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Diabetes can play havoc with your eyes, and sometimes there are no early sumptoms. So you may have no idea anything is wrong until your eyesight is in danger. Here are the main eye problems that can be caused, or made worse, by diabetes. Cataracts These are often described as a clouding of the lens of the eye. They are treatable by surgery in most cases. Glaucoma Our eyes are largely made up of fluid, and when the pressure of that fluid builds up too much inside the eye, you have glaucoma. Left untreated, it can damage the optic nerves, and even lead to blindness. Diabetic retinopathy Lining the back of our eyes is light-sensitive tissue known as the retina. …

If you are like me you probably thought diabetes is one of those things you have or don’t have; nothing could be further from the truth because diabetes is now the biggest threat to health in the developed world and we are eating ourselves into it because of poor diet. First question is how prevalent is diabetes? Using Australia as an example that has a total population of around 20 million inhabitants, in the last full year official figures show 70,000 people were diagnosed with diabetes during the year. That is equal to one extra person diagnosed every seven minutes 24/7. At present 700,000 people are diagnosed with having diabetes and a conservative figure indicate that for each person diagnosed …

Did you know that you can be ‘just a little bit diabetic’? The condition is technically called ‘pre-diabetes’, and it is characterized by persistent high blood sugar levels. Pre-diabetes is a serious condition, though its symptoms may be so subtle that you don’t notice them affecting your life. More importantly, it’s an indicator that there is something seriously wrong with your body. Left untreated, over 50% of those diagnosed with pre-diabetes will develop Type 2 diabetes within ten years. If your doctor has told you that you are one of the more than 16 million Americans who has pre-diabetes, the American Diabetes Association has some very good news for you. In March 2005, the ADA released the results of the …

You might be thinking “What’s the connection between diabetes and the menopause?” Well, for ladies reaching that certain age, it can be very traumatic – especially when some of the effects experienced can easily be mistaken for those we have to be aware of when managing our diabetes… For a diabetic taking medication, keeping blood sugars at the right level is a balancing act. If sugar levels drop too low, because of not eating enough or at the right times, you suffer a hypoglycemia episode (sometimes called ‘hypo’ for short). For me, this usually manifests itself as shaking; irritability; sweating and a faint-headed feeling. If you are diabetic and have ever had low-blood sugar you may recognize some of these …

There are going to be times when you have finished your meal or snack and you are hungry again long before your next meal is scheduled or right before bed. Depending on how much time you have to go before you are supposed to eat again and what your blood sugar levels are at you may want to move your meal time up or indulge in some free food. If this happens frequently it is time look at your eating schedule and meal plan. If you have recently added more physical activity to your daily routine, you will also have to increase your food intake to compensate for the extra energy your are using up. If this isn’t the case …

When you are a diabetic sometimes when you eat is just as important as what you eat. Keeping a steady stream of food in your system without causing high blood sugars can be hard to do. But once you figure what works for you, you will have more flexibility and better control of your diabetes. It is recommended that diabetics eat many small meals throughout the day or three main meals and three snacks in between. A typical day may go like this: * Wake-up and have breakfast * Mid-morning snack * Lunch * Mid-afternoon snack * Dinner * Bedtime snack The timing in between each meal or snack should be two to three hours. This variation will depend on …

In grade school everyone was taught the food pyramid and the different food groups that make it up. It is recommended for a balanced and healthy diet to vary your diet and follow the food serving suggestions from the pyramid. As adults, people rarely pay as much heed to it if any at all. But once you have been diagnosed with diabetes it is time to take a refresher course on the different food groups. There is a food pyramid that is available specifically for diabetics known as the Diabetes Food Pyramid. It is divided into six food groups just like the standard version. The way the two pyramids differ is that the diabetic version lists foods together that have …

