diabetic living JULY/AUGUST 2017 75Eating for health doesn’t
mean you need to forgo the
pleasure of food – you only
need to turn to the recipes
from page 18 to see meals
can be varied and delicious!
Sometimes eating better and
feeling better can be achieved
with just a few easy tweaks.
Dial a dietitian
Do you have an accredited
practising dietitian (APD)
on your care team? If not, it’s
time to sign one up! The role
of an APD is to tailor a diet
around your age, nutritional
requirements, weight, food
intolerances, likes and
dislikes, plus how your BGLs
respond to food and exercise.
They can offer advice on
smart food choices and
how to eat more balanced
portions. The result? Better
diabetes management and
a healthy diet that fills you
up without blowing you out.
Set glucose goals
Coupled with eating well,
DL GP Dr Gary Deed says
aiming to manage glucose
levels to agreed goals has
been shown to lessen diabetes-
related complications. If you
haven’t already done so, chat
with your diabetes healthcare
team to set your goals.
DL dietitian Lisa Urquhart
adds: “I advise my clients
to regularly catch up with
their health team so they can
build on and improve their
knowledge of diabetes and
how it’s affected by their
diet. You can stay healthy if
you understand what your
BGLs mean and aim for the
best blood glucose control
possible.” Sound advice!Stay in range
Your BGL target range will
depend on several factors
including your age, prescribed
medications, health issues
and how long you’ve had
diabetes. Diabetes Australia
recommends the following.
● TYPE 1: Aim for between
4-8mmol/L before meals and
under 10mmol/L two hours
after starting meals.
● TYPE 2: Aim to stay in the
range of 6-8mmol/L before ➤hat age-old saying, ‘you are what
you eat’ holds some truth. With a
few simple changes to your eating
habits you can increase your energy and
stabilise blood glucose levels (BGLs).T
FOOD for life