The Generation Health
Posts tagged Diabetes
Important Fast Food Choices For Diabetic Patients
Apr 27th
Consider it or not, you can compose nourishing fast-groceries picks . How? Be knowledgeable about closely what you are ordering and plan ahead.
Maintain the ground rules of good nutrition in mind. Eat a diversity of foods in moderate amounts, regulate the amount of fat you eat, and observe the quantity of salt in foodstuff. Follow the suggestions you’ve worked out with your dietitian or health professional.
What you arrange is the solution. It’s comfortable to consume an entire day’s worth of extra fat, salt, and calories in just one fast-groceries meal. But it’s also possible to produce wise options and eat a comparatively nourishing meal.
Here are some ideas to help you choose fine.
* Know that an usual fast-groceries meal can run as high as 1000 calories or more, and raise your blood sugar above your goal range.
* Know the dietary worth of the meals you order. Though there are some superior selections, most fast-foodstuff objects are high in fat and calories.
* If you’re eating fast-food for one meal, allow your additional meals that day contain healthier meals, like fruits and veggies.
* Feel about how your foodstuff will be cooked. Poultry and fish can be good choices – but not if they are breaded and deep fried.
If breakfast is your fast-food meal, pick a simple bagel, toast, or English muffin. Additional muffins may be loaded with sugar and fats. Combine fruit juice or low- or fats-free milk. demand cold cornflakes -free milk, pancakes without butter, or plain scrambled eggs. Limit bacon plus sausage for the reason that they are high in fat.
The fast food we eat may stick around a lot longer than we’d like. It may linger in our bodies as extra blood fats and extra weight.
* Watch out for words like super, giant, deluxe, biggie-sized or super-sized. Bigger portions suggest added calories. They also mean more extra fat, cholesterol as well as salt. order a regular or junior-sized sandwich instead.
* select grilled or broiled sandwiches with meats such as slim bake beef, turkey or chicken breast, or lean ham. order things simple, without toppings, high sauces, or mayonnaise. Add flavor with mustard, and crunch with lettuce, tomato, and onion.
* Skip the croissant or biscuit. consume your sandwich on a roll, English muffin and save calories and fats.
* Stay away from double burgers or “super” hot dogs with cheese, chili, or sauces. Cheese carries an extra 100 calories per ounce, as well as added fat and sodium.
* Go for the salad bar, but observe out for high-extra fat toppings resembling dressings, bacon bits, cheeses, and croutons. Even too much small-calorie dressing can add up. Make sure the calories on the package. Moreover limit salad bar items that are dressed with a lot of mayo, just like potato or macaroni salad. Pack your salad with things like carrots, peppers, onion, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, and etc.
* order bean burritos, soft tacos, fajitas, and additional non-fried items when having Mexican fast foods. pick poultry over beef. Limit refried beans. Or ask if they have beans that aren’t refried. Pile on additional lettuce, tomatoes, and salsa. Go easy on cheese, sour cream, and guacamole. Observe for deep-fried taco salad shells – a taco salad can contain more than 1,000 calories!
* Pizza can be a pleasant fast foodstuff choice. Go for thin crust pizza with vegetable toppings. Limit to 1-2 slices. Meat and extra cheese add calories, extra fat and sodium.
* End your meal with sugar-free, fat-free frozen yogurt or a small cone of fat-free yogurt. Better still, carry a piece of fresh fruit from home. Ices, sorbets, and sherbets have less fat and fewer calories than ice cream. However they are chock full of sugar. They can drive your blood sugar too high if you don’t work the extra carbohydrate into your meal plan * fats-free muffins for breakfast may contain plenty of sugar. Skinless fried chicken can have almost as much fat as the regular kind. Chinese foodstuff may give the impression like a healthy option, but a lot of dishes are deep fried or high in fat and sodium, exceptionally in the sauces.
Eating out can be one of life’s great pleasures. compose the right alternatives, inquire for what you want, and balance your meals out with nourishing meals at residence. You can get pleasure from yourself and take excellent care of your diabetic issues at the same time.
By: Kubi almas
Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
Before you go anywhere now visit Symptoms of Diabetes.
The Diabetes Glycemic Index – A Path Towards Health
Jan 1st
The diabetes glycemic index was developed in the 1980s by researchers who were looking for a way to help diabetics deal with monitoring and controlling blood sugar levels. Since that time, the diabetes glycemic index has gone on to help not only diabetics, but also those looking to closely monitor blood glucose levels around the world. The glycemic index (aka ‘GI’) system works by calculating what foods have the highest and the lowest impact on blood sugar levels. This valuable tool is then used to help diabetics and others determine what foods they can and cannot eat.
Through using the diabetes GI, it is possible for diabetics to finely tune their diets so as to avoid foods that may cause spikes in their blood sugar levels. One of the reasons that the diabetes glycemic index works is that it is able to take out much of the guesswork that would otherwise exist for diabetics. By doing so it assists people who are looking to avoid the peaks and valleys associated with high GI foods.
Many of the foods at the top of the GI are one’s that most diabetics know to avoid, such as white bread. But other foods, such as watermelon may not be as well known. This is where the GI comes in. The diabetes glycemic index helps diabetics in other ways, as it shows in details what foods can be consumed. Often this can be a bit counter intuitive, as these foods may be sweet or even contain a large amount of fat. Most fruits are low on the index, yet it would be easy to conclude otherwise, due to the fact that they obviously taste sweet. Fat is often vilified, but healthy fats such as those found in nuts, avocado and coconut products (such as coconut oil and coconut milk) all rank usually rank low on the index and are thus fine for consumption.