Everyone has their favorite dishes, ones that mom or grandma used to make or new ones that you have discovered on your own. Once you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you may feel that you can never enjoy these dishes again (or not without harming your health). But there are ways that you can change old family favorites keeping the flavor but reducing or eliminating the amount of sugar or carbohydrates they contain. For most substitutions that you are going to make to your recipes, you are looking for ways to reduce the fat content. Here are some standards that you can use. When your recipe calls for: * Whole milk try substituting with 2% or 1% instead * Whole …

The Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes (TLC) diet was developed with more than diabetics in mind. It is a diet that is recommended to people with high cholesterol, heart or other cardiovascular diseases and those that have been diagnosed with diabetes. This diet consists of a set of guidelines that provide percentage ranges of what a patient should eat from each food group. The aim is to provide flexibility in choices while ensuring that the choices made are helpful to the condition that is being treated. In the beginning it is a good idea to partner with a dietician to ensure the calculations that you are making are accurate and that you are making the best food choice decisions. The TLC diet …

The role of fiber in healthy diets is very important – it aids in digestion and keep your colon and other organs healthy and functioning properly. It is also a wonder element that should be a large part of any diabetic’s diet. You will reap many benefits from including fiber in your diet. If you are pre-diabetic it can assist in delaying the diagnosis of diabetes or if you are already diabetic it can help keep your blood glucose under control. Fiber will keep you feeling fuller longer – it slows the conversion of carbohydrates in your body which in turn can keep your blood sugars stable. The type of fiber that a diabetic needs to eat to gain these …

There are two kinds of diabetes, type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. The first type is also known as juvenile diabetes and is usually diagnosed in childhood. It is the body’s cells and the pancreas’ inability to produce enough insulin. In type 2 diabetes there is not enough insulin produced for the body or the body is not making proper use of the insulin that is available. Many studies and doctors have linked an increasing number of people being diagnosed with diabetes to obesity. When a person is obese or very over weight they are overtaxing their pancreas (the organ that produces insulin) and this can lead to type 2 diabetes. Being obese is a risk factor for diabetes …

The glycemic index diet is one that many diabetics find useful. The diet is based on assigning foods a ranking that indicates that food’s effect on blood sugar levels. This can be a valuable tool for diabetics, especially ones that have been newly diagnosed as it can take some of the guess work out of meal planning and what foods to eat. The glycemic index (GI) diet indicates foods that have a low GI value meaning they will take a longer time to have an affect on blood sugars and ones that have a higher value – they will act quicker to raise blood sugars. A diabetic is still going to have to use another means to decide what foods …

The exchange diet is a method of eating that provide diabetic with a set of guidelines necessary to eat healthy. A dietician will help prepare and educate you on the exchange diet – the food groups and what substitutions you can make. On the exchange diet all foods are divided into six food groups: * Breads and other Starches * Fruit * Vegetables * Dairy Foods * Meat and Meat Substitutes * Fats Your dietician will provide you with the number of servings you should have from each group daily and at individual meal or snack times. Within each of the categories there are many food options. Each food has a specific serving size that equals one serving, in cases …

Even before you are diagnosed with diabetes, if you are obese, your blood sugars are most likely elevated. High blood sugar levels in a body over a prolonged period of time can have devastating affects on your body. You may not be showing symptoms of high blood sugars but your doctor will most likely do a routine blood test if you are obese to check for pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes. People can go for years or even decades with undiagnosed pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes. Over this time, their blood glucose will be at above average range and this can due internal damage. Once you find out that you are pre diabetic it is wise to change your lifestyle …

Everyone needs a little help now and then and shouldn’t be afraid to ask for it. A newly diagnosed diabetic may feel overwhelmed with the restrictions that they are faced with and not knowing how to plan meals. The support that is needed is from a dietician or nutritionist. Depending on your goals and weight a dietician can provide you with a meal plan that will meat the criteria of a healthy diabetic diet and help you lose weight. In the beginning, the concern with a diabetic diet is to make sure you are getting enough food so your blood sugar does not drop too low. You will also want to monitor your levels to look for any spikes in …