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Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
Mum had just been diagnosed at 74 years old
- Thread starter maria74
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The doctor has suggested that she watches her carbohydrate intake and tries to control it through her diet and exercise before looking at the possibility of needing to manage it through tablets ( she is due to go back and see the doctor in April )
She goes for about a 20 minute walk each day if she can but otherwise does a bit housework and sits and knits!
Needing to lose weight myself we both have been following the Hairy Dieters recipes but them with their recipes is that they tell you what the calories are but from Mum's point of view they do not give the carbohydrate content.
Mum not having a computer or any interest in having one to do some research! I bought her the 'Carb & Calorie Counter by Chris Cheyette & Yello Baloha' book which he has been interested in but does anyone have any suggestions of other books / recipe ideas so i can make this as simple as possible for her please.
I live with her so from my point of view i want to continue following the Hairy Dieters diet myself and out of pure laziness on her part I get the shopping and she eats the same meals as me but if these aren't suitable because of not knowing the carb content then i will have to try and encourage her to do her own meals.
If this post needs to be copied and move to a different board then please let me know.
Thank you in advance 🙂
She goes for about a 20 minute walk each day if she can but otherwise does a bit housework and sits and knits!
Needing to lose weight myself we both have been following the Hairy Dieters recipes but them with their recipes is that they tell you what the calories are but from Mum's point of view they do not give the carbohydrate content.
Mum not having a computer or any interest in having one to do some research! I bought her the 'Carb & Calorie Counter by Chris Cheyette & Yello Baloha' book which he has been interested in but does anyone have any suggestions of other books / recipe ideas so i can make this as simple as possible for her please.
I live with her so from my point of view i want to continue following the Hairy Dieters diet myself and out of pure laziness on her part I get the shopping and she eats the same meals as me but if these aren't suitable because of not knowing the carb content then i will have to try and encourage her to do her own meals.
If this post needs to be copied and move to a different board then please let me know.
Thank you in advance 🙂
Drummer
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
The main foods to avoid are those which are high in carbohydrate, which after the usual sugary ones, are usually the ones considered healthy.
Potatoes are best avoided and replaced with a lower carb option, cauliflower swede or turnip, aubergine or courgette, for instance.
Grains are high carb, so rice, bread, pastry, porridge etc can all be problematic.
The carb content of a food can be found on the packet or online, but beware of the difference between US and UK sites, as the US includes the fibre, which we can't digest. UK sites show the digestible carbs.
Potatoes are best avoided and replaced with a lower carb option, cauliflower swede or turnip, aubergine or courgette, for instance.
Grains are high carb, so rice, bread, pastry, porridge etc can all be problematic.
The carb content of a food can be found on the packet or online, but beware of the difference between US and UK sites, as the US includes the fibre, which we can't digest. UK sites show the digestible carbs.
Hi and welcome. My mum was diagnose in her early 60's, She found it useful to finger prick test several times a day until she found food stuffs that suited her (many options of those devises available at reasonable cost, others on here will give their suggestions, i have no experience so i cant say much about that). then she got to know instinctively what she could and couldnt eat. What I have gleaned about diabetes is that its very personal to each person e.g. one can eat things like porridge with no trouble, others it send their Blood Glucose (BG) levels sky high. The only way to find out what effects you is by testing. Maybe the nurse can advise her on this option on her next visit. Until then, I would suggest cutting out all obvious sugar. watch carbs like potatoes, pasta, rice and bread. look at labels for 'hidden' sugars, usually found in low fat options! They can be high in salt too, which isnt good for us. Its great you mum is able to walk, that will be good for her. As my mother got older and less able to get about, we bought her a simple exercise bike she had in her bedroom which she enjoyed using up until years later in her mid 80's she became bedridden, but even then she kept good tabs on her diabetes, she enjoyed lighter meals (less stodgy) often opting for salads and proteins like fish and chicken or turkey, she liked the lighter fruits liked blueberries, strawberries, raspberries &plums but didnt eat too much of them - vegetables were in abundance (half her plate) portion control was important to her as she became less active. Hope this helps. A few tweaks to the diet, that are able to be sustain will be beneficial, im sure.
Neens
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Welcome to the forum - lots of advice and support here to help your mum. Making adjustments may seem daunting at first - just manage a few at a time. The Learning Zone is very helpful and the website is easy to use.
Ask any question and you will get knowledgeable advice. Hope she is over the shock of diagnosis.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome from me too.
