Hightailed it to Paris this week for my first visit with the Diabetes Educator. Like most people, the last place I normally want to find myself is in some medical office, but I was actually in a very positive frame of mind and looking forward to finding out more about how to help myself. I was not disappointed. First of all, the very knowledgeable professional that I saw was wonderful. She explained so many things to me, things that I knew on the surface, but didn't have all the details I wanted. She also made me feel a little less afraid and certainly like I wasn't alone in the medical management of this disease.
We talked about several aspects of diabetes and I suspect each visit will leave me feeling more in control of what happens from this point on. Things I'm obsessed with at this moment, however, that I'm going to get tired of quickly: reading, reading, reading labels and counting, counting, counting carbs. Which package has the fewest grams of carbohydrates per serving? I'm looking for every opportunity to save a carb, picking up every package to read. And while I will get tired of reading and counting, I will never be able to stop. Not if I like breathing deep on the topside of planet earth...and I do. So, guess we should talk about carbs and what makes a standard serving of them for a diabetic.
There are three types: starches (complex carbohydrates), sugar, and fiber. On a label, the Total Carbohydrate, is the number you are looking for because it combines the totals of all those together for one happy number you can use. Starches include foods like corn, peas, dried beans, potatoes, and grains like wheat, oats, etc. Sugar includes those naturally occurring like in milk and fruit and added sugars from food processing. Fiber includes the indigestible parts of plant foods.
The magic number of grams in a serving for us sweetest folks? 15...You read that right, 15. Want to know how long it takes to get to 15??? One-half of a hamburger bun. One slice of many breads. One-third a cup of pasta. I scoured the shelves today to come up with some kind of pasta that magically did not have 42 grams of carbohydrates in a 2 oz. serving. It was nowhere to be found. I'm not Italian but I mourned a little, right there in the aisle of WallyWorld.
Every diabetic has a diet/menu plan/new way of eating forever that sucks big time, assigned to them, because this is a customized disease. All us sweet people are not created equal. So, you have to find out how many carb servings you can have a day from the trained people that know. All I know is what I get to have, which is 3 carbs per meal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and 2 carbs for one snack. Of course I get all the other food groups, also in assigned amounts, but we're talking about the foods that turn to sugar at the moment. Now, the most un-fun news I received this week from this fabulous diabetic educator? You can't bank these bad boys for a rainy day! Oh no, forget skipping breakfast, and lunch in favor of overdosing on spaghetti at the local pizza joint...it ain't happening! We cannot save them, to use later. We eat them at the meal they are assigned or we lose them. It's not like counting calories on the lastest fad diet or counting points on Weight Watchers (great program, by the way, just saying). Once your body no longer makes enough insulin you can't bombard it with a boat load of carbs all at once, and feel good about yourself, because you skipped breakfast to do it. That's kinda like a full assault on your organs that are trying valiantly to keep on, keeping on, for YOU! As much as I'd personally love the save 'em for later plan, my body disagrees and if I don't care, who else will?
I learned a lot more and over time will share the bestest bits here. Mostly, I left her office less stressed because of her reassurance. It was very comforting, by the way, that she is diabetic, too. So she gets it, on every level and there was none of the pious, 'I know better than you' attitude. Read up on all things carby at this great page on the diabetes association website. It is my online diabetes bible, I swear, I don't know what I'd do without it. You certainly don't have to be that excited, but give yourself a little learning and you'll be glad you did. http://www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/food/what-can-i-eat/carbohydrates.html
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