There are two types of diabetes: -
- Type I – diabetes, also known as insulin dependant diabetes
- Type II – diabetes, also known as non- insulin dependant diabetes.
TYPE I – This type of diabetes develops when the insulin producing cells within the pancreas are destroyed. The actual causes of this are unknown, but recent research by Diabetes UK, suggests that it may be due to a virus or serious infections. Any one can get this type, but it is more prevalent in adolescents. Insulin injections are necessary to replace the absence of the body’s own insulin.
TYPE II – This type affects over three quarters of the population. It appears to be more prevalent in people aged between 40 and 75. The main causes of this type is that the body no longer responses to the insulin produced or that it does not produce enough to regulate sugar concentrations. According to Diabetes UK and other professionals, people who are diagnosed with type II are moderately overweight .The treatment for this type is a combination of Diet control, weight reduction, and exercise.
What is Crohn’s disease?
This disease is where the small intestine, called the ileum, becomes inflamed causing pain and swelling. This inflammation can make the intestines empty frequently, hence resulting diarrhoea. Crohn’s disease affects men and women equally and can be genetic.
The small intestine is the place where all the nutrients from the foods we eat are absorbed into the bloodstream. People with Crohn’s disease can suffer from malnutrition, because vital nutrients cannot be absorbed.
It is usually recommended by a dietician, that nutritional supplement, like high calorie liquid formulas are taken as part of their diet.
What is coronary Heart Disease?
This is the narrowing of the coronary arteries that feed the heart with oxygen. Like any muscle in the body, the heart needs a constant supply of Oxygen and nutrients, which are carried to it by the blood in these coronary arteries. When the arteries become narrowed or clogged by cholesterol or fat deposits this starves the heart of oxygen, a process called arteriosclerosis. This happens over many years of unhealthy eating or can be passed from one generation to the next; the result is coronary heart disease (CHD). Cholesterol is a waxy, fat like substance that occurs naturally in all parts of the body. If you have too much cholesterol in your bloodstream, E.g. too much present in your diet, the excess is deposited in the arteries, which eventually builds up and stops the blood flow. There are usually no symptoms of this happening only when a major blockage occurs and the result a heart attack!
In each disease described above, a change in your diet is very important in maintaining good health. By changing the things you eat, and taking regular exercise, you can reduce your risks of these diseases.
How easy is it for someone with a dietary need to eat appropriate foods?
Over the past few years, the amount of fast food outlets and restaurants throughout the country has doubled. I do believe that this has contributed to the fact that the nation has becomes unhealthy.
Supermarkets and similar shops do not help us in any way. Have you ever noticed that when you walk into these places sweets and cakes are always there to greet you? Do you know that they actually employ a team of psychologists to plan were food should be displayed.
The temptation for some of us is too much and therefore self-indulgence takes over. Throughout our lives we really don’t think about what we eat and how much we eat until something happens like a heart attack or diabetes occurs.
Many people do not understand nutritional values of food and if it says “Low Fat,” they go with it. It is very difficult to change someone’s routine of eating, as they have developed their own eating patterns and habits. Motivating people to change is vital if we are going to improve our health. A lot of publicity is given to diet. The food industry is making a fortune out of low-fat or no-fat alternatives to high-fat foods.
In supermarkets and shops there is a wide variety of foods and drinks. Ready made meals have revolutionised our lives, providing quicker and convenient meals, which fit into our busy lifestyles. However some of these dishes are higher in fat and are more expensive than foods prepared at home. Accessibility and availability has never been easier, products, which were once seasonal, can now be bought throughout the year.
DIABETIC DIET = HEALTHY DIET
The modern diet for diabetes is the one, which is recommended as the healthy option for the general population. It is not unduly restrictive, complicated, or special in any way. It is no longer necessary to stigmatise a person with diabetes by recommending they eat differently from family and friends. Instead the whole family can be encouraged to eat a more balanced diet and reap the health benefits.
One of the main features of this booklet is to understand what diabetics are faced with whilst trying to adapt to a new more beneficial lifestyle.
A survey was conducted on the following supermarkets and shops to see how easy it is for a diabetic person to eat appropriately.
Before this specific investigation was performed, advice was sought from a qualified dietician regarding what foods to buy and what not too buy.
The 6 steps to eating a healthy diet
- Eat regular meals based on starchy foods such as bread, chapattis, potatoes, rice, and cereals. Wherever possible, choose high fibre varieties of these foods, like wholemeal breads and wholemeal pasta.
- Try to cut down on the amount of fat in the diet, particularly saturated animal fats, as this type is linked to a number of health diseases. Eating less fat and fatty foods will in turn help you lose weight. Use less butter, margarine, cheese, and fatty meats. Try to grill, steam or oven bake instead of frying or cooking with other oils.
Choose low fat dairy foods like skimmed milk and low fat yoghurts.
- Eat more fruit and vegetable- aim for at least five portions a day to provide you with vitamins and fibre as well as to help balance your overall diet.
- Cut down on sugar and sugary foods. This does not mean have a totally sugar free diet, but be sensible in the amount you eat. Buy diet, low sugar or sugar free squashes and fizzy drinks as sugary drinks cause blood sugar levels to rise quickly.
- Use less salt. Try flavouring foods with herbs and spices rather than adding salt.
- Drink alcohol in moderation only- that is two units of alcohol a day for a woman and three units a day for a man.
All this advice can be summarized into a chart into five main groups.
