Diabetic Diet help
September 3rd, 2012 | 
Author: I am having such issues coming up with acceptable meals for DH now that he’s been diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. We’re hoping that with some weight loss and exercise that he will be able to go off the pills at some point. His count was 101 this morning with the pills. I have SO MUCH to learn…..and I’m just not as young as I used to be. The poor man is going to soon turn into an egg white omelet! He is being so good about this, and I really want to do my part to help him. I’m putting together a binder of recipes and tips that I’ve found, bought 4 or 5 low carb cookbooks, but it all takes time to get it into some kind of working plan. Does anyone have any stand-bys that you use for different meals? Any help greatly appreciated. I am such a problem child!!! Thanks for any input
Posted in * Recipe Requests
Hi Sherry,
Here’s a great site with lots of recipes – scroll down on the right side and you’ll see a listing by category:
http://diabeticgourmet.com/
I still don’t understand how to edit a message, so I’m adding it here: You can also use the Search feature at diabeticgourmet.com
Thanks Meryl, I’ll give those a shot…
If i am remembering correctly Mimi’s was set up as a site for diabetic cooking. If you go to the column on the right of the page and scroll down to “The Old Archive Board” and click it you’ll be taken to the old site’s archives. Everything is in alphabetic order. Scroll down to the D’s and you’ll find about 200 recipes from ‘soup to nuts” as the saying goes.
Hello again, Sherry,
My dad is a diabetic also. Has been for years and is now on insulin injections.
My sisters have done some research and the best advice they came across was to balance the meals. If you think of a dinner plate divided in 3 sections. One section is carbs (brown rice, Yukon gold potatoes, whole wheat pasta) yes we do still need some carbs; the second section as vegetables, preferably green (like brocolli) or strong colours, for some reason carrots, peas and corn are not advised for glycemic index reasons, I think; then the third section as protiens (meats etc). For example; if you have a cup of pasta, have a cup of protien and a cup of vegetables. Even snacks need balancing. If you have some crackers, have some cheese or peanut butter with them. Some brands of peanut butter offer a no sugar-no salt variety. Or have a handful of nuts or sunflower seeds. The key is balancing. If your DH has not been warned of high cholesterol, I would think that having the yolk in the egg, especially if he’s having it with toast (whole wheat bread, of course) would be important protien. One whole egg on whole wheat toast and a piece of fruit would be a good breakfast.
I think you are off to a good start with the low-carb cook books. Decide that you will try 3 new recipes each week and don’t be afraid to “fix” them how you like. Example if a recipe calls for capers and you hate them…leave them out; or if it calls for tarragon and you know he will not like that, substitute basil. Just remember to write down your subs so you can repeat that same dish when he says “Hey, that was good, let’s have that again”. Soon you will have a good repetoir of recipes that you both like. Baby steps, in other words.
Actually, why am I talking like it is your sole responsibility to do this. Why not get him involved in at least, picking out the recipes, too. If nothing else it will help him feel like he’s doing something good for himself and he will hopefully understand what it is he needs to do and it takes some of the pressure off of you. My Mom made the mistake of taking over completely, not that dad complied that much, but when dad was left on his own, he had no clue what to do and we had to educate him as if it were something new to him. By that time he was too old to learn anything new and he couldn’t manage on his own.
This may be a good oppurtunity to get your DH into the kitchen and learn how to take care of himself. I think we do our sons a huge disservice by not showing them the skills they need to survive on their own. I know that was a generation ago, and the concept that cooking is “women’s work” is still prevelent today, but I am teaching my son those skills he will need to survive on his own.
Of course, no matter what you do, someone is always going to tell you that they have a better way. Find what works for the two of you and do it. Of course excercising is very important also, even if it is just a half hour walk.
Well, I didn’t intend that I would have that much to say about this topic. Sorry for rambling on so much. I had a lot of important things that needed saying.
Just one more thing…if you can stand it. Perhaps a pocket carb counter book might be helpful for your DH. Then, when he has choices to make when he’s away, he can be better informed. One of the biggest things I found out was that there is equal amounts of carbs in a meat sandwhich as there is in a donut! Each of those items equals the carbs for an entire meal! What would fill you up more? Hopefully with this knowledge he’ll learn to make better choices.
No advice but good luck! Having to cook for special diets can really be a challenge.
Would your doctor arrange for you to meet with a nutritionist to help you learn how to deal with this?
