I am brand new to diabetes. I am experimenting and researching. I stopped drinking sodas of any kind except occasionally and am seeking other beverages that are healthy and enjoyable. So, my question is, is coconut good for diabetics to drink?
Hey Not a Fossil....check THIS out and try not to drool, ok? ;p
They say you should drink at least three 8 oz glasses per day! This makes it SO much easier. The longer it sits, the better it tastes. You can eat them as well but they are intended as flavoring and still work, so that is a personal choice. The Vitamin C turns fat into fuel, the tangerine increases your sensitivity to insulin, and the cucumber makes you feel full. Add strawberries also! Try it for 10 days and see what you think!
Ingredients per 8 oz serving
Water
1 slice grapefruit (this might be a concern with certain blood pressure medications;
oranges work just as well)
1 tangerine
½ cucumber, sliced
2 peppermint leaves
Strawberries
Ice – as much as you like
Directions
Wash grapefruit, tangerine cucumber and peppermint leaves. Slice cucumber, grapefruit and tangerine (or peel). Combine all ingredients (fruits, vegetables, 8 oz water, and ice) into a large pitcher.
Stir & Enjoy!
Fossil, Please read the carbohydrate count on everything you eat or drink. Get a complete book of food counts. Nothing that I know of is especially good for diabetics. No sodas. Period. Unless they are "diet" or sugar free. Look at the label. You will find that so-called "sugar-free" ice cream and cookies have as many, if not more carbs than regular items. Take a course in nutrition, if you haven't already. It's important to eat a healthy diet. Don't waste your carbs on veggies that have little or no nutrition. That's my advice.
Yvonne S.
Hi Fossil -
Welcome to the club, sorry you had to join us.
Listen to Yvonne -- she is RIGHT ON!
A couple of years ago, when I finally began to pay attention to my eating I was amazed at what I found. I began tracking my carb-intake to discover that "sacrificing" by eating sugar-free and fat-free foods, which included cookies and ice cream, was resulting in a BUNCH of carbs.
I'd gone through several years of my doc "tweaking the meds" which got my glucose level back in line, ;but it finally reached a point that I had to take insulin before every meal, which meant I had to estimate my carb-intake to set the dosage. The only thing I looked at was carb-content, paid no attention to calories, fat, etc., just carbs. A year and and a half later I'd dropped 40-pounds and my glucose level was back in line. Today, a year later, I still watch carb-intake, I average 100-to-120 grams per day. I no longer use any insulin and my glucose is well behaved, A1c at 6.1 in July and it should be about the same for my mid-November check.
There are a number of calorie-counter/food-content sites on the web, I use
http://www.fatsecret.com/calories-nutrition/ to check on anything I have a question on, if it's birthday cake for one of the GrandKid's birthdays I'll often times "cheat", knowing full well that I'll have to cut back somewhere else, but it's worth it.
Hey there, Not a Fossil!
Welcome! I agree completely with Yvonne - look at the total carbs. This means not just the sugar, but all-inclusive counts. There are those who look at so-called “net carbs” where they subtract the fiber and sugar alcohols, but I believe that is misleading. If something is high in fiber, that’s usually a good thing, as fiber is typically slowly digested and less likely to spike your BGs. But don’t exclude it from your carb watching.
The other thing I would tell you is that “a carb is not a carb is not a carb”. Meaning that equal amounts of carbs from different items can and usually are processed differently by your body. For example, potatoes are tough for most diabetics, including me. Rice is slightly less impactful, but still spikes my BGs. For example, a full sugar, non-diet soda is probably going to have around 45g of carbs in a can. That 45g will hit you very fast, spiking your BGs. This is why many diabetics use soda as a quick response when their BGs drop too low.
Some people use the Glycemic Index to look at how quickly foods are digested. Typically, the lower the glycemic impact, the less impact to your BGs. This extra bit can be a little overwhelming at first (with everything else you’re going through), but it can be worth looking over the info to get an idea of what types of foods are more likely to give you a BG impact.
Dramatic spikes in BG are often not seen when checking your BGs 1-2 times a day. However, these spikes will keep your average BGs higher, and will usually make you feel much worse after the spike and subsequent drop.
The best way to see how something impacts your BG is to test often with your meter. Check your BG before you eat, and then 2 hours after to see what happened. You’ll be surprised by some of the things that give you a larger impact than you expected. If you need to ask your doctor to prescribe more test strips, ask. This is extremely important as you start to better understand your body with diabetes. Good luck!