[lafonda]

Recently I've been told I am borderline T2. My results were .1 under what they needed to be to be diagnosed. I will be making an appointment with a dietitian also.

I am having a really hard time knowing what to eat, GP said no sugar, no fat basically.

Wondering if any diabetics would give me a run down of what they generally eat? Or what they stay well away from...


Thanks everyone

ETA - I've been told to live as though I was diagnosed. Hideously overweight, trying to walk regularly.

This post has been edited by lafonda: 26/01/2013, 08:35 AM

[cardamom]

lafonda, I'm not diabetic but I'm also overweight and was diagnosed with insulin resistance in 2011 (my levels have since returned to normal thankfully)

Do you know anything about glycaemic index? It's a numeric value which basically indicates how rapidly a food is broken down in the body to glucose. High-GI foods are processed quickly and lead to a quick 'hit' of blood sugar; low-GI foods are broken down more slowly and lead to a gradual increase in blood sugar levels. There's an inexpensive book called The Low GI Handbook which I found very helpful.

I basically tried to stay away from high-GI foods as much as possible, for example, white bread, white rice, potatoes. I decreased my consumption of these types of foods overall, and also replaced them with lower GI options instead, for example, grainy bread (look at labels for low GI), basmati rice, pumpkin or sweet potato.

Other general guidelines I followed were to avoid fizzy drink/juice/chocolate/lollies, avoid fried things (hot chips, etc.), eat lean meat (grilled/baked with minimal oil) and low-fat dairy, eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, moderate consumption of grains like pasta, grainy bread, etc. (but in reasonable serving sizes)

I'm at work so can't write much more, but hope that helps a little. A dietician or diabetic educator will be able to give you a detailed meal plan

ETA - I was also told that exercise is incredibly important for increasing insulin sensitivity. My GP said 30-60 minutes of cardio as many days of the week as possible (I aimed for at least 3 days, preferably 5). He said no need to go hell for leather at the gym, even just a brisk walk would help a lot.

This post has been edited by cardamom: 26/01/2013, 09:05 AM

[~sydblue~]

I would try and get in to see a dietician. They can then give you a better idea of what foods and exercise are better for you. An LGI diet is great, but the dietician can help you plan to suit your budget and lifestyle.

[Matthias' mum]

Definitely see a dietician. In the meantime, just to give you an idea of what you're in for, you need to watch all carbohydrates, not just sugar. It's not that you can't eat carbs (or sugar) at all, but you need to portion them carefully and spread them throughout the day. The difficulty with refined sugar, is that it is high carb, and then it's often in foods that are also high carb, like cakes and biscuits etc. You also need to be careful with some fruit (bananas for example are very high in carbs).

Generally you should look at having some protein and carbohydrates at every meal. For example, for breakfast you could have two slices of wholemeal toast, with some avocado, and scrambled eggs. Lunch you could have a salad sandwich and a piece of fruit, dinner some grilled meat or fish, with one potato, and lots of vegetables. Snacks you could have unsweetened yoghurt, a handful of almonds, a slice of low fat cheese, a piece of fruit etc... Smaller portions, every 3 hours or so. Look up portions for carbs - rice and pasta servings are surprisingly small. The dietician will give you more detailed information about this.

You'll need to avoid sweet drinks, including juice and sugar in your tea/coffee. They add on a huge amount of carbs in one serving. Lollies and cakes etc are out as well, except for small servings on special occasions. A couple of squares of dark chocolate from time to time is ok.

It sounds restrictive (and is somewhat), but you get used to it very quickly. You won't go hungry if you eat lots of vegetables, and remember to eat regularly. I lost a lot of weight very quickly too, which was a nice bonus!

[SeaPrincess]

Definitely try to eat low GI carbs. If you end up testing your blood sugar you'll quickly get to see what affects you.

I have a couple of informations sheets that the diabetic association gave me when I had GD - they're not specific to GD, so if you would like me to email them, PM me your email address.