I fully agree with what
@everydayupsanddowns said - the range of diet options is a good thing. Very confusing initially, making it very difficult to choose a path, but a range of options on how to go about losing weight is good. I believe you are entirely correct though - it's all about the weight loss. Any claim that one or other diet is the best or only diet option is false. You mention the Rice Diet - an all-carb diet that resulted in lower fasting blood glucose (BG) levels. It disproves the notion that a very low-carb diet is essential. It's absolutely not essential. I would caution against feasting on carbs though - bad idea - the Rice Diet is definitely not an optimal approach as your BG levels would be through the roof for months until you made significant progress on weight loss, but getting the weight loss done is paramount and extremes are unnecessary for that purpose.
These are the kinds of food swaps I've chosen:
- Cauliflower rice instead of rice. Comes in frozen single-portion bags from the big supermarkets (if you don't want to make it yourself). It's just shredded cauliflower but it soaks up the sauce in a curry or stir fry and so tastes like the sauce. Amazing for weight loss but also less than great for supressing hunger for very many hours because it's so low in calories. I did stick with it for months but have since opted to mix a little real rice with the cauliflower rice - reduced carb, affordable, and good for weight loss.
-Edamame pasta instead of real pasta. Made from green soya beans I believe. Tastes fine, quite nice even with some olive oil, low(ish) carb and high in protein, good for weight loss. Problem is that it's very expensive compared to ordinary pasta.
- A reduced carb bread product. Here in Ireland we have this one -
Link. I'm not sure if there's a UK equivalent. Again, not cheap compared to standard bread, but better for blood glucose levels than wholegrain bread and also for weight loss as it's lower in calories.
These are the kinds of options I chose to lose weight and keep my weight in check. Also things like eating smaller fruit - a clementine orange or a fun-size apple such as might go into a child's lunchbox with breakfast. Best way I found to get some fruit in while keeping BG levels under control. I chose calorie counting initially to lose weight and later reduced my carb intake while maintaining the weight loss. The kinds of swaps listed above suited me well as they were quite close to the diet I was used to and so relatively easy to stick to in my case. We all have to find our own approach though, the approach that works best is the one we can sustain until the weight loss is done.
Very best of luck, and God Speed!
Edit - typos
I'm watching this, which provides some justification that : Lower carb diets, lead to a higher metabolic rate, which improves weight loss, without having to cut back too much on calorie intake, cos we burn off more of what is consumed. That definitely has given me comfort, that low carb is the better of the diets for me., and this also is the better diet, for any concerns about blood sugar rises.
I do not have a blood glucose monitor, so until my next test in two months time, it's a bit difficult to tell how well the changes I am making are delivering the right results. Nevertheless the following combination of ideas gives me confidence, that one is going in the right direction.
1. The fundamental challenge of a diabetic, is being able to properly process the glucose that they are ingesting, to avoid high concentrations of "sugar" in the blood. So my response to that has been
1.1 Of course reducing the rate at which glucose is introduced into the blood, from any carbs eaten, by making vegetables which have fiber, a major component of every meal. Fiber binds to carbs, and slows down the flow of food through the digestive system, blunting any sugar spikes from carbs.
1.2 Getting my portion sizes under control, so I am now able to eat smaller portions yet feel just as full as I need to feel.
1.3 Vegetables (and fruits) have been a really important part of this. I like vegetables. I once had haemorrhoids for a few years, and a bad episode which took me to A&E, was the start of my journey with improving vegetable intake. The moment I started including some vegetables regularly in my diet, that was the end of haemorrhoids. By the grace of God, any bleeding of any kind from haemorrhoids stopped, the moment I started paying attention to vegetables, and that's been for about 9 or more years. So it did not take much effort for me to simply increase the portion size of vegetables on my plate from about 20 to 30% which I had done for years, to between 40 and 50% going forward, after my diabetes diagnosis.
1.4 In the past I was "fat" conscious, since I had a high carb, low fat diet, but I'm no longer afraid of having some fats. Some peanuts daily - small portion, occasional avocado, and healthy oils like olive oil in small quantities. Some occasional cheese, and for many years I only use full fat whole milk (nothing skimmed) in my teas.
