Tips for Managing an 1800 Calorie Diabetic Diet Plan

1800 Calorie Diabetic Diet Plan

One of the ways that you can help fight your diabetes is by sticking to an 1800 Calorie Diabetic Diet Plan. This number may sound scary or restrictive at first, but know that this Calorie count is higher than an active 30 year old male in good shape needs to maintain his body.

The main idea behind the 1800 calorie diabetic diet plan is that you need to get 1800 calories each day, which should be manageable by most Americans.

The reason why this ‘should’ be manageable is that 1800 is near to the standard diet plan for healthy living.

How the 1800 Calorie Diabetic Diet Plan Can Help You

This diabetic diet plan helps you to maintain normal blood sugar levels, and is designed so that you can lose some weight as well which is always a good thing!  While on this diet it is also important that you try to keep active so that you can burn up any excess calories.  Indoor and outdoor activities are highly encouraged, so lace up those shoes and get out for a bike ride, jog, walk, or other physical activity.

When you are following this plan it’s very important to avoid carbohydrate foods that have a high Glycemic Index (GI).

These bad foods include:

  • Donuts
  • Sweet syrup
  • White rice
  • Bagels

Instead, replace those bad foods with fruit and vegetables.  It sounds bad at first, but once you rediscover how sweet and tasty an apple is, or how refreshing a raw, sweet pepper can be, it won’t take you too long to curb most of your sweet carb cravings.

Sample 1800 Calorie Diabetic Diet Plan

The first thing that you’ll likely ask yourself once you start to consider the 1800 Calorie Diet Plan is if you’ll actually have the will-power to stick with it.  It sounds great on paper, but reality is where we need to live, and it’s here that we also face the toughest challenges.

Three big keys here that I’ve found have worked wonders for myself:

  1. Learn the simple rules that you need to follow to live within the Calorie budget of the diet eg: how much protein, vegetables, etc make up each meal.  Once you know this you can start to improvise easily.
  2. Learn how to cook food that you like to eat.  If you don’t enjoy eating it, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll stick with this diet for any length of time.
  3. Learn how you can cook in batches to save time.  This was a big one for myself, because I look at time in the kitchen as ‘wasted time.’  To get over this lie that I tell myself (because time in the kitchen is never really wasted) what I did was cooked larger portions of food, so that I would have several meals that I could put into the fridge, reheat, and eat them quickly.This was also important because on those days when I was feeling lazy and didn’t want to cook, the meals were already prepared in the fridge waiting for me!

Here’s a sample plan that you can follow:

Breakfast:
A good diabetic breakfast idea is to have a large banana with a cup of skim milk, along with one and a half cup of bran cereal and a tablespoon of cream cheese.

Lunch:
For lunch, simply have an ounce of low fat Colby cheese, ½ cup of mild salsa, 2 ounces of baked nacho chips, 2 ounces of ground turkey, along with 2 cups of chopped lettuce.

Dinner:
Dinner may consist of two thirds of a cup of brown rice with salmon, a teaspoon of olive oil, ½ cup of cooked carrots, 1 cup of skim milk and three quarters of a cup of pineapple for dessert.

So don’t be afraid to get creative when designing your 1800 Calorie Diabetic Diet Plan so that you can enjoy keeping your body healthy and fit and your blood sugar levels down!

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Blood glucose testing meters

Blood Glucose Testing Meters
Blood Glucose Testing Meters

For a diabetic, they have to rely on a diabetic blood testing meter because it can often times mean life or death. Some of the blood glucose testing meters are often the ones that we don’t even realize are the best.

There are so many different blood glucose meters on the market that it often times can be confusing determining which ones are the best and which ones we need to use that can make such a difference in our lives.

We often times have the conception that the best of any product is the most expensive ones but in all reality that is untrue. When it comes to trying to determine which is the blood glucose testing meter on the market there are many factors to take into consideration such as price range, always know what price range you are looking for, also what their rating is on accuracy in providing accurate results each and every time, ease of use, portability and convenience, you always want a blood glucose meter that has all of these features otherwise it can start making for a sticky situation.

There are many different websites out there that can be found through your local American Association for Diabetes, doctor’s office, local Diabetes Chapter or online that specialize in finding the blood glucose testing meters for you and me so that we can safely and accurately keep a check on our diabetes.

