About meal plan (% of carbs, fat, and protein)

If you want to go strictly by the numbers then start with the following:
Fat: 1 gram = 9 calories
Protein: 1 gram = 4 calories
Carbohydrates: 1 gram = 4 calories

These are not exact (there are decimal places floating around) but then I don't see this as an exact science anyway and I also try to focus on the quality of what I eat at least as much as the quantity -- for example, 50g of carbs from a soft drink has a much more dramatic impact on my BGs than 50g of carbs from broccoli -- and I prefer to eat real whole food rather than focus on macronutrients. Real food I find, is more satisfying and I am now able to trust my body to tell me when I have eaten enough -- remember that nourishment is not just about energy (calories).

But given that you want 1,200 calories per day, with Protein fixed at 45g or 180 calories (45 X 4) and Carbs at no more than 90g or 360 calories (90 X 4) then that leaves a minimum of 660 calories from Fat (1,200 - 180 - 360) or 73g (660 / 9).

If you eat fewer Carbs then the amount of Fat goes up a corresponding amount -- with each 10g of Carbs (40 calories) being the equivalent energy of 4.5g Fat.

My maths are not good enough to give the exact percentages of energy per macronutrient but that would be described as low-carb/high-fat (or LCHF as they say in Sweden) with around 55-60% of the energy from Fat.

Good Luck

I think you have the right approach Sandy but of course your BG tests and any other health markers (BP, HDL, Triglycerides) that are checked by your HCPs may also help guide your direction.

So long as you focus on healthy, naturally occurring fats -- I make a point to avoid the recent industrially processed vegetable oils (last time I squeezed corn on the cob, oil did not come out) -- and get them from real whole sources... nuts, butter, chicken with the skin on, cold water fish etc... I see no reason to be concerned about the popular myths around "arterycloggingsaturatedfats" :wink:

Some people may look for ways to add Fats to their diet and I do make a point of using plenty of butter on steamed green veg for example, but in many cases it can be as simple as just buying real whole food rather than the "low fat" pretend version. Regular mince is also cheaper than extra lean -- or at least it is until Cameron decides to follow the Danes and tax it :evil:

As you can see above, it is not about the volume of the food so much as the proportion of energy from it --- you can see how for only 73g of Fat you are getting much more energy (along with many other fat-soluble micronutrients) than you get from 90g of Carbs. I'd swear sometimes that when some people hear I am eating an "high fat" diet they imagine me sitting on the sofa at night eating from a tub of lard with a spoon :mrgreen:

You might be interested to read the English blog of this Swedish Doctor Andrea Eenfeldt MD...

I think you would find that even our orthodox nutritionists would pass 73g/day for a woman.

Can I recommend something radical?

Since you are a diabetic, it's good that you count carbs. However, don't count anything else. Just focus on eating nutritious and unprocessed foods, and let the way you feel tell you whether you are eating the right things.

I don't think that modern science fully understands what is the best diet for human beings, but we do know that (1) diabetics need to keep their carbs down, and (2) the less processed a food is, the better it is for you. If you follow those two principles, you should do fine.

I agree with Pianoman about the fats. I read years ago that they make vegetable oil from rancid fats that they heat to extremely high temperatures in order to deodorize them.

But why are you counting calories? It seems that you just need to count carbs and proteins.

My advice is to avoid expensive branded diet foods and just follow sensible diet approaches based on the exerience of members on this forum and elsewhere

If myfitnesspal is a US site, don't forget they include fibre in total carbs.

Yes, I look at it that way too. But now I use Fitday.com, and type in the info. from the back of Uk packets to make my own list of custom foods without fibre. I eat a lot of foods repeatedly anyway so this isn't too tiresome once you get it set up.