Personal Responsibility

One of the best diets to help you to lower your blood pressure is called the DASH Diet. You can learn more about this diet at www.dash.org. Specifically you want to eat foods rich in potassium like vegetables, fruits, fish, beans, low fat dairy like milk and yogurt.

It is so easy to throw caution to the wind and say, “I’ll just indulge this one time.” Problem is, this one time can become a bunch of occasions that you view in isolation. It’s just Christmas. It’s just New Year’s Eve, It’s just New Year’s Day, It’s just my birthday…anniversary…. graduation…..

Here are some quick tips to consider if you have diabetes:

Don’t bank your carbs, meaning that you skip meals or consumption specifically of carbohydrates in order to “save up” for one big meal later on. That is not a healthy option for your blood sugar and insulin levels,

Use portion control carefully, and pick and choose treat foods.

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Creating a team to help you manage your diabetes can be key to maintaining an optimal quality of life, and thwarting the complications typically associated with poor management of the disease. Know your medical team players:

Primary care doctor – He is your go to person for general care

If you add up all the “special events and holiday celebrations” in your life you will probably find out that you are eating a lot more special treats than you realize. So using the excuse “it’s just this one time” can often work out to over 100 days (and counting) of treat-eating opportunities.

Do you always have a snack when watching TV? Do you always buy food at the movie theatre? Do you always stop at the food court while shopping? If these types of behaviors are habitual, you may even eat food that is clearly stale or foods that taste bad because of your habits.

Americans may think they are eating healthy, but when we eat out, the diet of choice based on surveys still seems to be burgers and fries. Our food choices are often impulsive and healthy food is not usually on our radar.

Halloween has become the premier candy holiday. In fact, if a child doesn’t come home lugging a huge stash of candy, even after having eaten some along the journey, the experience is not considered a success. Here’s an opportunity for parents to shift the focus of the holiday, especially considering the rising tide of childhood obesity:

• If you like beer, try a “light” version instead.
• Order thin crust pizza and ask for veggies in lieu of some cheese topping.
• Use pureed fruit or apple butter to replace some of the oil in brownie recipes
• Wipe the pan you intend to cook in with a towel dampened with oil instead of just pouring oil into the pan

They call it the health halo and it’s an attitude many people have when they see a food label that suggests that the food they are scrutinizing is healthy or has healthy ingredients or health benefits. We then tend to eat it more than an appropriate portion. Try to avoid second helpings or large portions of any processed foods that have health claims.