When it comes to diabetes, without a good blood glucose meter we can’t accurately keep check on our diabetes which means that if left untreated can lead to more serious medical problems and side effects so it is very important and key to properly maintain our diabetes safely and a healthy way and with the blood glucose testing meter you can do just that.

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Best blood glucose meters

best blood glucose meters
best blood glucose meters

Best Blood Glucose Meters

For a diabetic they have to rely on a diabetic blood glucose meter to constantly monitor their levels – If this simple procedure gets neglected, it could actually mean  life or death!Some of the most basic meters are often the ones that we don’t even realize are the best.

There are so many different blood glucose meters on the market that it often times can be confusing determining which ones are the best and which ones we need to use that can make such a difference in our lives. We often have the conception that the best of any product is the most expensive ones but in all reality that is untrue.

When it comes to trying to determine which are the best blood glucose meters on the market there are many factors to take into consideration such as price range, always know what price range you are looking for, also what their rating is on accuracy in providing accurate results each and every time, ease of use, portability and convenience, you always want a blood glucose meter that has all of these features otherwise it can start making for inaccurate results.

There are many different websites out there that can be found through your local American Association for Diabetes, doctor’s office, local Diabetes Chapter or online that specialize in finding the best blood glucose meters for you and me so that we can safely and accurately keep a check on our diabetes.

When it comes to diabetes, without a good blood sugar meter, we can’t accurately keep check on our diabetes which means that if left untreated can lead to more serious medical problems and side effects so it is very important and key to properly maintain our diabetes safely and in a healthy way, and with the best blood glucose meters, you can do just that!

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Blood sugar level test

blood sugar level test
blood sugar level test

Do you have a family member who is diabetic? Do you have diabetes that runs in your family or a past medical history of diabetes? If this sounds like you then chances are you have been faced with the dreaded blood sugar level test.

The blood sugar level test can be given in various different ways such as drinking pure glucose. A lot of times your doctor will have you come into the office fasting and then ask you to drink a small bottle of pure glucose which is basically sugar water within a certain period of time and then you will be asked to either give a urine sample or a blood sample so that they can test your blood glucose level in order to see if you are a diabetic or not.

For most people hearing those dreaded words that they need to come in for a blood sugar level test is a hard thing to stomach but it has to be done in order to keep them safe, healthy and happy as well as to be able to live a long and healthy lifestyle. Diabetes is caused by insufficient insulin production or lack of responsiveness to insulin, resulting in hyperglycemia (high blood glucose levels). There are 2 primary types of diabetes mellitus, type I (insulin-dependent or juvenile-onset), which may be caused by an autoimmune response, and type II (non-insulin-dependent or adult-onset).

When my grandmother was first diagnosed with diabetes many years ago, it was just a simple life changing habit of changing up some foods and diet and then knowing that she needed to monitor her sugar several times a day. When I have asked her about her trials and tribulations that she has gone through she said that the worst news she got was having her come in for a blood sugar level test which would let her know if she was a full blown diabetic or not.

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Diabetic snack recipes

diabetic snack recipes
diabetic snack recipes

For diabetics, a key essential in them feeling like that they still lead a normal life is to keep their diet as close to the same as they did before they first found out that they were diabetic. With diabetic snack recipes a diabetic can still feel like they are normal and still be able to eat yummy, delicious foods all at the same time.

Some of the diabetic snack recipes that we love the most are…

No Bake Truffles

ingredients

1/2 cup flaked coconut
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
8 ounces pitted dates
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup flaked coconut
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

directions

Place the 1/2 cup coconut and powdered sugar in food processor bowl. Cover and process until coconut is finely chopped. Transfer mixture to shallow dish; set aside.
For truffles, place walnuts, dates, raisins, cranberries, the 1/3 cup coconut, the cocoa powder, and cinnamon in the food processor bowl. Cover and process or blend until finely chopped, stopping to scrape down sides as necessary.
Add peanut butter. Cover and process until mixture is moist enough to form a ball.
Using hands, shape the mixture into 1-inch balls. Dredge or roll the balls in coconut mixture, gently patting the mixture onto sides of balls. Transfer to storage container. Cover; store at room temperature up to 7 days. Makes 30 truffles.

With diabetic snack recipes you can still have yummy, delicious and tasty treats all while watching your health and diet at the same time. With diabetic snack recipes you can treat yourself and others too while still feeling like you can feed that urge of sweets all without the sugar.

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