[Diabetes-talk] Need Tips for Lowering A1C

[Mike Freeman]

Debbie:

For once, I'm going to be dogmatic: aside from taste, there's no redeeming feature to regular (as opposed to diet) soda. Tons of empty calories with precious little in the way of nutrition to show for them. Diet soda at least has few, if any, calories. And yes, I know; some people can't stand diet soda. Dar's assertion to the contrary notwithstanding, IMO it's better to just skip soda altogether than to drink the "regular" stuff which is effectively almost pure corn syrup (read sugar!). But then I never went in much for sweet drinks anyway.

Mike

On Jun 17, 2011, at 6:16, "Debbie" <mouseless at mindspring.com> wrote:

> Thanks for all the informative and humorous posts.  I think feeling deprived makes most shun what they might be told to do; kind of like the doc saying "This won't hurt at all!"
> 
> One more thing pertaining to sugar vs. artificial sweeteners, and diet soda as opposed to regular soda-which is best?
> 
> Debbie
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Freeman" <k7uij at panix.com>
> To: "'Diabetes Talk for the Blind'" <diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2011 11:49 PM
> Subject: Re: [Diabetes-talk] Need Tips for Lowering A1C
> 
> 
>> Hi, Debby.
>> 
>> I have a PDF file of an article from the November, 2010 issue of "diabetes
>> Self-Management Quarterly" which describes an altermative to the orthodox,
>> strict approach of most diabetes experts that I think makes more sense that
>> your friends might find congenial and that I will send you -- and yes, it's
>> accessible. The article is entitled "Intuitive Eating" and involves an
>> approach advocated by a dietitian, Linda Bacon,, associated with the Health
>> At Every Size (HAES) movement that your friends might find easier to adjust
>> to than following the usual food-police regimen. But before describing this
>> approach, I think it's appropriate to mention the obvious: no one is going
>> to make healthier eating choices unless he/she *wants* to do so -- enough to
>> stick with it for more than a few weeks or months. Without such desire,
>> nothing will work in the long run.
>> 
>> That said, the Intuitive Eating Approach doesn't place *any* foods
>> off-limit. Rather, it assumes that those wishing to try this regimen are
>> intelligent, motivated and willing to put some effort into the approach. The
>> Intuitive Eating approach involves being extremely aware of *why* one eats
>> -- real hunger or to satisfy cravings or emotional needs. Intuitive eating
>> for the diabetic involves strict monitoring of bg levels before and, say, an
>> hour or two after eating, to determine the effects of particular foods on
>> blood glucose levels and also a willingness to experiment with healthier
>> choices as well as reducing quantities of yummy but overly-high-carb foods.
>> 
>> This approach is easier to handle on insulin but also works for those on
>> oral meds. For instance, your friends might start out by noting that after
>> breakfast, their bg is out of their desired target range so they might first
>> try eating *one* Egg McMuffin rather than two or taking a long walk after
>> eating the two Egg McMuffins. Or if one finds that eating a KFC meal with
>> mashed potatos and corn and biscuits drives bg through the roof, perhaps
>> cutting out the corn and biscuit might do it as well as perhaps substituting
>> a baked potato for the mashed potatos. In other words, one concentrates on
>> making choices and observing the consequences rather than on cutting back so
>> far that one feels deprived. Also, one learns to eat *only* when one is
>> hungry -- not when it is socially expected.
>> 
>> On the other hand, one doesn't beat oneself up for eating a slice of
>> birthday cake; one takes a long walk to burn off the excess bg.
>> 
>> I'll send you the article via private email and I'll send it to anyone else
>> who wants it. It's the sort of article that gives traditional CDE's and
>> diatitians indigestion but has a surprising amount of empirical data on its
>> side.
>> 
>> I'll say no more as this isn't the forum to conduct diet wars. But this
>> might be an approach that would ween your friends off high-carb foods
>> without them feeling like one lady's husband did when she was trying to get
>> him to eat more vegetables with dinner and he came home, saw what was on the
>> menu and remarked: "Hmmm ... seems like we're expecting *goats* as dinner
>> guests!"
>> 
>> Mike Freeman
>> 
>> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org
>> [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Debbie
>> Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2011 9:43 AM
>> To: Diabetes Talk for the Blind
>> Subject: [Diabetes-talk] Need Tips for Lowering A1C
>> 
>> A couple of friends of mine have extremely elevated a1C readings, well above
>> the preferred range.  How can they transition from a fast-food mentality to
>> healthy eating without feeling deprived?  One friend eats two
>> sausage-and-egg biscuits from a well-known restaurant every morning.
>> 
>> None of them are on insulin yet, and I want to do what I can to encourage
>> them to alter their eating habits.  I found one product called sunbutter, a
>> peanut butter substitute.
>> 
>> Please send comments either through the list or via personal email.
>> 
>> Debbie
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>> 
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> 
> 
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