Fruit and vegetables - 1
All fruit and vegetables are low in fat and calories and it is recommended that a person should have at least five portions of fruit and vegetable every day. Potatoes do not count as a vegetable as they are in the starchy food group. Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables helps to reduce your risks of heart disease and cancer.
Bread, cereals, pasta and potatoes – 2
- Starchy foods are naturally low in fat, and are a good choice to fill you up.
- Choose starchy foods like bread, pasta, rice, chapattis, potatoes, or cereals as the main part of all meals and snacks. This will also help you to control your blood sugar levels.
- Wholegrain starchy foods such as wholemeal bread and wholemeal cereals are higher in fibre, which helps to prevent constipation and other digestive problems.
- Cereals can be a good snack any time of the day. Try to eat a variety of cereals such as bran flakes, porridge, weetabix, or shredded wheat.
Milk and dairy foods – 3
- Choose lower fat milk. Skimmed milk is virtually fat free and lower in calories but still contains all the protein and calcium found in full fat milk.
- Choose lower fat dairy foods like low fat yoghurts and low fat cheese. Be very careful as cheese contains a lot of fat so use it as part of a main meal rather than as a snack.
- Limit other high fat foods such as cream.
- If you don’t eat any dairy products, your diet may not contain sufficient calcium. Check with your GP or state registered dietician.
Foods containing fat – 4
- Snack foods such as crisps and biscuits are high in fat and calories so choose low fat options.
- Eat fewer pasties - such as samosas and pies.
- Use less butter and margarine on bread or, better still, choose a low fat spread.
Meat, fish and alternatives – 5
- Choose lean red meat or poultry without skin to cut down on the saturated fat.
- Eat fish at least twice a week. Choose fresh, frozen, or tinned in brine, water, or tomato sauce. Oily fish such as sardines, salmon, and mackerel contain more fat but it is a type which helps to protect against heart disease- choose it once a week.
What are diabetics faced with whilst shopping?
As discussed before an investigation into supermarkets and shops was performed. After consideration of the above dietary needs, a survey was conducted into how easy is it to eat appropriately?
Asda, boots, and tesco all have a wide range of low fat alternatives. They have even dedicated themes to these low fat options.
Asda – good for you
Tesco – right choice
There are puddings, light snacks and main meals all which state the total fat, salt, fibre and sugar content. Each store has designated a full aisle of these foods and also they were clearly advertised, so anyone requiring these products would easily find them. A comparison of the prices of a low fat alternative to an ordinary food product was compared, which showed they were approximately the same price.
Good for you strawberry yoghurt Normal strawberry
49p ---------------------------------------------- Yoghurt 50p
I believe that now after much speculation from the media and health education societies in England, more people have become more aware of the needs and benefits to eat healthy, so more of these products are being purchased, which in turn has helped bring the price down.
In each supermarket visited, there was not any product specifically stating, “For diabetics,” except Thornton’s chocolate shop. They had a full section of chocolates especially for diabetics. They appeared to be slightly over priced. Two different types of chocolate bars were compared
Diabetic milk chocolate Cadburys dairy
Bar with sweeteners. -------------------- Milk chocolate bar
Price 99p Price 74p
The diabetic chocolate bar was slightly more expensive than the normal chocolate bar, but this was to be excepted, as Thornton’s is a top chocolate shop. Another factor that was confusing was the actual interpretation/ comprehension of the nutritional values on certain foods.
What do these nutritional values mean?
Each product has a confusing range of figures on their labels. There is a list of nutrients that each food provides us with, also other information like calorie content. It is important for diabetics to try hard to follow the advice they are given by their dietician. Once you become familiar with this information given, the reading of labels will become easier. In general, men need approximately 2,500kcals (calories) each day, and women 2,000kcals per day. This is only a guide, as someone who is very active will need more and it is always advisable when people have a condition to consult his or her GP when changing their diet.
This table below represents the recommended daily intake for the most important nutrients listed on food labels.
Next time you go shopping use the above chart to work out how much of each nutrient is in each food. The most important nutrient to look out for is FAT. For foods you eat in large amounts, like ready meals, look at the amount per serving. For snacks and other foods you eat in smaller amounts, look at the “per 100g.”
Are special diabetic products necessary?
Whilst shopping in the supermarkets, I observed that there were no actual foods specifically for diabetics, and I became curious why this was.
A statement made by Diabetes UK states that they do not recommend the use of so called “Diabetic Products.” Diabetic foods had there hey day in the 1960s when the focus of dietary education was on sugar free, low carbohydrates diets. These products had nutritive sweetening agents that behaved as sugars, food manufactures jumped on the band- wagon when they saw that there was such an obvious market to exploit.
Now these products are non- existent within supermarkets. In their place there is a large range of various low fat products.
Some other useful tips for diabetics
- Regular meals and snacks
Eating little and often- improves diabetic control as well as cholesterol levels. Changing the way you eat also gives you more control of what you eat as well as preventing both starvation and overindulgence, which is bad for anyone with a dietary need. Diet plays a huge part in controlling your diabetes. It is therefore important to be sensible and follow recommended guidelines for maintaining a healthy diet.
- Limit Alcohol
Drink in moderation ONLY. Avoid sweet wines, liquors and Sherries as well as strong beer and lager. Never drink on an empty stomach as it can cause your Blood sugar to drop too low. Remember, alcohol also contains a lot of calories.
-
Watch your Weight
Being overweight does affect your diabetes and losing pounds sensibly will help you control it. According to diabetes UK over 80% of people with type II are overweight when first diagnosed with diabetes and obesity is the main factor to the rapidly increasing number of people with type II diabetes.