to eat the tasteless, insipid looking stuff and just ate the sauce. James was made to eat his (he is diabetic, I am not), so that we could complete the experiment. Can't remember what the exact result was, but we haven't bothered again, more to do with taste, than blood sugar spikes, I think.
Had a similar experience with a sandwich - felt like trying to eat a blanket, and it was "good", "tasty" bread.

Looking at your diet, perhaps you could begin by giving up the Weetabix and, do check the fat free yoghurt for added sugar. And, maybe you could have a piece of cheese or nibble at some seeds, mid afternoon, rather than the rice cake and jam. Do it gradually and test to see how you are getting on.

Sally

 

[sanguine]

Hi Suzie, welcome. Yeah, it's a bummer isn't it, before my diagnosis I would have thought your diet was exemplary. But for diabetics, carbohydrates = sugar and so you need to think carefully about breakfast cereals, sandwiches, potatoes, pasta, rice etc. And tropical fruits (you can have berry fruits though). Forget anything 'low-fat', it's inevitably got added sugar.

Many of us get good results from LCHF (see www.dietdoctor.com/lchf). This will be contrary to what you are likely to hear from the DN.

Have they given you a test meter? Some do, but most of us buy our own (SD Codefree from Amazon and elsewhere is cost-effective). Testing before and after meals is essential to determine what foods affect your blood sugars - again many GPs say testing is not necessary for T2s, which is rubbish.

 

[Jamrox]

Hi susieq67 , change the weetabix for nuts and seeds. Stick with berries and change to natural yoghurt with sprinkling of splendour .Weight watchers frommage frais is nice too.

Lunch ...ditch the bread and have more salads. I add coronation chicken ..mmm love it.

I can't eat oranges, apples or bananas but berries are fine.

Reduce bread pasta potatoes or rice , I can tolerate a little bit but not much.
Strange thing happened when I reduced my carbs and increased meat ..my cholesterol dropped from 6.4 to 5 .

Increase your activities level , do something everday , even a stroll around the park or walking more around your home.
You will get used to it and when you feel better you 'll see the benfits and stick with it (most of the time ..lol)

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[susieq67]

Hi Suzie, welcome. Yeah, it's a bummer isn't it, before my diagnosis I would have thought your diet was exemplary. But for diabetics, carbohydrates = sugar and so you need to think carefully about breakfast cereals, sandwiches, potatoes, pasta, rice etc. And tropical fruits (you can have berry fruits though). Forget anything 'low-fat', it's inevitably got added sugar.

Many of us get good results from LCHF (see www.dietdoctor.com/lchf). This will be contrary to what you are likely to hear from the DN.

Have they given you a test meter? Some do, but most of us buy our own (SD Codefree from Amazon and elsewhere is cost-effective). Testing before and after meals is essential to determine what foods affect your blood sugars - again many GPs say testing is not necessary for T2s, which is rubbish.

thanks for the link - having read it I think it's going to take some doing for me to change a life time's (I'm 67 now) conditioning ! Especially as I've studiously avoided anything that is 'full fat' and opted for the 'high fibre' versions of most things. I think breakfast is going to be the most difficult as I just cannot stomach a cooked breakfast, but if I miss it altogether I can feel extremely 'light headed' by mid-morning.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Hi Susie.

I was also a lover of all things we can't now eat in quantity - potatoes, fruit, bread etc. and I am 66. I never had a sweet tooth so cutting out cakes and biscuits was easy. Honestly, once you start you will find you don't miss these things anywhere near as much as you think you will.

There is some good advice above. I would also start by cutting out the Weetabix and any other breakfast cereal. I have a full fat Greek yogurt with 4 or 5 strawberries thrown in, sometimes raspberries or blueberries, but only a few - no more than 75g in total. Others have bacon and eggs. I tend to leave my bacon and egg meals for lunch times. If you don't want a full fat one, do read the labels to check the amount of carbs.

We have been brainwashed over the past 20 or more years to cut down on all fats because of cholesterol. Please read some of the research on this and read the threads on here how increased good fats combined with lower carbs is actually helping cholesterol. It's worth a try, and if it doesn't work for you, then try something else. Dietary fats with low carbs doesn't make you fat either. It can't - I've lost 3 stones to get to my goal weight at the rate of just less than 2lbs a week eating butter, full yogurt, real mayonnaise etc..

Try the Hovis 7 seeds wholemeal - 14g of carbs per slice plus masses of protein and fibre. One slice only though, eaten with a full meal or toasted with poached eggs. (and put real butter on it). Also watch milk. Whole milk is slightly better than skimmed or semi skimmed, but they all contain a lot of sugar, so be careful with it.

I expect you are now even more confused!

 

[Daibell]

Hi. Your diet doesn't sound too bad, but keep an eye on the cereals and bread. Watch for added sugar in the fruit yogurt. I have Diet Yogurts fruit yogurt which uses sweeteners and the natural fruit yogurt. Avoid bananas and exotic fruit. Don't worry about fats and cholesterol as we have all been misinformed by the experts. It's excess carbs that cause high cholesterol not fats and the body needs cholesterol to maintain itself. As for salt I personally don't believe all the talk about salt and high blood pressure; I'd like to see the scientific evidence.

