Welcome to the blog for the book Don’t get Diabetes!
July 14, 2008
My new book entitled “Don’t get Diabetes: a short and simple guide.” is now available at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com. This blog is to serve as a resource for people who are reading my book.
In case anyone hasn’t heard news reports, type 2 diabetes is rising at alarming rates. The CDC (center for disease control) predicts that 1 out of 3 children born after the year 2000 will become diabetic. For hispanics and African Americans, the risk is even higher. Statistics predict that almost half of the population of all developed countries will be diabetic. This is completely preventable. It does not have to happen. We have a choice. We can almost eliminate our risk and protect our children from developing this devastating illness. We talk a lot about health care coverage in America and how to pay for it. What we really need to be talking about is how to reduce health care costs so that affording them isn’t a problem. If half of the population has diabetes, our healthcare expenses will be astronomical. We will lead shorter, unhealthier, limited lives. Changing the way we think about diet, exercise and wellness will stop this crisis from occurring.
Losing weight, eating healthier, and exercising regularly is the key to defeating this disease, as well as many others. We need support to be successful at making positive lifestyle changes. If it were easy, we’d all be our ideal weight with healthy bodies. It’s not easy. We need support, knowledge, motivation, recipes, ideas, etc. I hope that this blog can help to provide some of that.
I am so pleased to have a positive review from Dr. Arthur Agatston, author of The South Beach Diet. I met him a few months ago at the Florida Obesity Conference. He is a personable, polite, brilliant, and caring man. He has used a portion of the proceeds from The South Beach Diet to establish a Foundation for research for solutions to cardiac, weight, and other health issues. I gave him a copy of my book and he was kind enough to give me his favorable comments.
Should fat intake be a concern for people diagnosed with pre-diabetes or diabetes?
Yes, it should be a concern. It’s important to know the difference between healthy and unhealthy fats. Avoid trans-fats like the plague! They are artery clogging, inflammatory fats that are man-made in a lab and appear on ingredient lists as “hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils”. Limit saturated fats from sources such as fatty meats, cheese, cream, butter etc. You can still eat them, but in small amounts. Choose healthy omega 3 fats and other unsaturated fats such as salmon, fatty fish, olive oil, flaxseed, chia seed, walnuts, etc. Always add healthy fats to your vegies to boost absorption of their many nutrients. Fat doesn’t elevate the blood sugar like carbs do, but you should still be aware of the many forms of fat.
I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes about 6 months ago, so I’ve started following a lot of your advice with the hopes of reaching a healthier weight. I recently pulled a muscle while exercising, and the doctor advised that I stop exercising for the next couple of weeks. She suggested taking walks and doing less strenuous activities to keep my body moving but to take a break and let it heal. I’m sure I’m not burning as many calories as I have been in the past few months, so I was wondering, to keep my weight loss up, should I be curbing my caloric intake? Is there anything else in particular I should be doing?
Thank you!
First of all, congratulation on your healthy lifestyle changes. Keep up the less strenuous activity and with your doctor’s approval, try yoga. Gentle stretching can boost blood flow to the injured areas to facilitate healing. It can also relieve some of the stress that you may be feeling with this setback. I recommend cutting back your carbs and overall caloric intake a bit more during the next couple of weeks until you can resume your previous activity level. It just makes sense to try to keep your intake and burn of calories even. You may not lose any weight but if you stay at your current weight or only go up a pound or two, consider yourself “still on track” and keep up the hard work.