Educate yourself to understand diabetes
- col-bobbie-randall
- January 10, 2025
- 340
Those who are newly diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes around Christmas are more overwhelmed than most people. Just because you may not deal with diabetes is no reason to stop reading this article. Many of your friends and family may be dealing with this disease. Here are some facts for you:
There are many misconceptions surrounding diabetes. People may recite myths and untruths as if they were the Gospel. My advice to those with recent or previous diabetes diagnoses is to pay attention to the new research and treatments.
If you recently learned diabetes is now part of your life, don’t believe everything you hear. The first fact you need to know is diabetes is a highly individual disease. What works for one person does not always work for the next. That is why it is important to work closely with a health care professional with specific knowledge of diabetes.
This is really evident when you meet in a group setting with others who also are dealing with diabetic issues. You may not all have the same problem or solution, but the group can offer support and suggestions.
The biggest misconception is there is a mysterious list of foods out there in “doctor land” that will control and cure diabetes. People demand health professionals to “just tell me what I cannot eat.” Such a list does not exist. This is difficult for the newly diagnosed person to hear.
If diabetes is not about a list of forbidden foods, then what is it about? In the past a list of no-no foods was a standard method of treating diabetes. Some foods are healthier and better able to stabilize blood sugars than others, but there are not good foods or bad foods.
Bread, rice, potatoes and fruits are not bad foods. People with diabetes go wrong with the amount they eat, not with the foods themselves. Blood sugar control is not about what you eat as much as how much and when you eat it. Go ahead and eat one cookie.
Anything that is high in fiber or roughage has an advantage to control blood sugar. The longer your body takes to absorb food, the slower the insulin rush and the lower the spikes in blood sugar.
Good control comes from knowing your blood sugar and how food, exercise and stress affect it. Monitoring blood sugar also is commonly misunderstood. Just because Grandma had to stick her finger only once a week does not mean it is the same for all people with diabetes. Follow the monitoring directions from your health care team and report anything unusually high or low in blood sugar.
Food is not the only thing that affects diabetes. Stress level, medication and actively moving can cause the level of sugar in the blood to fluctuate.
The holiday season can hold many surprises and unexpected happenings. Consistency is a key in diabetes control. Blood sugar will go up and down. Do not give up and ignore this diagnosis. Do your best, and I hope you enjoyed a blessed holiday season.
Bobbie Randall is a registered, licensed dietitian in Wooster. Email her at bobbierandallrd@gmail.com.