I really need help with regard to ready meals!!

[Inka]

He does, he has been on Metformin for several years. However, when he was in hospital they added something else as well. I have no idea what it is. Also, according to him he left hospital without a discharge letter.

That ‘something else’ might be a drug that lowers blood sugar and which will affect his dietary choices, so it’s important to find out what it is. Does he have this new medication? If so, get him to tell you what it is.

 

[Pumper_Sue]

Also people have to remember if the gentleman weighs 18stone then he didn't get that way by eating small portions. So this needs to be taken into consideration.

Perhaps find a local cook who can batch make meals to go in the freezer so larger portion but with plenty of veg and meat so he is full and doesn't have to snack.

 

[Leadinglights]

It sounds as if he is one of the many who think that just being given metformin will do the trick in managing blood glucose levels without making the needed dietary changes if he has been taking then a long time.
The risk is that by cutting the amount he eats at meals will then mean snacking on high carb foods. It does need a whole package approach.
The shakes based diet may help to give him a kick start so he should speak to his GP as they may be supportive of that approach.

 

[Deleted member 21371]

I was in Morrison yesterday, but I couldn't find any frozen ready meals for one. In fact, I thought the selection of frozen food was very poor. I like your tag line, by the way. Just looked up the Newcastle diet. If I can get hold of a dietician, that might suit my friend.

They aren't in the freezer, they're in the chiller section.
They can be frozen though.
They are actually aimed at kids, but are a very good meal compared to other adult ones.

 

[Deleted member 21371]

Also people have to remember if the gentleman weighs 18stone then he didn't get that way by eating small portions. So this needs to be taken into consideration.

Perhaps find a local cook who can batch make meals to go in the freezer so larger portion but with plenty of veg and meat so he is full and doesn't have to snack.

That is true. But he is bed ridden, dependent on carers.
He may not want to face the fact he will be needing less calories, but it has to happen at some stage.
A smaller meal bulked up with a portion of veg may be a start.

 

[Windy]

or soups, either tinned or those tubs of soup. Easy enough to heat up and fairly filling and lower calorie. As long as it's not something like potato soup, shouldn't be too carbohydratey. Soup plus a bowl of frozen berries and some yogurt would be a nice lunch.

 

[Fonteyn22]

Actually, he says he isn't hungry at all, so now might be exactly the time to do a low calorie diet. However, I am not sure how it works for people who cannot move much, so professional advice would be necessary.

 

[Dominic DUK]

Hi there,
Several years ago an old friend of mine was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, but has never taken it seriously. Recently he was rushed into hospital having lost the use of his legs, which apparently was because his blood sugar levels were sky high. He has now been sent home, but he is now bed ridden and has carers coming in 4 times a day.
I have been named next of kin as he has no-one else. Can someone recommend suitable ready meals for one that the carers can just pop in the microwave? Meals that will give him a good, balanced diet and give him the nutrients he needs? A further complication is that he is fat - at least 18 stone I should think. I am quite desperate, as the hospital have given no help or advice with regard to meal plans, and he has no food at all in the house. I have found one on line - Oakhouse foods, but it is not clear whether the meals are for one or two.

Any suggestions gratefully accepted.
Moderators, feel free to put in another forum if you feel it would be better elsewhere.

Hello @Fonteyn22 thank you so much for reaching out. It is lovely to see how caring you are towards your friend! Overall, we would not suggest people with Diabetes to eat instant meals, as many of them are high in carb, sugar and fat content. However we do have a list of meal plans which you can view here https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/enjoy-food/eating-with-diabetes/meal-plans 🙂

 

[AndBreathe]

Hello @Fonteyn22 thank you so much for reaching out. It is lovely to see how caring you are towards your friend! Overall, we would not suggest people with Diabetes to eat instant meals, as many of them are high in carb, sugar and fat content. However we do have a list of meal plans which you can view here https://bit.ly/3ONpInO 🙂

@Dominic UK , it is a very great shame that you only cite calories for your the low cal, and for the low carb, not nutritional information at all. Of course "2 slices of rye bread" can vary in size/thickness and therefore nutritional values, but indicative values woul;d be helpful - especially as you offer up the breakdown for the much less carb leaning Baked Eggs.

 

[Robin]

Hello @Fonteyn22 thank you so much for reaching out. It is lovely to see how caring you are towards your friend! Overall, we would not suggest people with Diabetes to eat instant meals, as many of them are high in carb, sugar and fat content. However we do have a list of meal plans which you can view here https://bit.ly/3ONpInO 🙂

The whole point of this thread is that the OP is asking on behalf of someone who CANNOT cook from scratch and is reliant on carers heating an instant meal. My mother relied on Wiltshire Farm foods when she was too frail to cook for herself (incapable of lifting a saucepan, but able to lift a tray into the microwave). I found them to be as healthy and nutritious as things you’d cook yourself.
The other thing we made use of was the local meals on wheels service, which produced and delivered a home cooked meal twice a week. Unfortunately this service is now rarer than hens teeth, with a lot of the service now delivering frozen ready meals. It depends on your local area, we are lucky still to have it twice a week in our small town.

