[Diabetes-talk] Cereals and snacks I can eat?

Mon Oct 17 15:07:26 UTC 2016

Terri,

First, I completely understand that buying organic can be difficult on the
pocket book, but I do encourage it as much as possible. Do you have an
Aldi's or Wal-mart in your area? Both carry organic brands at much more
affordable costs than most places. So this is an option. Also, you don't
have to purchase everything organic, maybe just produce and dairy or produce
and pre-packaged items. Just a thought to incorporate organic into your
diet.

That being said, buying organic doesn't work for everyone, and that's okay.

First, I don't know who told you not to eat oranges, but that's wrong. Fresh
fruit and veggies are great for diabetics. Now, fruit does have carbs, so
you have to calculate this into your carb counting, but eating fresh fruit
is great. Strawberries, grapes, bananas, pineapple, melon, etc. If you like
it, I encourage you to eat it. Most my carbs come from fresh fruit, and it's
really good for nutrition. Most fresh fruit is only 15 to 20 grams of carbs
per serving, if you stick with portions.

If you can't do raw apples, try cooking them or making home-made applesauce
is super easy. Just slice apples and slow-cook in crock pot all day. Then
puree in food processor or blender. Then you have fresh, home-made
applesauce with no additives and less carbs than most store-bought since
they tend to add sugar, though you can buy no sugar-added applesauce.

What you have to keep in mind with any food is portions. You can eat your
oatmeal and cereals, just stick to portion sizes. Regular Cheerios contain
20 grams of carbs for 3/4 cups. Honey-nut Cheerios have 22 grams of carbs in
3/4 cups. Fruit Loops only have 26 grams of carbs in 3/4 cups. So if you
stick to the suggested portions, you will not be eating all that many carbs.
Cheerios are actually good for you and are now made gluten free, for anyone
who cares. My son prefers Cheerios over the super sugary cereals like Lucky
Charms or Fruit Loops, but we really have only given him types of Cheerios
since he was a baby, so it's what he's used too.

Making your own oatmeal would be better. You could add in some fresh fruit
or honey to sweeten, but the pre-packaged oatmeal is okay too, though it
does have more carbs. But definitely stick with just one packet. To help you
feel fuller, add plenty of protein to your diet. Whether poultry or beef,
eating lots of protein helps fill up and give energy. And protein is what
stabilizes glucose levels. If you like sausage, have a couple of links or
patties with your cereal or oatmeal. Hell, have a small steak if that helps.
But protein will help you feel fuller.

Add more protein at every meal. This will help you feel fuller but also help
with glucose control. Eating fish 2 to 3 times a week is good, but if you
really don't like it, that's okay. But eat lean meats as much as possible.
Meat doesn't have any carbs as long as it's not breaded or coated in sauce.
You can make (or purchase) dry rubs for meats that have no carbs, or are
very low in carbs. I make several home-made dry rubs with various seasonings
when cooking meat at home. This gives it plenty of flavor but doesn't have a
lot of carbs, and is healthier than most store-bought products.

Salads are great for lunch and dinner. Do lots of greens, add some fresh
veggies, boiled eggs, advacado, grilled meat, etc. and you have a healthy,
filling meal. You can make your own dressings with olive oil or buy
dressings lower in carbs. And again, stick to serving sizes. Two tablespoons
of any dressing is a serving size. Add fresh fruit or a whole grain to the
meal, and you have a complete meal.

I'm getting hungry, grin.

I'm a big Greek yogurt fan. We eat a lot of Greek yogurt in my house. It's a
great source of dairy and protein. Some brands are better than others. You
want to keep an eye on carbs in flavored Greek yogurt. And some brands do
not have as much protein as others. I prefer Chobani. It's all-natural, has
a lot of protein per serving and a healthier brand on the market. Dannon is
okay too. My son loves Greek yogurt and will eat it for snacks. If you
really want to watch carbs, get plain Greek yogurt and add fresh fruit or
honey to sweeten. Plain Greek yogurt is another protein you could add at
breakfast with your cereal or oatmeal.

And since you feel hungry throughout the day, try eating six smaller meals
throughout the day. This may help keep you fuller. But make sure each meal
is healthy and balanced. Snacks should contain a carb and protein, like
apple slices and peanut butter or meat and cheese and some grapes, etc. Four
ounces of Greek yogurt for a snack is good too. Try breakfast, mid-morning
snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, and bedtime snack. At snacks, do not
eat more than 15 to 20 grams of carbs and focus on proteins. This meal plan
may help you feel fuller throughout the day.

