Hello folks, newbie here

[Tennis123]

Hi any tips on diet would be great, unfortunately I am a comfort eater. Not the best at controlling sugar.

 

[Inka]

Welcome @Tennis123 🙂 I find the best way to avoid tempting foods is not to buy them in the first place. Sounds simple, but it works for me.Having a hot drink can help - choose something nice but carb-free.

For your overall diet, a good place to start is to look at what you’re eating now and see where you could make improvements. You’re looking to watch carbs, both sweet and savoury.

 

[Tennis123]

Welcome @Tennis123 🙂 I find the best way to avoid tempting foods is not to buy them in the first place. Sounds simple, but it works for me.Having a hot drink can help - choose something nice but carb-free.

For your overall diet, a good place to start is to look at what you’re eating now and see where you could make improvements. You’re looking to watch carbs, both sweet and savoury.

Thanks for your advice, I appreciate this and yes I am determined to make a difference x

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome.

I still comfort eat but I don't get cravings nearly so often since I adopted a low carb way of eating and I buy low carb comfort foods now instead, so a pot of olives with feta, or some really nice cheese or nuts or a pot of feta stuffed peppadew peppers or my really guilty pleasure.... a packet of pork scratchings. A boiled egg with a teaspoon of full fat mayonnaise can be filling and tide me over a wobbly spell or just going out for a walk. Aldi do some packs of Gluten Free Nut Bars (Chocolate and sea salt) which are only 5.9g carbs per bar if I remember rightly, Morrisons do something similar which is 7.9g carbs. Eat them slowly and chew them well and take time to actually enjoy it. I think pre-diagnosis I often lost sight of the enjoyment in just guzzling stuff because of the craving.
A coffee with double cream is now one of my real treats and I find that so comforting. I always said that I would rather not drink coffee as drink it without sugar, but since my diagnosis and cutting out most of the carbs in my diet I am finding that my tastes have changed and I enjoy other flavours. It also turns out that following a low fat diet was not doing me any favours as fat takes longer to digest and therefore keeps you feeling full for longer. It provides slow release energy and it slows the release of glucose from the carbs you do eat. It kind of acts like a buffer for your BG levels and along with a lower carb diet helps reduce the glucose spikes and troughs which can trigger the craving for comfort food.
I feel so much more in control of my eating since I cut the carbs and started eating more fat and surprisingly my cholesterol levels have gone down instead of up. I am not the only person to experience this and it seems that cholesterol may be more linked to excess carbs than fat in our diet.

Anyway, those would be my top tips

 

[Tennis123]

Hi and welcome.

I still comfort eat but I don't get cravings nearly so often since I adopted a low carb way of eating and I buy low carb comfort foods now instead, so a pot of olives with feta, or some really nice cheese or nuts or a pot of feta stuffed peppadew peppers or my really guilty pleasure.... a packet of pork scratchings. A boiled egg with a teaspoon of full fat mayonnaise can be filling and tide me over a wobbly spell or just going out for a walk. Aldi do some packs of Gluten Free Nut Bars (Chocolate and sea salt) which are only 5.9g carbs per bar if I remember rightly, Morrisons do something similar which is 7.9g carbs. Eat them slowly and chew them well and take time to actually enjoy it. I think pre-diagnosis I often lost sight of the enjoyment in just guzzling stuff because of the craving.
A coffee with double cream is now one of my real treats and I find that so comforting. I always said that I would rather not drink coffee as drink it without sugar, but since my diagnosis and cutting out most of the carbs in my diet I am finding that my tastes have changed and I enjoy other flavours. It also turns out that following a low fat diet was not doing me any favours as fat takes longer to digest and therefore keeps you feeling full for longer. It provides slow release energy and it slows the release of glucose from the carbs you do eat. It kind of acts like a buffer for your BG levels and along with a lower carb diet helps reduce the glucose spikes and troughs which can trigger the craving for comfort food.
I feel so much more in control of my eating since I cut the carbs and started eating more fat and surprisingly my cholesterol levels have gone down instead of up. I am not the only person to experience this and it seems that cholesterol may be more linked to excess carbs than fat in our diet.

Anyway, those would be my top tips

Thanks for your helpful reply, it's good of you to take the time to reply, I appreciate that. I think your right about carbs, looking at my diet, this is what I have to work at, as I have already cut the sugar, having a higher glucose blood sugar has shocked me into getting a grip. But also the diabetes UK have been good and I'm grateful for all your advice. Keep well

 

[Felinia]

Hi and welcome

Do you know what your HbA1c was on diagnosis (the blood test they did to confirm diabetes)? If you are not much above 48 (in the low to mid 50's) a few simple tweaks to reduce your carbs a bit might be all you need. If you live alone and have the willpower of a gnat (me!!) it's best not to have any treats with glucose in the house. But if you share your home, it gets a bit more tricky. I snack on prawns or cold cooked chicken. Best wishes

 

[rebrascora]

It was my diagnosis which gave me the kick up the pants to cut the sugar. It was this forum which helped me to realise that all carbs were too high and causing a problem. It was also this forum which helped me to see that more fat would make it sustainable/enjoyable and help to stabilize things. I did quite a bit of research before I felt confident enough to go against the NHS low fat advice and I felt guilty about it for quite a long time afterwards, but for me it has revolutionized how I eat and I feel so much better for it. Just having whole milk and whole natural Greek yoghurt and not buying low fat products like mayonnaise and coleslaw etc. It seems like it wouldn't make a big difference but it really does and when you cut the carbs, you need to get energy from another source and there is only protein and fat to choose from and fat has the most favourable impact on BG levels. I feel younger and fitter than I have for years eating this way, so there have been lots of positives including that I now no longer suffer with debilitating migraines....not had one since diagnosis 2.5 years ago when I radically changed my diet and best of all, I can now enjoy a glass of red wine with a chunk of cheese on an evening which was my only known trigger! The human body is weird and amazing all at the same time!

 

[Gwynn]

Yup I can second everything that Rebrascora says. Low carb, higher fat, protein. Now fitter and more well than I have ever been....ever!

 

[Christy]

I'm also agreeing with all the comments above. Don't buy tempting foods unless very small treat size, try low carb and some exercise. I would add try to eat a healthy meal with enough veg that makes you feel full for a good while. Comfort eating is sometimes because you're bored or cos temptation is there. Maybe try to plan things to do if you can. I used to eat late at night because everyone was in bed and I could "hear" the snacks calling me Good luck whatever you try.

 

[Tennis123]

I'm also agreeing with all the comments above. Don't buy tempting foods unless very small treat size, try low carb and some exercise. I would add try to eat a healthy meal with enough veg that makes you feel full for a good while. Comfort eating is sometimes because you're bored or cos temptation is there. Maybe try to plan things to do if you can. I used to eat late at night because everyone was in bed and I could "hear" the snacks calling me Good luck whatever you try.

Thanks