"Increasing Veggies Really Helps!": Diabetes Community - Support Group
flutetooter posted:
My body type seems to do well on animal protein, so I was mainly concentrating on adding more high nutrient veggies. This idea is to try to make my body have enough nutrients to heal itself. I am on no meds and was considerating going on metformin before seeing a big drop in post prandial sugars especially in the a.m. This morning my blood sugar was 81 upon rising, 90 1 hour after eating, and 78 3 hours post prandial including a nap. I will discuss this with my doctor. I do watch carefully before driving. My highs tested at one hour pp were 129. My A1c has dropped from a high of 6.6 to 6.1 in 3 months. (Note: I am still a diabetic - a regular meal could quickly put me at 225.)
I recently posted a series of 1 month "Boot Camp" threads and this is a continuation with the 1 idea that has made the most difference. I had no weight to lose, and my exercise was enough for me (age 74). The foods I increased are leafy greens, non starchy veggies, mushrooms, onions, beans (still in limited amounts, but daily), and berries. (See Joel Fuhrman's books.) I decreased my protein calories, and total fat calories from animal sources (especially cheeses which I loved) and added more nuts and seeds.
Hi flute,
We have just returned from China, and it was a great trip. You probably remember that I have been doing primarily veggies and lean protein. I have also found that the increases in veggies makes for much healthier living. I also am not ready to go to a vegetarian style diet, but know that I have cut back on much of my protein replacing much of it with veggie alternatives, beans, nuts etc. My limited desserts have been primarily berries or other low glycemic fruit. Funny, but in the hotels we had the choice of either Chinese or American/European meals. All of these had veggies on the buffet for breakfast from salad to stir fried or steamed veggies. Great trip!
flutetooter replied to betatoo's response:
Welcome back Beta! SO glad you enjoyed your trip. As a P.S. to my veggie post, increasing the leafy greens, etc. does not raise the amount of grams of carbs I am eating, as they replace other less nourishing foods.
brunosbud replied to betatoo's response:
When you visit other countries like Japan, China, S. Korea, parts of Europe and you see the people, that's when you truly realize something 'aint right...
I cut back on red meat and milk products several years ago... Hair loss and chronic tooth decay and sinus issues slowly diminished after about a year. The issue of diet is so murky, now, because food and food quality has changed over the decades, imo. I ate plenty of red meat and dairy throughout my life. Why did these health "indicators" clearly improve when I stopped? I don't know and I really don't care. My family knows my story. That's my primary concern.
Let's face reality; no 50-Something is gonna stop eating red meat and dairy...
Hell, no 10, 20, 30, or 40 Something aint, either...
betatoo replied to brunosbud's response:
I have pretty well stopped the red meat and am considering cutting the cheeses even though I love cheese. If I knew what I know now, I think I would have learned long ago to eat better, but it takes a crisis often to make change.
Flute, I don't worry about carbs except in starches. I figure that non root veggies are pretty much safe as the carbs take a long time to be accessed by the body in most non starchy veggies. Because I have cut added sugars and other sweeteners, starches, and other freely accessible carbs like watermelon, I don't count the small amount of carbs in sauces either.
anon615 replied to betatoo's response:
I eat potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, corn, oatmeal and lots of beans and vegetables raw and cooked. NO FAT, no animal products at all. My fasting levels are in the low seventies. No meds.
flutetooter replied to anon615's response:
Dolores, what are your morning levels post prandial and do you feel "out of it" if your fasting levels persist during the day? Since my numbers are running lower now (80 fasting and 83 after breakfast) I feel like my body can't function at this number. I am more energetic at a higher number during the day. My numbers now rarely go over 126. I have ready that "older" bodies and brains need a bit more sugar and blood pressure!
betatoo replied to anon615's response:
Said it before, say it again-different strokes for different folks. If I ever become ready to be vegetarian, I will. Otherwise I will go without meds with good numbers and low blood pressure. My small amounts of meat keep me satis.. . . fied!
Beta, I really enjoy your sensible replies. My lunch was a large spinach, green bean (blanched a bit), red and yellow peppers, cilantro, avocado, with Lite Lime Vinegrette (Paul Newman) salad. Oh yeah, and some very small steak strips! Very munchable! I finally have high enough blood sugar to feel human today (98). It remains to be seen if my body can adjust to the lower numbers. One of my goals is to see (for my body) if the lower sugars will also cause my LDL to come down. I am still resisting even mild statins because they tend to cause diabetes (according to recent reposts). Again, as you say, "different strokes". This seems to work for me.
betatoo replied to flutetooter's response:
thanks for the compliment! Wow! Nice salad! I have a local place near me that makes salads special for me. They grill green peppers and onions to add to my salads that they put in a smaller bowl for less lettuce and more veggies. They also have green olives and tomato, cucumber, mushrooms and grilled chicken in this with hot pepper relish to kick it up a notch. I use Caesar dressing for lower carb.
MsSkinniness responded:
Hi Flutetooter my husband and I are diabetic and we have changed our eating habits to proteins and double the veggies. We don't eat bread, pasta, or rice and our blood sugar is in a normal range for the past couple of months. We basically eat like the Paleo diet and we eat dairy products as well. we also eat protein bars and protein shakes.... But I do believe by increasing the veggies, it definitely has helped lower our blood sugars.