Diabetes ~ What to Eat?

karma1974

Hi, I was recently diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and I am a bit overwhelmed. Happy to have a diagnosis so I can begin to work on reversing it. Any tips on what to eat? I'm retraining myself and habits however can be at a loss what to eat? I'm single as well so cooking is a challenge for me... Any tips?

PeachHibiscus

Hi @karma1974 ! I was diagnosed with Type 2 in March. I was terrified to eat anything that first week after diagnosis. Are you able to have an appointment with a diabetic dietician? My primary care doctor recommended that I go to the diabetes education center that's affiliated with her hospital and I'm really glad I did so. The dietician went over her eating recommendations for me, which included sample meals and how many carbs per meal, and gave me some literature and good advice on carb counting. You'll probably have a lot of trial to see what works for you.

I do eat low carb, but not keto, and I eat a lot of protein and vegetables. I do eat some fruit but generally with a meal rather than on its own. These are some things that have been helping me:

• Non-starchy vegetables are considered "unlimited" in the guidance I received. I love vegetables and I'm a volume eater so I include lots of vegetables with every meal, including breakfast. One thing I especially like to do is chop up a big plate of tomatoes and cucumbers to accompany a lot of meals and season them with a bit of salt and pepper. In the summer it's extra refreshing.
• The dietician recommended Mission's carb balance wraps. I don't taste any difference between these and regular wraps. There are also other brands who have low carb and keto wraps that I'm planning to try. I'd eat these even if I wasn't diabetic. Some mornings I'll put eggs, ham, and cheese in them, roll them up and then put them back in the pan for a few seconds for a really filling breakfast. I'll fill these with ham or turkey (or both), lettuce, shredded carrots and radishes for lunches.
• She also told me about keto bagels and I found some on Amazon. They are not as good as regular bagels but if I add cream cheese and smoked salmon, they're fine and only 90 calories/2 net carbs per bagel. I've also used them for egg sandwiches and as a substitution for hamburger buns.
• I thought ALDI's brand of keto bread was OK but I think the Old Tyme 647 tastes better. It does have a little more carbs but I haven't noticed any issues with blood sugar so I will probably stick with this. I found keto jam and can now make pretty good peanut or almond butter and jam sandwiches.

mychellelynne

When I was first diagnosed, I did not go Keto. I started off by making better choices. I decided I liked to eat a filling breakfast, like an egg with bacon. Lunch would be a salad with a meat like chicken. Dinner would consist of a meat, starch and a veggie. I tried to keep it simple. I feel like when I added too many choices then it got consuming. I would start off slow, simple and delicious.

One of my favorites is a pan dinner. I would cut up chicken tenderloins, broccoli and a sliced, raw sweet potato on a sheet pan. Drizzle a little olive oil and spices on top and bake in the oven. It was delicious and filling but also felt like a cheat meal.

Snacks could be pepperoni/cheese, a small apple and I am fond of Choc Zero when I want a sweet treat.

jsmestflowers

I hear you loud and clear; you feel overwhelmed because IT IS overwhelming. I experienced the same thing. I think I have watched ALL the youtube videos . I also went to a dietician and got the standard chart with the choices; it helped a LOT. What worked for me was a touch different (and you will have to test and see what works best for you as well, we are all a touch different).

Although I never succeed (cause it is impossible to hit this totally), I try to have zero carbs. When I made this change, my blood sugar dropped dramatically (at about 90 on average now). Yeah, it's strict cause those carbs sneak into many things. Despite my efforts, I get around 5-10 net carbs daily. Zero is a goal
I avoid sugar and bread like I am paid to

* The standard plan gives you one carb choice; I chose none (cept for my Hobbit drink )

That being said, I eat salads with not a lot on them (Balsamic vinegar as dressing (I would do oil as well (extra virgin olive oil), but I don't care for it)) and meat, nuts, eggs, lots of veggies.

I can't eat those zero-carb bread products (they spike my blood sugar). I don't know why (they are supposed to be zero net carbs), but they do, so you might want to check your sugar after eating them.

Ok, so I will share a recipe that I do (and it's not zero carbs (as I said, I never actually managed to hit zero). I call the "Hobbit Drink" just cause I am a nerd like that.

8 ounces of water
1 Chamomile tea bag
1 tsp Ceylon Cinnamon (not just regular cinnamon, Ceylon is key)
One tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar (I use the Bragg brand)
1/2 squeezed lemon juice
(not an original recipe from me, I think I got it from SugarMD on youtube)

To me, this taste fairly bad!
But I have found that it dramatically reduces the "Dawn effect, " where you get a blood sugar spike when you wake up. I drink this brew every night; it works.

To me, I eat, and I test, see what it does. If it spikes my blood sugar, I don't eat that anymore. Some things that spike my blood sugar make no sense to me why they do, but they do (like zero-carb bread stuff and Brussels sprouts), but well, they do. I could do enough research and figure out why, but I don't eat em again. (and I like Brussels sprouts, dang it!)

I have been able to get rid of insulin shots and could probably get rid of metformin (just taking it very slowly).

I recommend starting with the choices method (be strict) and then tweaking it as you figure out what works best for your body; for better or worse, we are all different. But yeah, choices are a great starting point.

I may be projecting a bit here, but it's scary, overwhelming, and just plain sucks, but you can do it; lots of stories about people who beat diabetes with diet control and exercise (mainly diet).

All the comments here were excellent, and there are a lot of good people on these boards that want to help. You are not alone in your journey.

Best wishes for your success!
J