High fat, high carb, high calories foods usually slow metabolism, up sugars
and drop our energy, and often they are not filling because they lack
nutrition. It's okay to eat junk from time-to-time, but don't make it a
daily habit. Avoid processed foods as much as possible. And watch nutrition
labels for pre-packaged foods so you know exactly what is in it and what the
servings are.

Instead of potato chips, try veggie chips. We love veggie chips in our
house. They taste just like potato chips but have way less carbs and are
much healthier. Look for brands that cook the chips in coconut oil and don't
have a lot of preservatives. My son, who is only 4, loves veggie chips, and
you would never know the difference. Try dipping in hummus (1/3 cup of
hummus only has 19 grams of carbs) or make your own Greek yogurt dip (I mix
8 ounces of plain Greek yogurt, 2 8 ounce bars cream cheese and add 1/2 cup
of my home-made dry onion soup mix, 3 tablespoons fresh minced garlic and
1/2 to 1  teaspoon cumin, mix and let sit in fridge for 2 hours).

Hope this helps. Again, more than anything, just stick to portions. Good
luck. And also, getting some kind of exercise will help. Walking, swimming,
a class, just moving around the house, whatever activity you can get in is
good for you in general, but especially for glucose control.

And if you Google recipes, you can find healthy versions of most foods.
Especially nowadays, people have come up with healthy, or healthier,
versions of favorites. Just do some research.

Bridgit

-----Original Message-----
From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Terri Stimmel via Diabetes-Talk
Sent: Monday, October 17, 2016 9:25 AM
To: Diabetes-Talk at nfbnet.org
Cc: Terri Stimmel <princessterri76 at gmail.com>
Subject: [Diabetes-talk] Cereals and snacks I can eat?

Hello once more everybody,

This will be the last post for me for a while. But I just had some more
questions, and I figured you all would have some ideas. OK, I need to start
eating better. I know this. But I'm stubborn, and I don't like it, and it
makes me frustrated! Plus, if I don't get enough to eat I feel like I am
literally starving! Then I'm not a very nice person. LOL!

So I am trying to get better at eating lean ground beef, I like a lot of
chicken so that is good, and I don't eat it fried. I want to try to eat fish
more. I drink 2% milk, because I cannot stand skim milk. I do drink soda,
quite a bit. But for several years now I have drink diet soda. Sometimes I
will drink power aid zero. But after a while, they almost taste too sweet to
me. I will drink only bottled water, and I am trying to drink at least a
couple of bottles a day. I know that's not much. But at least it's better
than nothing. Are used to never drink water. My weakness is red diamond
sweet tea. I love that stuff! I try to only drink a glass a day, if I can be
good. But sometimes I do have two glasses.
No for my big question!
I enjoy eating cereal sometimes, and oatmeal sometimes. I usually get apple
and cinnamon oatmeal, because that is my favorite. I was eating two packages
at a time. But I have started to try to only eat one package at a time.
If I eat one package of the apple and cinnamon oatmeal, are there other
things I can eat with it to help me feel full? Also, I enjoy cereal.
However, I like mostly the bad stuff, such as fruit loops! I even smell
yummy!
Anyway, what are some cereals I can enjoy, that would taste really good, but
be better for me?
If I eat the good cereals, again, are there things I can eat with it that
will help me feel full? I do like the regular Cheerios also, and I know that
is all right to eat. And I was told once a long time ago that I could eat
honey nut Cheerios, but in small doses.

Also I was wondering, what are some good healthy snacks I can eat and enjoy,
but that will also taste good?
I like some of the bad stuff, such as potato chips, cookies, popcorn, and
just whatever else sounds good.

Now, I do enjoy white yogurt. Although I haven't had any for a while. I love
oranges! But I hear they really aren't good for me to eat.
So are their fruit that I can have, in moderation? That was supposed to be,
light yogurt. I can't eat apples, because I have dentures. So some fruits
are just impossible to eat! Heck, some foods are difficult to eat.

Anyway, if someone can give me some ideas as to what kind of snacks and
cereals, and fruits, and maybe even some more drinks that I don't know about
that I could get, I would really, greatly appreciate the help. I'm making a
grocery list tonight, and I would like to start off doing better. With that
said, I don't want to buy things that are really expensive, because it's
just not in my budget. I don't want to buy anything organic, even though I
know it might be better for me. I would appreciate any help possible.

Thank you so much!

Terri
Sent from my iPhone
_______________________________________________
Diabetes-Talk mailing list
Diabetes-Talk at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/diabetes-talk_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
Diabetes-Talk:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/diabetes-talk_nfbnet.org/bkpollpeter%40gma
il.com