 

[susieq67]

Hi susieq67 , change the weetabix for nuts and seeds. Stick with berries and change to natural yoghurt with sprinkling of splendour .Weight watchers frommage frais is nice too.

Lunch ...ditch the bread and have more salads. I add coronation chicken ..mmm love it.

I can't eat oranges, apples or bananas but berries are fine.

Reduce bread pasta potatoes or rice , I can tolerate a little bit but not much.
Strange thing happened when I reduced my carbs and increased meat ..my cholesterol dropped from 6.4 to 5 .

Increase your activities level , do something everday , even a stroll around the park or walking more around your home.
You will get used to it and when you feel better you 'll see the benfits and stick with it (most of the time ..lol)

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

I am trying to increase my exercise levels, but with age related osteoarthritis it can be difficult ! (I had intended going to the leisure centre this morning to take an Aqua Aerobics class but spent so long reading on here that I missed it !!!!) I do sometimes have natural yoghurt instead of the fruit flavoured ones (Sainsbury's own is great and half the price of the branded versions !), but I can't be bothered with artificial sweeteners as I don't like the aftertaste ! I'm really, really going to miss bananas - they're so useful for a quick filling snack when my energy levels are low.

My cholesterol isn't too 'bad' at the moment - 5.6, but it always used to be around 5. Would those cholesterol lowering drinks fit into a 'diabetic' diet ?

 

[Patsy B]

i was told when starting to watch my diet to only use Muller Lite yogurts and I try to have one a day....

 

[sally and james]

Why do you try to have one a day, what do you think are the benefits? What reason did the person who advised you give?
Sally

 

[Jamrox]

I only have weight watchers frommage frais or some greek yoghurt with berries and a sprinkle of splendor

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[susieq67]

Why do you try to have one a day, what do you think are the benefits? What reason did the person who advised you give?
Sally

think I can answer this one !

Sliming World recommend the use of Muller Lite yoghurts 'cos weight for weight they are lower in calories than other low fat yoghurts - 175g pot instead of the usual 125g pot for similar amount of calories and being a larger pot tend to fill you up for longer. Plus they are a good source of calcium (228mg per pot which is 28% of the RDA).

 

[sally and james]

Do bear in mind that the 175g pot contains 12.3g of sugar, I think, but might be wrong, that that is two and a half teaspoons full. As a diabetic, you might want to reconsider this.
Try cheese for the calcium.
Sally

 

[Pipp]

thanks for the link - having read it I think it's going to take some doing for me to change a life time's (I'm 67 now) conditioning ! Especially as I've studiously avoided anything that is 'full fat' and opted for the 'high fibre' versions of most things. I think breakfast is going to be the most difficult as I just cannot stomach a cooked breakfast, but if I miss it altogether I can feel extremely 'light headed' by mid-morning.

Don't miss breakfast, just substitute Weetabix with something non carb. Such as berries with yogurt. The low fat label is confusing, as the fat is replaced by sugar. For diabetics it is not so much the calories as the sugar that causes problems.
Confusing I know. But it doesn't need to be difficult.

 

[Bluetit1802]

My cholesterol isn't too 'bad' at the moment - 5.6, but it always used to be around 5. Would those cholesterol lowering drinks fit into a 'diabetic' diet ?

It isn't the total cholesterol you have to worry about. It is the breakdown of the other lipids and triglycerides that are important, plus the ratios between them. Total cholesterol is just the total of all the good stuff and all the bad stuff, plus a few other things we don't get to see from our blood tests. What is your breakdown?

 

[Jamrox]

Do bear in mind that the 175g pot contains 12.3g of sugar, I think, but might be wrong, that that is two and a half teaspoons full. As a diabetic, you might want to reconsider this.
Try cheese for the calcium.
Sally

Thats why I have greek yoghurt with a sprinkle of splendor

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[Bluetit1802]

...... and why I have Greek yogurt with berries thrown in!

 

[Jamrox]

...... and why I have Greek yogurt with berries thrown in!

Me too

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[Daibell]

think I can answer this one !

Sliming World recommend the use of Muller Lite yoghurts 'cos weight for weight they are lower in calories than other low fat yoghurts - 175g pot instead of the usual 125g pot for similar amount of calories and being a larger pot tend to fill you up for longer. Plus they are a good source of calcium (228mg per pot which is 28% of the RDA).

Aren't they loaded with sugar?

 

[susieq67]

It isn't the total cholesterol you have to worry about. It is the breakdown of the other lipids and triglycerides that are important, plus the ratios between them. Total cholesterol is just the total of all the good stuff and all the bad stuff, plus a few other things we don't get to see from our blood tests. What is your breakdown?

no idea what the breakdown is, my GP has never said; he's always seemed happy enough with my yearly blood tests until now !