Diabetic Menu Guide

The main topic of this series of posts is to identify the categories of food to include in a diabetic menu that will help us control and manage our diabetic condition, so the focus will be on the food and dietary aspect of losing weight, although we must acknowledge that there should be an exercise component in any weight loss plan.

A major problem for many diabetics is the need to lose weight, and not only diabetics by the way, I recently read that one third of Americans are overweight, hard to believe but if true it means that they are at least 20 percent above their ideal weight,

So we need to be  concerned with ourselves as diabetics and find the approach that we have to take to combat our weight problems. We should almost certainly see an immediate improvement in our blood glucose levels if we lose weight.

Our message here is one of encouragement with a few general comments to point out the benefits of losing a few pounds, or perhaps a lot of pounds, it will make a difference.

To help in doing so it might be worth a visit to web sites offering more specific suggestions, such as Extreme Weight Loss which discusses the fast loss approach to the problem, not a way I favor myself, but the site does caution that there can be dangers if not properly supervised. My own contention is that when weight is lost swiftly it often returns swiftly, whereas a program of cutting about 500  calories daily for a few weeks achieves a slower rate of  weight loss but a loss of weight that stays off, I make reference to that below in slightly more detail.

Another site discusses How to Burn Off Belly Fat and belly fat is a very common problem for those, like me, who are getting into our senior years. It does suggest eating less fat and less calories but does also say “Don’t Starve Yourself”.

For a new-found favorite site with some interesting calorie details, check out BellyDownSizing.

Cautionary Note:
Your doctor should be made aware and approve any weight loss routine you adopt.

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Calorie, an approximate definition
It’s about calories, to which first a brief explanation, then we can point to some things to keep in mind when considering the foods to add to our diabetic menu.

A calorie is the scientific name that describes a precise quantity of energy. We don’t need to know the exact definition but for us to understand, let us accept that foods are the source of the energy needed by the body to function and keep us, or any living organism, alive. Different foods and quantities of foods provide different amounts of energy and the body constantly uses up that energy. To define those amounts of energy provided or used up, we express them in calorie units.
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If, in our daily working life and our lifestyle activities, we consume more calories than we burn we will gain weight, so to lose weight, it comes down to adjusting our daily food intake and activity, we must either burn up more calories or consume fewer calories, or a combination of both.

To lose weight, and stating the obvious I know, we need to become more active, adding simple forms of exercise to our current daily activities, and we must also eat a little less than the current amount of calories that we now consume, the amount that caused us to add weight.

There are so many benefits to taking off excess weight. For instance, a person with diabetes who has to take insulin might be able to reduce the amount of insulin necessary if they can achieve a weight reduction of as little as five pounds.

Even without exercise, by eating 500 calories less each day than your current daily intake, and by staying on that regime for a week, it should achieve about a one pound weight loss – and if continued on that same daily calorie amount for a few more weeks it could result in a 4 to 5 pound weight loss in a month. Just for comparison, 500 calories each day is about equal to a fast food cheeseburger and a regular cola drink each day.

By eating 3,500 calories more than your body needs without adding more exercise, it will add about 1 pound. On the other hand, if you become more active and can burn up 3,500 calories without eating any more, you will lose about 1 pound of weight.

In making a new start to lose weight, and perhaps you have been through weight loss attempts before without success, think about taking a different approach, don’t follow the tempting path of an initially quick weight loss. It has been shown that any such weight loss is most often a temporary loss, the weight returns.

Instead, a better plan is to lose a few pounds of weight over each of a series of short time periods, time periods of sufficient duration to allow the body to gradually adjust and adapt to its lesser weight. Only then should you move on to the next weight loss period and cut calorie intake a little more. For example, target for a 5 or 10 pound loss over one or two months, whatever the body and mind seems comfortable with. After several successful weight loss periods, the total loss could be significant and noticeable and the body will have gradually adjusted to its new and reduced energy budget. In this manner you will reach your target weight and be able to maintain that weight.

Cautionary Note:
Your doctor should be made aware and approve any weight loss routine you adopt.

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