After I was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of eleven, my diet changed dramatically. I maintain my current healthy weight with a good diet/nutrition plan. If you are planning to lose more than one stone, I would see your doctor for further advice on how to do it risk-free.
I have had diabetes for seven years, but to tell you how I maintain my perfect weight would be completely wrong on my part. However, I can advise you to follow in my footsteps because I know what works and what doesn't. Before I start, I really have to say that I was raised by amazing parents who taught me to eat just about anything, and I did! If you're not into something, there are plenty of other recipes and ideas for diabetics that you'll eat and appreciate.
I am a student and I like to buy fresh and organic produce from where I live. I believe this is important because it is probably the most beneficial for your body and contains more nutrients and vitamins than most supermarket products. I love buying groceries from the town's biweekly farmer's market, which sells great meat and dairy, as well as fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables. This is another important thing to remember, eating fruits and vegetables when they are in season means they taste better and help you. I have a lot of influence on Western European cuisine (especially French and Italian) as you will say, but I don't claim to be a chef and everything is easy to prepare and very convenient.
I have read many diet books and cookbooks/diet books for diabetics and have come to the conclusion that I think they really work. I've combined all the good things from dieting (but not every diet) and put together my own. I call it the Healthy Diet for Teen Diabetes!
The "rules" I will apply are as follows:
Cut down on snacks and then change the types of snacks you eat.
Certainly my biggest mistake, although it's not obvious to me. When I first started college, I had little or no routine, which meant it was hard to fill my day, and I regularly went to the kitchen for a snack, no matter how healthy it was. This is one of the hardest things for some people, but establishing a good routine is essential to good diabetes care. The types of snacks I have to eat are unsalted nuts, unsweetened dried fruit, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables (I like red peppers and fresh cucumbers), dark chocolate (richer, tastier, and you usually only want 2 squares).
Reduce white flour and eat whole grain carbohydrates.
It is the most important part of your diet and the thing that can show the greatest improvement in weight loss. Some diets really focus on this point and are very successful. Whole grains (especially whole grains) are great for you and taste so much better that it's a lot easier to make the switch than you think. Most people are really surprised at the choices you can get at your local supermarket. Again, remember that the best bread for you is the freshest with the fewest preservatives or additives. Brown rice or basmati with a lovely walnut texture is also delicious. Whole grain pasta is great and for your potatoes I would really recommend the smaller baby potatoes.
Start drinking wine, stop drinking cocktails.
The cocktails are full of sugar, coloring and preservatives. As a student, I practiced a lot of going out and didn't drink cocktails, so my favorite drinks were Malibu and Diet Auto when I felt the need to drink and all night long. Then I can supplement with the automatic diet (which contains almost no sugar) and it looks like I'm taking Malibu, who knows. When you're in a restaurant, red wine is way better than anything you can order (except water, of course!). And it has been proven that the antioxidants in red wine are great for maintaining a healthy heart. The recommended amount is one glass a day with dinner.
Start cooking more vegetables and fruits.
Fresh fruits and vegetables are a good way to get all necessary vitamins and minerals. And there are so many ways to cook vegetables, but I think it's best to go raw, followed by steamed. Both ways keep all their natural goodness. I will follow this post to another post with recipes for diabetes.
Drink water more often.
I know you've heard this many times, but the benefits of drinking more water are endless. Some tips on how to get more water into your day is to start by putting water bottles all over the place where you go home or work. So keep one on your desk, on your desk, glass in the kitchen, bedroom, living room, etc. Taste and drink all these glasses, and you will reach 8 glasses a day. The trick is to add a jar every few days. If you try to drink all that water at once, you won't be inclined to drink another 8 glasses, trust me! Try it, it's amazing how amazing you feel.
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