Another area where the diabetic GI is very helpful is that it instructs diabetics in how they can make better carbohydrate choices. Using the GI will show diabetics alternatives to foods like white rice and white bread. A quick look at the GI will show that brown rice is lower than white rice on the index. There are many bread alternatives, such as rye, that one can use instead of white bread, which scores very high on the diabetes glycemic index.
The bottom line is that the GI is a remarkably valuable tool for diabetics. It can guide them toward safe and healthy choices and away from high index foods. The diabetes glycemic index can help guide diabetics and others to better health. Most of the foods that are low on the index are also foods that are very healthy. Fruits, vegetables and nuts are generally the lowest of all the GI foods, with some notable exceptions. By including these low GI foods into your diet, it is truly possible to improve your overall health.
By: Jonathan T Edwards
Article source: http://www.goarticles.com/
About the Author
Jonathan is main contributor and co-creator of the new Glycemic Index web-site: http://the-glycemic-index-guide.com . Get lots more info there on the Diabetes Glycemic Index and also check out our free 10-part mini-eCourse, “Glycemic Index Secrets”, it might be all you’ll ever need (and did I mention it was free!!)
15 Essential Diabetes Drug Tips
Dec 9th
1. Consider lifestyle changes. Diabetes pills work best when used in conjunction with a healthy diet, exercise, and (if necessary) weight loss. In fact, lifestyle changes may lower — or eliminate — the need for diabetes medications.
2. Know the recommended blood glucose range. You’ll know medications are working if blood glucose readings fall within the recommended range. Find out from the main diabetes care provider how often you or the person you’re caring for should check blood sugar levels, and be sure to keep a record of the results. Generally speaking, a blood sugar reading before meals of between 70 and 140 milligrams per deciliter is desirable.
3. Know when it’s time to take action. Find out from the diabetes doctor or educator how low or high blood sugar can go before it’s important to take action. For many people, blood sugar is too low below 70 mg/dL and too high above 240 mg/dL. Make sure you know the signs of hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia and how to treat either condition.
4. Ask specific dosage questions. Ask the doctor the following questions about medications. Write the response down somewhere handy, such as a medication notebook.
* When should the person I’m caring for take his diabetes pills: before a meal, with a meal, or after a meal?
* How often should he take the medicine?
* Should he take the drugs at the same time every day?
* What should he do if he misses a dosage?
* What side effects may occur?
* What should we do if he experiences side effects?
5. Consider switching medications. Diabetes pills don’t work for everyone. And sometimes they lose effectiveness after a few months — or after many years. There’s no clear-cut reason why this happens; often switching to another drug or trying oral combination therapy can help.
6. Tell the doctor about all medical conditions. Most older adults have other medical conditions in addition to diabetes, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Make sure the patient’s main diabetes doctor is aware of all illnesses, chronic conditions, allergies, or surgeries, and work with his diabetes healthcare team to set treatment goals for his care that complement his overall healthcare.
7. Keep a current medication list. Older adults with diabetes are at an increased risk for drug side effects and drug interactions, especially as the number of medications increases. Make sure the person in your care keeps an up-to-date medication list and that he brings it with him every time he sees any healthcare provider. Include every prescription medication and over-the-counter drug, vitamin, and herbal or homeopathic treatment and their dosages.
For example, many common medications used to treat high blood pressure also raise blood glucose. Other drugs, either on their own or by interacting with oral diabetes drugs that lower blood glucose, can make diabetes remedies more potent and lower blood glucose to dangerously low levels.
If the person you’re caring for starts on a new medication and suddenly finds his blood glucose is significantly higher or lower than usual, ask his doctor to check out the possibility that the new medication is causing the unwanted effect. It’s also important to check blood sugar more often after starting on a new drug for this reason.
8. Stick with one pharmacy. If possible, use the same pharmacy for all prescriptions. By having a complete record of all medications, the pharmacist can alert you, the patient, and his healthcare providers to possible interactions.
9. Report any side effects. A patient should report any side effects from medications to his healthcare provider and include the following details: how long they lasted, how severe they were, and what medications and what dosages he was taking at the time.
10. Compare prices. Costs can vary widely for different drugs at different places. Call around to a few pharmacies to find the best price for the pills, and ask your regular pharmacist to match a cheaper price if necessary. Some diabetes drugs are available in generic form; check with the pharmacist.
11. Check tablet strength. Another money-saving tip: Ask the doctor to prescribe the largest tablet strength suitable for the dose the patient needs. For example, a 500-milligram pill often costs much less than two 250-mg tablets. Use a pill splitter, available at drugstores, to cut the larger tablet into the appropriate dose (halves or quarters). One word of caution: Some extended-release drugs don’t work properly if they’re split, so always check with the pharmacist or doctor before cutting tablets.
12. Keep track of daily medications. Use a pillbox or some other system to keep track of daily drugs. Ask the pharmacist for suggestions and see our article “How to Help Someone With Diabetes Follow Medication Recommendations”.
13. Throw out old drugs. Get rid of (by recycling if possible) outdated medications and those left over from prescriptions the person you’re caring for no longer uses. Old drugs may lose their potency or interact with pills he’s currently taking.
14. Know that drug types and dosages may need to change over time. Diabetes is a progressive condition, meaning it continues to change over time as a patient’s insulin production steadily declines. The dose and type of pills most patients use to control the disease may need to be adjusted to reflect these bodily changes.
15. If at first you don’t succeed. No one diabetes drug is best for every person, and what works for one person may not work for another. A patient’s main diabetes doctor and others on his team can help him find diabetes medicines that best meet his overall treatment goals.
By: Sarah Henry
Article source: http://www.articledashboard.com
Resource
Diabetic Drug Tips
Stay on top of Diabetes Medications