Substitutions

Diabetics know all about substitutes. Personally, I hate most of them. That "tastes like sugar" doesn't to me. I can detect any artificial sweetener immediately, and I don't like how any of them taste. I prefer to do without than to consume something that tastes like crap.

At least Snapple is doing something I like. They have added a few new items that are better for diabetics, although they don't advertise them as such.

But, one of these products, red tea peach pomegranate flavor is billed as an all natural, low calorie anti oxident drnk.

Sweetened with fructose and fruit juice, it is about half the calorie total and sugar of most drinks. It does not have a really sweet taste, but instead is nore like a sports drink, which are not really sweet to me.

It's not perfect for diabetics (that would be water) but it is better than regular sweetened drinks, and much better (taste wise) than artificial junk.

Some helpful herbs

I was looking at a recent Issue of Women's World, and found a nice article on diabetes. One of the things that is often overlooked is that things work together in our bodies. Rather than a "magic bullet" to target a specific problem treating the body as a whole produces better results.

And here is how these herbs help: they contain compounds which increase the effectiveness of one's liver to convert blood fat and sugar into fuel according to researchers at Stanford University Medical School.
As little as 1 tsp ata meal can increase metabolism for up to 3 hours. It is suggested to try this at only one meal per day.

What are these "magical spices?"

Cinnamon, ginger, cayenne, turmeric, and cilantro. Simply incorporating these into a regular diet can be useful, and tasty. Add some cinnamon to your oatmeal, and work cayenne into different dishes like your pasta. Ginger can be added to vegetable dishes to create an Asian influenced specialty.

I've been slacking off

Haven't posted for a while, and have been a bit lax in following my food plan.

Well, the glucometer doesn't lie.

My sugar has been up, so tomorrow morning, I need to get back on the program.

Please explain this to me

Every commercial for diabetics seems to include several different cookbooks.

Since Type 2 Diabetics are the target market, why, oh why, do they offer slightly healthier versions of the same crap diet that caused the problem in the first place?

The pictures on TV are for desserts and meals like macaroni and cheese. There is no way in hell to make these foods safe for diabetics. Nope, can't be done.
The desserts are sweetened with chemicals like Nutrasweet or Splenda, which are poison. A safe dessert for a diabetic is a piece of fruit.
If one just absolutely has to have something like cake or pie, have some, but count the carbs. And obviously, it should be on the rarest of occasions. We, as diabetics, don't need cake with our coffee every night. It's a small price to pay to maintain our health.

And as far as mac and cheese--have you ever read the ingredients and nutritional content of either?

Get back to me when you do.

Food is always an issue for diabetics

Yeah, I know, it's an issue for so many of us, but it seems to be a bigger one for diabetics. After all, most of us, if we don't count carbs, at least have to be aware of them. And too much protein wreaks havoc for those of us with kidney issues. So, I have to count carbs, and protein. Which means, all I don't count is fats, and that doesn't lead to anything good. So, basically, I spend my day counting everything.
This disease sucks.

An Update

Just a reminder:
I've noticed more readers have been getting involved. Any person, either diabetic or a caretaker for a diabetic, or a medical professional, is invited to write a post here.
Simply contact me jwlreebiz@aol.com.

Also, anyone wanting to share general health tips, news, or a story is also welcomed.

My kidney stone post

This is not a paid post.

This is not a diabetic problem, per se, but as many of us have kidney troubles, I guess it fits the general catagory.

From time to time, I get kidney stones. Right now is one of those times. It is annoying as hell, and occasionally painful. All day long, I feel like I have to urinate, but can barely do it.

I started taking kidney and bladder products from Dr Schulze and it seems to be helping so far. Especially if helping means I'm peeing out lots of gravel and who knows what else. It took a couple days, and it is far from over, but at least it's a start. The company has a lot of other products, and they seem to do what he says they do. He uses organic or wild harvested products and I'm satisfied with anything I've ever used. My sister is also a big fan. Dr. Schulze is a proponent of a healthy lifestyle (yeah, like I'm going to start that now) and believes that with proper nutrition, the body can cure itself of almost any disease.

I can say that since embracing a healthier lifestyle, I am off all diabetic meds after being on them for over 20 years, so there may be something to all this.

Just wanted to let everyone know about this company and the options.

In a slightly related matter, a friend of the family was warned by the Mrs. not to use all the artificial sweeteners, etc. The woman tried to get Mrs. to come over to the dark side, and embrace Splenda, and even went so far as to call the company and ask the rep if it was safe. Here's a surprise--the company said it is perfectly safe.

Mrs. refuses to use any of that junk, and rather than drink her coffee sweetened with chemicals, she drinks it with just some naturally sweetened flavored soy milk, or regular cow juice. Yes, we can get used to it. I love sweet stuff, and nothing makes me happier than those flavored coffees that are loaded with sugar. The deli I used to go to had a machine, and I could mix a bit of chocolate, with some French Vanilla. It was heavenly. But, I now drink regular coffee exactly like the Mrs. does. We can retrain our sense of taste.

Long story short, and so I don't get sued, there is no known link, and it is simply a coincidence, but Chemical Lady now has cancer.

Not for nothing, but I'll take real food over chemical enhanced crap any day of the week.