WOW! This is great! Thank you! I will check out the archives for diabetic info for sure. Becky, I was thinking that very thing and intend to check into that sooner than later. With Meryl’s sites to check and Marian’s advice, I really think we can do better around here. I thank each of you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for all of your time you took to reply. What great folks… Oh, all three of our boys cook well and are quite independent and work well with their wives on the food thing, and DH can care for himself quite well after living in D.C. in an apartment for five years after 9-11-01. That’s a good point, but we are doing ok in that area…so far! He’s been really good and has already dropped about 9 lbs. Rat! I’ve been trying and have only lost 5. No fair, no fair!!!!!! Thanks again!
Sherry, DW has been diabetc for about 30yrs. I’ve been one for about 18. Got lots to share, and I can post it all here if you wish. Might be easier just to e-mail though. There is hope. I know that I went on a diet and had to go off all my meds. Unfortunatly, got mad and went off the diet, gained all 35lbs back plus a few more. Just remember to try to keep the A1C under 7. Mine has been just above, DW has had hers as high as 8.5. I’ll start reading this post every day. Any questions I’ll answer as soon as I can. Between DW and I we got close to 50 years working at this. It may seem overwelming at first, but it is doable. DW puts together most of the meals together, she’s not home right now, but I’ll talk to her today, or in the morning and let you know all I can. The most important thing to remember is that not all programs work for everybody. You have to decide what works for the two of you. It does not do any good to make the food if he won’t eat it. I know that DW makes some things that just don’t work for me. Don’t like, won’t eat. Good luck annd let us know haw things are going.
Thank you Pepe. This weight thing is a real pain…how about it! I weighed 98 lbs and then 110 after having three children. I’m sure that 110 lbs. is still under here somewhere fighting for survival!! Thank you for your kind offer. I can give my email address but it’s not working so well at the moment. I can receive but not send right now. Whatever setting needs fixed got messed up when it was in the shop, and I’ve not had the time (or taken the time) to call and find out what needs done. I’m sure they will give me the dickens for not calling right away…good, nice folks…just like you. Didn’t even know what the A1C is! DH told me that it’s the overall history or something. Where did I miss that in all of the reading. I guess I’ve been concentrating mostly on the recipes, low carb thing. I even bought a bag of Splenda today…. There is so much going on right now that this is overwhelming being one more thing added to the chaos. Thank you again. The email here is rdhixson@embarqmail.com I may try to delete that part of the message at some point. Surely don’t need any spam now either!
Hi Sherry, I’d like to caution you about using artificial sweetners. They are not necessarily a diabetics best friend. When my dad starting eating desserts/candies made with one containing sorbital, it really messed up his digestive tract with a very undesirable “ending” shall we say. It doesn’t effect everyone this way, but it does for some. Now that he doesn’t eat these “diabetic” foods, he’s much better.
When my sisters were learning about managing my dad’s diabetes after Mom passed, the Diabetes Association was a tremendous help; best part, no charge.
Thank you Marian. I can’t stand the stuff personally. DH drinks so much Diet Coke and has for years…yuck! But then I don’t drink carbonated beverages anyway… It killed me buying that big bag of Splenda. I have actually given a large bag from Sam’s Club away after it first came out. One try was enough for me at that time. Do you think DH would be ok with it since he drinks the Diet Coke anyway?
Hi Sherry, I hate to be the one to break this to your DH but diet soft drinks are one of the worst things he could be drinking! I’m not kidding, not one little bit. Yes, they have less sugar than regualr soft drinks, but the stuff they put in them to keep them sweet tasting is almost criminal. According to the research my sisters did, those chemicals are so bad, they should be outlawed. Your DH is not doing himself any favours at all, drinking that stuff. The best thing he can drink for himself is just plain water. Artificial sweetners and flavourings are of no benefit to a diabetic.
I hope you still have the receipt for that big bag of Splenda. I’d try to take it back, if I were you.
Sorry to be so blunt, but many people think that these artificial sweetners are a good replacement for regular sugar. They are not. If someone tries to tell you they are OK, they are probably just trying to make it easy for you and him, but in the long run, it does more harm than good.
Marian, I’ve printed your above comment for DH, and I think he’s been trying to research on his own too. Thank you for getting him looking into this. I do not like the diet foods, preservatives, and additives, etc. that are added to so much these days. Told DH that we’re not going to have to be embalmed when we die as we will already be well preserved…and I do mostly from scratch cooking to avoid those things….but don’t think we’re avoiding it anyway.
A good website with some nice recipes http://ginnyslowcarbkitchen.blogspot.com/
Kamsy, I’ve really been enjoying that site! Thank you!