Menu

Hi @Lou83 and welcome

It can be confusing when first diagnosed.

Assuming you’re on no medication or just metformin for your diabetes, the good news is that eating to control type 2 is very simple! It’s a case of reducing carbohydrates.

If you want to keep things really simple, avoid bread, rice, pasta, potatoes and starchy veg and stick to protein and above ground veg.

So a menu might be:

- Something egg based for breakfast. Scrambled eggs, on their own or with bacon or smoked salmon.
- For lunch/dinner, any form of protein with above ground vegetables.

However there are many ways depending on your comfort with cooking, time available and what you like to eat.

A good starting point is dietdoctor.com which will give you loads of recipe ideas which you can tailor into your dietary preferences.

You might also want to join in this thread: https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/what-have-you-eaten-today.75781/

Hi @Lou83 welcome to a group that you would not have voluntarily become a member of. The good news is that Type 2 is generally manageable and reversable by lifestyle changes, as the underlying condition tends to be something called insulin resistance, that's great news. The perceived downside is that unhealthy foods are sidelined, only you can answer if that is a downside, when there are plenty of other choices.

This is my input which at a guess 85% plus may agree with in terms of the foods that are a good starting / safe point:

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/diabetes-sponsor.179587/#post-2363333

This is a respect site also that has other links off of this one for ideas:
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/recipes/meals

Lou83 said:

Thank you so much. I'm not on medication at the minute, my gp says I'm just dipping my toe in to the diabetes and can be reversed. I am over weight and won't deny this. I love all foods, not a fussy eater so don't mind trying anything. A lot of it is finding alternatives for carbs. My downfall was definitely too much bread. I've cut that right down. Don't eat obvious sugars (chocolate). Just find it hard finding foods without the sugars. Didn't realise how much hidden sugars their is in foods

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I’m a plain and simple person and for the most part am happy without substitutes. However, that’s not the way for everyone, so I’m tagging a few people who might have some good ideas for you in terms of carb substitutes

@DJC3 @shelley262 @MrsA2 @Mrs T 123 @Rachox

Lou83 said:

Thank you so much. I'm not on medication at the minute, my gp says I'm just dipping my toe in to the diabetes and can be reversed. I am over weight and won't deny this. I love all foods, not a fussy eater so don't mind trying anything. A lot of it is finding alternatives for carbs. My downfall was definitely too much bread. I've cut that right down. Don't eat obvious sugars (chocolate). Just find it hard finding foods without the sugars. Didn't realise how much hidden sugars their is in foods

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It isn't just the sugars.
Carbohydrates are starches and sugars - so many people go all wholemeal and think that they are working on their problem.
Chocolate is not high carb, but the sugar in sugary chocolate is. I buy high cocoa chocolate and just have one square - not even one a day these days.
I am going to sort out bread with low carb ingredients soon - I have been accumulating the ingredients for some time now and really ought to get on with it....

Hi @Lou83 and welcome to the forum!
Thanks for the tag @Goonergal . I try to keep under 45g carbs per day these days but at the start I aimed for 100g.
These days I don’t often bother substituting carbs, however I do use cauliflower rice in place of rice and there are some low carb pasta substitutes on the market. I very occasionally make low carb bread but was never a big fan so don’t miss it.
Have a read of the Diet Dr website there’s loads of info available without paying for a subscription:
https://www.dietdoctor.com/?s=Low+carb+diet

Lou83 said:

Thank you so much. I'm not on medication at the minute, my gp says I'm just dipping my toe in to the diabetes and can be reversed. I am over weight and won't deny this. I love all foods, not a fussy eater so don't mind trying anything. A lot of it is finding alternatives for carbs. My downfall was definitely too much bread. I've cut that right down. Don't eat obvious sugars (chocolate). Just find it hard finding foods without the sugars. Didn't realise how much hidden sugars their is in foods

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That's right. Many don't realise that carbs turn into glucose when eaten. Combine this fact that at every meal carbs are included, it is not surprising that even a meals such as bran flakes with milk and an apple for breakfast, for lunch brown bread cheese and tomatoes sandwich and a glass of orange juice and then dinner of mac and cheese, some crisps, a couple of biscuits and a beer - maybe 30 teaspoons of sugar, when a healthy body wakes with around a teaspoon in the blood stream. Over time the end result with snacks etc is insulin resistance, essentially Type 2.

Hi @Lou83 welcome to forum and @Goonergal thank you for tag
I eat a quite varied low carb keto diet - trying to stay below 20g of carbs. I need to have a range of flavours and textures. If you are starting out just you probably are in the habit of eating fairly high carb I used to fill up on whole grain bread, pasta rice etc but it’s amazing how you do adapt over time and once you see the results in terms of weight loss bg improvement and more energy it motivates you to carry on.
While you adapt you may choose low carb alternatives to your fave carbs eg
For rice cauliflower and/ broccoli can be grated into rice and steamed or stir fried or you could buy ready prepared frozen packs you pop into microwave.
For pasta you can buy Konjac noodles or use courgettes in strips or green beans or in a lasagne replace pasta with slices of smoked cheese
For bread you can buy low carb bread eg livlife or Hilo and a lot of new online companies sprouting up selling low carb bread such as seriously low carb or the low carb company. I make my own and freeze it in slices.
For potatoes you can use celeriac which is very adaptable and can be roast, mashed or chipped, cauliflower can also be mashed.
Roast veg and salads with lc ingredients can fill your carb gap on your plate nicely.
As others have said take a good look at the diet doctor website loads of guides and menus freely accessible.
Hope it goes well

Thanks for the tag @Goonergal
@Lou83 welcome, you’re not alone I think most of us felt confused at the beginning.
I agree with what the others have said the diet doctor website is a great place to start.
You commented that a lot of foods have hidden sugars and you’re right, if there is a list of ingredients sugar is usually in there in one form or another ( and it’s often not called sugar - there are loads of different names usually ending -ose) So called healthy alternatives to sugar like honey or agave syrup will affect your BG in just the same way so don’t be fooled into buying them (like I was!)
It’s easier if you buy food which doesn’t have ingredients ie eggs, fish, meat, cheese, above ground veg. Foods that have only one ingredient cant have anything hidden.

Hi & Welcome @Lou83 and thanks for the tag @Goonergal

If your GP has said you are just dipping your toe in the water you may not have to cut back on carbs dramatically - do you know what your Hb1Ac was?

So, I follow a very plain & simple diet - so today for breakfast I just had 2 boiled eggs mashed up in a cup with butter, some days I could have greek yoghurt with some berries on top or chia pudding or bacon, mushrooms & tomatoes or toast made with low carb bread from the seriously low carb bread company

I usually just have 2 meals a day at the moment as I am not working just now which are Brunch and Dinner

For dinner tonight I had salmon with a large salad made up of kale & spinach leaves, on top was cucumber, tomatoes marinated in garlic, a couple of small peppers stuffed with soft cheese, a dollop of coleslaw and some mozzarella & cheddar sprinkled over the top. Other nights I would may be have chicken or steak or an omlette.

I too substitute cauliflower rice for rice, I made a carbonara the other night and I had naked noodles in place of pasta, I have also made the lasagne with the cheese slices instead of pasta sheets which I now prefer! I have made a pizza with a base of mozzarella cheese and milk. I never have crisps now I have nuts instead. I have acquired a taste for dark chocolate and never miss milk chocolate - you will find the less you have of obvious sugar, the less your body will crave it.

I hope the above has gave you food for thought ...

Good luck and keep in touch