 

[Fonteyn22]

@Dominic DUK Thanks for the link, but I had already looked through the meal plans on the website. They are a great source of information, but like all meal plans they require a great deal of advance planning. Another friend of mine (who has type 2 diabetes) told me he tried to follow one of them and decided it was a bit too complicated, especially for one person. I can't comment specifically on them myself, as I didn't go into them in great detail. However, generally I find that for people living alone, any diet plan, whether you want to lose weight or control your diabetes, seems to include rather a lot of ingredients that are mentioned in a certain proportion (e.g. half an avocado), and are not mentioned for the rest of the week. Are people supposed to throw the other half away?? There is always the temptation for someone to eat more than they should in order to avoid waste. At least, that is what I have found. 🙂

 

[Leadinglights]

@Dominic DUK Thanks for the link, but I had already looked through the meal plans on the website. They are a great source of information, but like all meal plans they require a great deal of advance planning. Another friend of mine (who has type 2 diabetes) told me he tried to follow one of them and decided it was a bit too complicated, especially for one person. I can't comment specifically on them myself, as I didn't go into them in great detail. However, generally I find that for people living alone, any diet plan, whether you want to lose weight or control your diabetes, seems to include rather a lot of ingredients that are mentioned in a certain proportion (e.g. half an avocado), and are not mentioned for the rest of the week. Are people supposed to throw the other half away?? There is always the temptation for someone to eat more than they should in order to avoid waste. At least, that is what I have found. 🙂

One good investment if you live on your own is a reasonably sized freezer then you can even double up on the recipes and portion them out and freeze for 'homemade ready meals'
Even for 2 of us I do that and there is always something in the freezer.

 

[Fonteyn22]

One good investment if you live on your own is a reasonably sized freezer then you can even double up on the recipes and portion them out and freeze for 'homemade ready meals'
Even for 2 of us I do that and there is always something in the freezer.

Oh, I always do that, but I live with someone. I frequently cook double the amount and freeze the other portion. Bit difficult to freeze half an avocado though.

 

[Leadinglights]

Oh, I always do that, but I live with someone. I frequently cook double the amount and freeze the other portion. Bit difficult to freeze half an avocado though.

It is usually OK if you wrap in cling film and put in the fridge or make into guacamole and squirt lemon juice on the surface and keep in the fridge for a day. I have actually frozen guacamole.

 

[Fonteyn22]

It is usually OK if you wrap in cling film and put in the fridge or make into guacamole and squirt lemon juice on the surface and keep in the fridge for a day. I have actually frozen guacamole.

That is good to know, although as I am part of a couple I never have spare halves of avocado lying around. I simply used that as an example of many of the problems with following meal plans if you are single.

 

[Pumper_Sue]

Hello @Fonteyn22 thank you so much for reaching out. It is lovely to see how caring you are towards your friend! Overall, we would not suggest people with Diabetes to eat instant meals, as many of them are high in carb, sugar and fat content. However we do have a list of meal plans which you can view here https://bit.ly/3ONpInO 🙂

Perhaps you need to go and have a look at more ready meals as that's quite a sweeping statement. There is so much verity these days there's more than enough choice to pick and choose for each and everyone's dietary needs including people with diabetes.

 

[Deleted member 21371]

This seems quite reasonable?

Even a basic Young's fish pie from Iceland isn't unreasonable unless you are a strict low carb diet, and this is potato topped.
Just over 12g of carbs per 100g.

 

[nonethewiser]

Nowt wrong with ready meals for those that cant cook, some quality ones nowadays, M&S Morrisons Best for example.

 

[NotWorriedAtAll]

Nowt wrong with ready meals for those that cant cook, some quality ones nowadays, M&S Morrisons Best for example.

I found this one in Tesco - coq au vin - microwave in 13 minutes.

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/308835939

It says it is for two but served with a big green salad - the calories and carb content would be fine for someone with diabetes and on meds.
And this one - Beef bourgignon - slightly higher cals and carbs but still ok.

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/308825618

Tinned food can sometimes be okay. At a pinch I sometimes go with

Tesco curries - check the carb content- different ones are better than others.
Again if you serve it with salad it is filling and okay now and then.

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/307743987

Eggs are great if the carers are ok with that. I buy white ones and then hard boil them and keep them in the fridge for a quick salad or just as a snack.
Nothing wrong with just eating a whole avocado as a meal with a pinch of salt - I do that on days when I am in a rush.

Cheese is good too. with a tomato and some salad. Washed and bagged salads are very useful as a quick meal. Sometimes I have a bag of salad with some salt and eat them like crisps.

Sorry I can't be much more help at the moment.

 

[Fonteyn22]

These are all really helpful suggestions, thanks everyone I do appreciate it. My friend has updated me on the initial food I got him. He said the Greek yoghurt upset his stomach. Not sure why that would be, never heard of yoghurt doing that before.