New to diabetes and a bit of a problem

[Sammy]

Hi I am the father of the person who has diabetes, she has anxiety and autism so I am asking on her behalf.she has never eaten fruit of veg from the age of five due to her not liking the texture.how would you manage diabetes with this problem

 

[trophywench]

Hiya - well as diabetes of any type is much more to do with the carbohydrate content of food it isn't clear to me why fruit or veg, has much to do with it - as long as your daughter is getting all the necessary trace elements and vitamins in the remainder of her diet.

What type of diabetes does she have and has she been prescribed any medication for it? Is she overweight?

 

[Pumper_Sue]

Hi I am the father of the person who has diabetes, she has anxiety and autism so I am asking on her behalf.she has never eaten fruit of veg from the age of five due to her not liking the texture.how would you manage diabetes with this problem

Hello Sammy and welcome to the forum.
I eat very little veg or fruit and have survived for 57 years with type 1 diabetes 🙂

 

[Sammy]

Hiya - well as diabetes of any type is much more to do with the carbohydrate content of food it isn't clear to me why fruit or veg, has much to do with it - as long as your daughter is getting all the necessary trace elements and vitamins in the remainder of her diet.

What type of diabetes does she have and has she been prescribed any medication for it? Is she overweight? She has type 2 and medication is a tablet gliclazide its her second day coming from a 26 reading to todays 18 hopefully lower tommorow. I have read a fair bit about it but I am just looking for variety for her it i think that's gonna be the problem

 

[Sammy]

Yeah carbs seem the thing been looking for variety for her she loved rice but brown rice is no good she hates it.do you shop at normal supermarkets or other places that do specialist food for diabetics

 

[Sammy]

Yeah carbs seem the thing been looking for variety for her she loved rice but brown rice is no good she hates it.do you shop at normal supermarkets or other places that do specialist food for diabetics

Hiya - well as diabetes of any type is much more to do with the carbohydrate content of food it isn't clear to me why fruit or veg, has much to do with it - as long as your daughter is getting all the necessary trace elements and vitamins in the remainder of her diet.

What type of diabetes does she have and has she been prescribed any medication for it? Is she overweight?

not really overweight its types and she has 2 tablets a day

 

[Leadinglights]

It is not legal to market foods labelled as diabetic foods so people have to make their choices of food to suit whatever regime they have adopted to manage their diabetes.
They will be looking at the TOTAL carbohydrate of a food and making their decision based on their tolerance to those carbs
Many people will restrict their carbohydrate intake based on testing the effect food has on their blood glucose levels using a home monitor.
Basing their diet on meat, fish, eggs, dairy, cheese, vegetables and salads with only small portions of high carb foods like potatoes, rice, pasta, bread, cereals, tropical fruit as well as cakes, biscuits and sugary drinks which they will probably cut out completely.

 

[Mrs Mimoo]

I wonder have you tried blending veg in to sauces like home made pasta sauce? There are some really nice varieties. I like red peppers grilled and tomatoes in all shapes? Ratatoille is nice. Also ovenroasting veg with olive oil, courgettes, onion and peppers? Adding a sprinkle of low fat cheese or some sauce can help. Chinese garlic broccoli stir fried is good?

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Sammy

Hope you can manage to find some foods that suit her BG levels, and don’t trigger her anxiety. Must be very difficult for her to have that very high sensitivity to texture, and for the food she has always found the most acceptable to suddenly now be potentially problematic.

Some people find basmati rice slightly gentler on the BGs, and perhaps keeping the portion size down and eating little and often may help. Would checking BGs with a meter be something she could consider? That was she could get guidance as to how her body is responding to different foods / meals.

 

[janw]

Aldi and Asda sell some konjac rice, can't remember their respective names, but Naked Rice and Slim Rice are a couple I have bought, as well as different types of pasta/noodles, they are low carb and taste pretty good with your main dish. Courgette "noodles" are a good replacement for pasta too. I imagine other supermarkets would sell the non-rice rice, so it is worth checking in your usual store - they can be a bit hidden away, not with the normal rice/pasta, so check around the "free from" shelves.

 

[Leadinglights]

Aldi and Asda sell some konjac rice, can't remember their respective names, but Naked Rice and Slim Rice are a couple I have bought, as well as different types of pasta/noodles, they are low carb and taste pretty good with your main dish. Courgette "noodles" are a good replacement for pasta too. I imagine other supermarkets would sell the non-rice rice, so it is worth checking in your usual store - they can be a bit hidden away, not with the normal rice/pasta, so check around the "free from" shelves.

I tried the konjac rice and I'm afraid the smell put me off but thought no I'll give it a try but NO it went in the bin.

 

[Lucyr]

Aldi and Asda sell some konjac rice, can't remember their respective names, but Naked Rice and Slim Rice are a couple I have bought, as well as different types of pasta/noodles, they are low carb and taste pretty good with your main dish. Courgette "noodles" are a good replacement for pasta too. I imagine other supermarkets would sell the non-rice rice, so it is worth checking in your usual store - they can be a bit hidden away, not with the normal rice/pasta, so check around the "free from" shelves.

I’d be surprised if an autistic person with sensory issues around food could manage to try any of these items.

What kinds of foods does she like to eat, autistics are usually most comfortable with plainer carbs but does she eat meat, fish, or eggs too? Could she work on having slightly more of the protein and slightly less of the carbs? Are there any fruit and veg she would be willing to work towards trying?

 

[janw]

I tried the konjac rice and I'm afraid the smell put me off but thought no I'll give it a try but NO it went in the bin.

I've not tried it plain, but I used it in my spanish rice recipe instead of normal rice and the family ate it without even a query, they hadn't noticed any difference. Maybe because it was cooked in with the other ingredients it made it more palatable? I can't remember which make I used though and that could make a difference maybe.

 

[Mrs Mimoo]

I’d be surprised if an autistic person with sensory issues around food could manage to try any of these items.

What kinds of foods does she like to eat, autistics are usually most comfortable with plainer carbs but does she eat meat, fish, or eggs too? Could she work on having slightly more of the protein and slightly less of the carbs? Are there any fruit and veg she would be willing to work towards trying?

Konjak is a shock if its not rinsed properly. It smells like compost. But if rinsed, dried and cooked with a home made low sugar sauce and good seasoning, it's quite good.

 

[Lucyr]

Konjak is a shock if its not rinsed properly. It smells like compost. But if rinsed, dried and cooked with a home made low sugar sauce and good seasoning, it's quite good.

A lot of the food issues around autism are sensory-based, if it smells terrible when you open the packet I wouldn't be able to bring myself to try it even if rinsing and cooking it does make it taste nice. Things have to have the "right" texture, and often people are sensitive to even things like a different brand of the same food to normal. It is possible to try new things, so it could be that konjak is achievable to try, but it's difficult and can be easier to try adjusting portions of existing 'safe' foods to start with.