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Diabetes and the elderly

Pinkorchid

Pinkorchid

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,927
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
There must be many other people like myself who have been diagnosed with diabetes in their 70s. I was 76 when I was diagnosed T2 last year I know I did not have it before that as I have annual blood tests and the last one tipped over to 7.3
For many elderly people who are diagnosed with diabetes changing the eating habits of a life time would be a problem for them and many would not be able to afford the LCHF way of eating even if they knew about it.
We know from statistics that many pensioners are living on or below the breadline so to be able to buy the higher priced foods that would be better for them is not possible. It is the carby foods like bread, potatoes, baked beans, tin soups and cereals that are the basics for them along with some cheaper processed foods and many can't afford to buy meat at all. So what chance have they got of controlling their diabetes they are never going to know or be able to afford a better way of eating. Some people here who have to keep to a food budget say they struggle to eat the right foods as they are expensive so for many pensioners it is the same
I know my husband....he was diagnosed at 82 with steroid induced T2.. and I are lucky that we do not have to budget our food but it is the not having things we have eaten and enjoyed all our life that can be really difficult sometimes
On TV this morning it was said they are finding that many elderly people now suffer from anorexia something that has not really been known before but was thought just to be a younger persons illness but not any more apparently
 
I changed my diet suddenly when I learnt about the benefits of low carb. I was suffering a range of NHS/DUK diet induced complications which were soon reversed. Like you I don't have a financial constraint.

Saturated fat is generally not expensive - full cream milk, cheese, mince, bacon, ham, eggs etc, while vegetables are good "fillers" that don't metabolise to blood glucose. We can eat less & remain satisfied, rather than snacking.

What we need also is for the nursing home & prepacked elderly meal providers to offer low carb, sat fat meals. And of course the hospitals.
 
My husband and I are pensioners so on. a small income but I buy good quality local.meat e.g. A large gammon joint costs £6 I freeze half of it the rest I roast ,it doesn't shrink so it makes 2roast dinners each and on the next day there is plenty left to make omelettes so 50 pence per meal for the meat .I look out. for reduced sections in supermarkets Some veg are expensive but cabbage is quite cheap so you can bulk out caulli and broccoli with it Swede instead of potatoes roasted or mashed with celeriac .Butter is not expensive.in lidl and they sell.chicken cheaply if you buy enough to freeze .I think pensioners enjoy a challenge so point them to this forum and away from the Healthy eating plate
CAROL
 
IanD said:
What we need also is for the nursing home & prepacked elderly meal providers to offer low carb, sat fat meals. And of course the hospitals.
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I am hoping this never happens to me, and I'm sure we all do, but for many of us it will happen. One day we may be in a care home of one sort or another, or long term hospital incarceration, and this is my one fear of growing old, ( I should say older as I'm already old :( ). On the other hand, perhaps it won't matter too much as from what I've seen of care home food, the portions are minuscule and overloaded with boiled ham and limp salads.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
I am hoping this never happens to me, and I'm sure we all do, but for many of us it will happen. One day we may be in a care home of one sort or another, or long term hospital incarceration, and this is my one fear of growing old, ( I should say older as I'm already old :( ). On the other hand, perhaps it won't matter too much as from what I've seen of care home food, the portions are minuscule and overloaded with boiled ham and limp salads.
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Not at my dad's care home, It's often the 'bad' news that gets commented on, so not all are the same.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
Agreed, they are not all the same. Your dad is lucky.
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That's why we choose it, I know they do have residents with diabetes, but what type, I don't know, also Coeliac and those with allergies too, one is allergic to mushrooms, so different food can be cooked or modified to cater for them. A jug of water is on every table for lunchtime dinner too.
 
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