Diabetes And Losing Weight

Many of us with type 2 diabetes suffer from being obese and its really hard to lose weight even when your doctor tells you that you must. And changing your diet and losing weight can be especially hard for those of us with type 2 diabetes. But if you can teach your self some simple rules and ideals you really can lose weight and keep it off. If you are able to lose enough weight you might not even be a diabetic any longer.

You should discuss with your doctor what your plans and long term goals for losing weight are. If your going to try the cabbage soup diet you really should print the diet off first and take it with you to your doctor and tell your doctor you want to use the cabbage soup diet.

As a type 2 diabetic you must watch your sugar intake. One of the first things you need to do is to start reading food labels. Be sure that you know and understand that sugar can come in many forms. Sucrose, dextrose, and corn syrup are all forms of sugar. If one of those terms is on the food label you must know that it is sugar. And as a diabetic you must control your sugar intake. Don't let other forms of sugar sneak into your diet with out knowing what they are.

It is also key as a diabetic that you understand carbohydrates and you must pay careful attention to them. One of the first things you can do is start to use whole grain in place of white bread. Check out the grocery store rice section for various types of brown rice instead of white rice or instant rice. Brown types of rice are much better for you and you may find that they really have a lot more flavor than the white rice ever did.

You need to give your digestive system a period of rest and the best way for you to do this is to stop eating late at night. I know it is a really hard thing to do for most diabetics but you need to stop eating two hours before you go to bed but initially you need to check your blood sugar before you go to sleep. Ask your doctor what your blood sugar reading should be at bedtime if you don't eat two hours before bedtime.

During the day you may want to start eating smaller more frequent meals rather than the standard three meals a day. You will need to go for the flavor rather than the fat. Start adding more spices to your food and as you do experiment with fresh herbs from your grocery store produce section. Adding thyme or rosemary to brown rice makes a wonderful full flavored rice that your sure to love.

Be sure that your drinking plenty of water. Try drinking water in place of soda. Yes I am a big fan of diet soft drinks but I have cut way back on the sodas and now have very cold water over crushed ice in place of all the sodas I used to drink.

If you are a diabetic and you want to lose weight you need to start some form of regular exercise program and the best exercise for a lot of us is walking. You can even walk yourself thin if you will just stick to it.

As hard as it may be to do you really do need to start doing today all those things your doctor told you to do to improve your life as a diabetic. Yes I know its hard. As a Chef I had a very hard time changing my eating habits and starting to eat healthy. Until I really started paying attention to labels I had no ideal how much sugar was sneaking into my diet. Read those labels.

Keep a journal and write down notes in it every day. Keep track of how your eating habits are changing and write down goals. We all need goals but make them realistic goals so that you can feel good about yourself when you reach your goals.

Another reason its very important to try to get your doctor to refer you to a nutritionist is you can discuss what kind of desserts you can have as a diabetic. You just may be surprised at what the nutritionist tells you. I started eating a lot more fresh fruit in place of a lot of the delicious desserts I had been eating and before long I was looking forward to a cold crisp pear or a delightfully juicy delicious apple. Carrot sticks straight out of the fridge taste delicious. And yes to be successful as a diabetic with weight loss your going to have to change your eating habits.

Keep in mind that improving your diet and lifestyle will reduce the risks you face as a diabetic. Diabetes directly effects the ability of your body to use blood sugar as energy. You should know that some of the symptoms of diabetes include fatigue, increased thirst and urination and blurred vision. If you don't know for sure if your a diabetic and you have these symptoms you need to see your doctor as soon as possible and discuss your concerns.

I hope everyone finds something that can help them here on my Hub Page about Diabetes and Losing Weight and I appreciate you reading. Please feel free to post your comments or questions below.