The Best Nuts For Diabetes: Walnuts, Almonds, And More

The Best Nuts for Diabetes: Walnuts, Almonds, and More

When you’re looking for a satisfying diabetes-friendly snack, it’s hard to beat nuts. “Nuts are a super snack food for people with diabetes because they’re the total package — low in carbs and high in protein, fiber, and healthy fat — and they create a feeling of fullness,” says Cheryl Mussatto, RD, founder of Eat Well to Be Well in Osage City, Kansas.
Nuts: A Good Choice for Diabetes and Your Heart
The healthy fat in nuts protects your ticker, says Melissa Joy Dobbins, RDN, CDE, a spokesperson for the American Association of Diabetes Educators. That’s important because people with diabetes are 2 to 4 times more likely to die of heart disease than those without it, according to the American Heart Association.
Heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in nuts can lower your LDL, or “bad” cholesterol, Mussatto says. “At the same time, nuts also raise levels of ‘good,’ or HDL, cholesterol,” she says. “This cholesterol acts sort of like a sanitation worker, removing cholesterol from the tissues for disposal, which prevents plaque buildup in the arteries.”
What’s more, nuts help regulate blood sugar, which makes them a better option to reach for than, say, pretzels, when afternoon hunger strikes, Mussatto says. Many kinds of nuts have this effect: Almonds have been shown to slow down the blood sugar response when eaten with carbohydrate-rich foods, according to a small study published in the journal Metabolism that focused on healthy people without the disease. A study published in March 2011 in the European Journal of Clinica Continue reading

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Top 4 Snack Bars for Diabetes

Snack bars may be convenient, but they also can match up nutritionally to a standard candy bar. With excess sugar, fat, and added ingredients, it's important to read labels and know what kind of bars you are getting.
No Idle Snack Bar Eating
Make sure you eat them for a reason. For example, pre-workout fuel to prevent low blood sugar, or to tide hunger between meals when you are on-the-go. But, remember that not all bars are created equal—some don't stack up nutritionally to others.
I asked my patients and peer Certified Diabetes Educators to tell me their favorite snack bars based on flavor and blood sugar results. Before I reveal the "best picks," here are some basic guidelines and things to think about before buying a snack bar.
General Guidelines to Choosing a Healthy Snack Bar
There is no real science behind this, rather just trial and error and professional opinion. I tell my patients to aim to keep the counts close to this:
Sugar content less than 10 grams (the lower the better)
Carbohydrates less than 30 grams (depending on what you are eating it for)
Protein at least 5 grams (this will help you to feel full and reduce the likelihood of blood sugar crashes)
Fiber at least 3 grams
Calories less than 250
If you need a bar that is gluten free, vegan, or nut free make sure you read ingredients carefully
Keeping snacks to about 250 calories or less can help to prevent weight gain and keep metabolism revved up.
When Should You Eat a Snack Bar?
If you are running late to work and need a quick breakfast, a snack bar can be a good choice. To complete the meal, pair it with Continue reading

Why Cinnamon for Diabetes Treatment is Among Most Simple, Effective Solutions

Cinnamon is indeed a powerful, health-boosting food. It’s been used for centuries in holistic medicines—for everything from the common cold to stomach disturbances. But more recent research shows that cinnamon health benefits aren’t merely restricted to protecting against the cold – cinnamon for diabetes treatment may actually be one of the most simple and effective of diabetes solutions.
Why Everyone Should Consider Using Cinnamon for Protection Against Diabetes
For a study, which was published in the Journal of Diabetic Medicine, a group of adults diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes were split into two different groups. The first group was given your run-of-the-mill insulin controlling pharmaceuticals, while the other group was given two grams of cinnamon every day. What the researchers found 12 weeks later was remarkable, to say the least.
The group who was given drugs from Big Pharma didn’t measure up to the cinnamon group. Those on the daily regimen of cinnamon experienced lower fasting glucose (blood sugar) levels than the other group and showed reduced body fat overall.
A British review of eight different studies also showed why everyone should be using cinnamon for diabetes, finding that every study agreed on cinnamon’s effectiveness in reducing fasting blood sugar levels and reducing blood sugar after a meal.
Another study, this one from the United States, found that 22 subjects monitored for blood sugar and body fat experienced positive results in both areas when supplementing with cinnamon. Cinnamon actually showed benefits in reducing overall body fat and Continue reading

Consumer Driven Innovation for Continuous Glucose Monitoring in Diabetes Patients

Imagine if your life suddenly depended on monitoring your body’s reaction every time you had a snack, skipped a meal, or ate a piece of candy. This is a reality for approximately 1.25 million people in the USA who have been diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D).
People with T1D experience unhealthy fluctuations in blood glucose levels due to the destruction of beta cells in the pancreas by the person’s own immune system. Beta cells produce insulin, which is a hormone that allows your body to break down, use, or store glucose, while maintaining a healthy blood sugar level throughout the day. Presently, there is no cure for T1D so patients must be constantly vigilant about maintaining their blood glucose levels within a healthy range in order to avoid potentially deadly consequences.
Currently, continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) are the most effective way to manage T1D. However, consumers have already become frustrated with the limitations of commercially available CGMs, and are developing at-home modifications to overcome them. This in turn, is influencing the direction of research and development in the biomedical devices industry, as multiple companies compete to create a CGM that appeals to the largest consumer population.
Thus, consumer-driven innovation in CGM data access, CGM-insulin pump integration, and glucose sensor lifespan has led to rapid growth in the field of diabetes management devices.
Coping with the Highs and Lows
Patients with T1D need to monitor their blood glucose levels to ensure they don’t become hyperglycemic (high blood glucose levels), or hypo Continue reading

CGMs for Pregnant Women with Type 1 Diabetes are Officially Awesome

I went on my first continuous glucose monitor back in 2007, when the Dexcom system was known as the “STS” and the duration for a sensor was only three days. It also wasn’t waterproof, so I had to stick these giant saran wrap-looking shower patches over the transmitter when I bathed. And it wasn’t “dose your insulin” accurate but more “yeah, you have some bouncy blood sugars” kind of accurate.
But despite being cumbersome, it was the first glimpse I’d ever had into a streaming video version of my blood sugars – leaps and bounds better than the snapshots I was receiving from my finger sticks. I was instantly hooked on the data. It made me feel safe. And it made me feel like I had a chance at controlling this beast of a disease.
When I became pregnant with my daughter in 2009, I was already on the Dexcom Seven Plus and it was AWESOME compared to that first iteration of Dexcom. I used the data to help warn me of those epic first trimester hypos and also relied on the information to help me change my basal rates as the pregnancy-induced insulin resistance kicked in. My A1C stayed under 6.6% for my entire first pregnancy, and my daughter was born healthy, happy, and with a ton of hair. (Happy and healthy related to my hard work … the hair was just a fluke.)
Fast-forward six years to 2015, when I became pregnant with my son. This time, I was using the Dexcom G4 (the G5 was available but my endo-at-the-time preferred the data output from the G4 model) and the numbers on my Dexcom receiver were in line with my finger sticks. I was able to keep my numbers tight Continue reading