Can I suggest that following a low carb way of eating often has a side effect of weight loss, and as there is a genetic element to diabetes, it may benefit both of you to follow the same dietary plan rather than you continue with the Hairy Dieters. Low carb eating can be quite enjoyable once you get your head around it and there is no harm in non diabetics following it too. Many people here on the forum have lost several stones in weight eating low carb without even thinking about how many calories they are eating or even following particular recipes, just substituting low carb foods for high ones and introducing a little more fat into their diet which contrary to popular belief, does not make you fat and keeps you fuller for longer so that you don't feel hungry. I eat much less now that I eat more fat.
Can I suggest that following a low carb way of eating often has a side effect of weight loss, and as there is a genetic element to diabetes, it may benefit both of you to follow the same dietary plan rather than you continue with the Hairy Dieters. Low carb eating can be quite enjoyable once you get your head around it and there is no harm in non diabetics following it too. Many people here on the forum have lost several stones in weight eating low carb without even thinking about how many calories they are eating or even following particular recipes, just substituting low carb foods for high ones and introducing a little more fat into their diet which contrary to popular belief, does not make you fat and keeps you fuller for longer so that you don't feel hungry. I eat much less now that I eat more fat.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Hello and another welcome to the forum @maria74
Sorry to hear about your Mum’s diagnosis, but glad she has you around for support and help in adapting to this new challenge.
if you are anything like us, even though there may be hundreds of recipes in the book, you may only regularly use the same half dozen or so. It’s a bit of a faff, but it wouldn’t take that long with your Carbs and Cals to look at the recipes you use most often and work out the carb count. Then if it looks a bit ‘carb heavy’ per portion try to work out some swaps and tweaks to adapt to a lower carb load.
Everyone tolerates different types and amounts of carbs differently, so it’s impossible for anyone to give you any hard and fast rules about amounts and which particular carbs are ‘better’ or ‘slow release’ as any suggestions are just guesswork based on averages, and may not apply to your mum. The best way to be sure is to measure BG before and then 2 hours after eating and see what the difference is. The numbers themselves don’t matter so much in the early days (and will come down in time), but aiming for meals which only increase BG by 2 or 3, rather than shooting upwards in a big ‘spike’ is a very powerful management technique.
There’s a suggestion of how to achieve that here:
https://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/2006/10/test-review-adjust.html
If your surgery are reluctant to provide a BG meter, and you want to try this technique, there are a number of alternatives available, but the most expensive part is the ongoing strips needed. One of the cheapest options members here have found is the SD Gluco Navii (formerly SD Codefree) which has test strips at around £8 for 50.
Good luck with it all, and keep asking questions of the friendly and experienced folks here 🙂
Sorry to hear about your Mum’s diagnosis, but glad she has you around for support and help in adapting to this new challenge.
if you are anything like us, even though there may be hundreds of recipes in the book, you may only regularly use the same half dozen or so. It’s a bit of a faff, but it wouldn’t take that long with your Carbs and Cals to look at the recipes you use most often and work out the carb count. Then if it looks a bit ‘carb heavy’ per portion try to work out some swaps and tweaks to adapt to a lower carb load.
Everyone tolerates different types and amounts of carbs differently, so it’s impossible for anyone to give you any hard and fast rules about amounts and which particular carbs are ‘better’ or ‘slow release’ as any suggestions are just guesswork based on averages, and may not apply to your mum. The best way to be sure is to measure BG before and then 2 hours after eating and see what the difference is. The numbers themselves don’t matter so much in the early days (and will come down in time), but aiming for meals which only increase BG by 2 or 3, rather than shooting upwards in a big ‘spike’ is a very powerful management technique.
There’s a suggestion of how to achieve that here:
https://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/2006/10/test-review-adjust.html
If your surgery are reluctant to provide a BG meter, and you want to try this technique, there are a number of alternatives available, but the most expensive part is the ongoing strips needed. One of the cheapest options members here have found is the SD Gluco Navii (formerly SD Codefree) which has test strips at around £8 for 50.
Good luck with it all, and keep asking questions of the friendly and experienced folks here 🙂
Hi and welcome, the others have given you the best advice, only thing I would add is that I found it really useful to track my blood glucose readings in a food diary, we are all different in what we can tolerate so this was a great way of seeing what foods worked for me and what I needed to tweak or avoid. Test before you eat and again 2 hours after, ideally you are looking for a rise of no more than 2 from your pre mea reading.
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