1.5 Reduce the % of carbs like rice, potato, corn, or pasta on the plate to no more than 25%. And completely eliminated all bread from my diet. Only bread I have now is a small piece - the starter, if I eat in a restaurant OR as part of Holy Communion in church - which I consider are both negligible sources of carbs, cos the amount ingested is really small. I realise, with exception of corn and potato, I really have no love for pasta and rice, cos they have no taste of their own. Occasionally I'll include small quantities, of one or more of these carbs, merely to give the food interest, and also from my recent experience, cutting carbs too low, made me uncomfortable and a bit irritable, lethargic and low energy. Yes carbs can be a challenge for a diabetic, but I think like medicine, which is what all our food should be, it is all about the dose. No need to throw the baby out with the bath water. It is the excess of carbs that is bad for us, worse for the diabetic than the non diabetic. I have not had any bread of any sort since my diagnosis, and wish I had done this years ago. I think bread alone is responsible for 60% of the reason I became diabetic. Bread has been my staple for decades, I ate a lot of bread when I was young, it was the most convenient food, needed no prep. Just add margarine or butter. Now I know better. The upside of being diabetic, is the rest of my family are watching my lifestyle changes and especially my wife, who had parents and a sibling who were diabetic and two of these pretty much died via diabetes, is very supportive, and adopting almost all my own lifestyle changes. Hopefully the next generation will have learnt from me, and avoid my mistakes. So it's not all bad, the diagnosis does have silver linings.
1.6. Exercise/Movement, which I do daily, for at least 40 minutes, helps to use up some of the ingested or stored glucose, so one improves the cycle of storage and depletion.
1.7. Just changed something important in how I eat - no more eating with the TV or laptop. And in my case, no conversations while I am eating. I discovered that paying attention to the food with my eyes is important, and I can focus, eat slowly, take delight in what I eat, and because I am not rushing the food, chew it properly, and get a great sense of satiety, without eating too much.
1.8. Pay attention to protein in each meal. At least 20%. I am not too strict with these percentages, do not count calories, just do my best to estimate, based on what I see.
1.9. Reduce salt - or rather be more accountable for salt, cos my wife does some of the cooking and she now reduces salt in anything she cooks, and I can add this back, to taste and this way I can be far more accountable about how much salt I am getting. In the past my wife did not measure salt, she just estimated. Now she MUST use a teaspoon to measure how much salt she adds.
1.10 Get to bed early - 9.00 pm - started yesterday.
1.11 Last meal to end no later than 6 pm ideally, to align with the slowing down of metabolism at the end of the day. May have a cup of peppermint tea, with some whole milk, after this.
1.12 Reduce size of any meals in the afternoon, to align with the slowing down of metabolism at the end of the day.
1.13 Reordered how I eat so the fruits come in last, about an hour after the meal, so there is a "bed" of fibre from the vegetables, to slow down the absorption of the fruit.
1.14 Paying better attention to water intake. The main issue with glucose in the blood is concentration. Especially as one transitions to a lower salt intake, and lower carb intake, the holding on to water, which increases the amount of water in the blood from salt and carbs reduces, so it is essential to remain hydrated, to keep the glucose concentration low, especially after meals. I tend not to drink before or during meals, to allow the stomach acid to be concentrated and aid excellent digestion, also partly cos I feel pretty full after meals with a good portion of vegetables, and water immediately after the meal will make me feel to full. So water intake comes in about 40 minutes or more, after the meal is ended. And every hour or two, make sure I have a little bit of water or tea. Definitely avoid drinking too much water at a time. One remarkable change since I started improving lifestyle after my diagnosis, is feeling thirsty at any time, is not a common occurrence, pretty rare, and sometimes I really am not thirsty, but understand that it's important for my kidneys in particular, that I remain hydrated. So daily I get at least 1 and a half litres of water or water via peppermint tea. Furthermore cos I am having a fair chunk of vegetables, there is water in these vegetables, which comes in with my food.
1.15 Some effort to be in a daily intermittent fast - ideally the 18:6, which seems to work best for me on a regular basis. Breakfast starting about 11 am, and dinner ending about 5 or 6 pm.
1.16 An occasional more involved fast day - I found that a day with only fruits really works for me. 4 or 5 fruits, and some tea with milk, with some nuts, on my more intensive fast day. I think I can do this once a week. It helped to reset my satiety meters, and made me more appreciative of food. Also makes me more mindful, and present. I do not normally fast for any reason, cos I have been a foodie, for a while. So a "pause" from food, seemed to awaken something positive in me, and rather than just "starve" a few fruits on that day, provided both calorie restriction, without going "hangry". I can imagine when I am more accustomed to such lower calorie days, I may eventually graduate to a fast day with maybe only tea and milk, gradually reducing the number of fruits I have on such "fast days".
Overall my thoughts are, sure nothing wrong with making cold turkey changes, but also nothing wrong with having targets and achieving these gradually. The cutting out of bread was an immediate one, that I had no issues with. I am a bread addict, it had to go - the GI and Insulin Index of bread are off the charts, so easy to ingest huge amount of calories in a few slices of bread, and it comes with salt and sugar, and preservatives. It had to go, cold turkey. But many other changes have been slow and steady.
So happy that I have - after the recent "fruit fast day", begun to restore my appetite/satiety control, and eat smaller portions yet feel full. One major change has been, the lack of what I call the Lion King phenomena - wanting to fall asleep after every meal. Am I so relieved, that is something I absolutely hate, and I am glad, I have not felt like that today. Progress.
