Keeping Healthy for the
Holidays
It's that time of year
again, the much anticipated holiday season. Wherever you go, whether it is
at home or in the office, holiday festivities are inescapable. For the
estimated 16 million Americans who live with diabetes, maintaining healthy
habits this time of year can be a challenge. Living with diabetes, however,
does not mean you can't indulge a little if visions of sugarplums dance in
your head. If you monitor your diet and eat in moderation, you can eat the
foods you love and enjoy the holidays.
Visions of Sugarplums
How can you stay on top
of your diabetes management during the holidays? Know your limits. It is
important to closely monitor your diet since it is easily altered during the
holidays. Even if you do indulge in holiday goodies, practice moderation.
Since the amount of sugar
and other carbohydrates consumed directly affects blood glucose levels, it
is important for people to continue closely monitoring their sugar intake.
If cookies and pies are what you crave, then sugar substitutes are a good
way to satisfy your holiday sweet tooth without losing the taste.
Appropriate sugar substitutes include aspartame, cyclamate, dulcitol,
fructose, lactose, mannitol, saccharin, sorbitol, and xylitol (consult your
physician or dietitian before using these sweeteners).
Keeping on top of your
diabetes management
Watching your sugar
intake also helps reduce the number of calories consumed. Maintaining a
healthy weight is vital to effectively managing diabetes, as excess body
weight promotes insulin resistance. A primary risk factor of type 2 diabetes
patients is obesity, weighing 20 percent more than the recommended weight
for your height. Avoiding a diet high in fat is a good general rule for all
diabetes patients.
During the holidays try
to avoid foods that are high in fat including dark turkey meat, fried foods
such as latkes, dishes prepared with cream and butter, nuts and alcohol. If
you are looking for a snack, stick to low-fat snacks such as fruits,
vegetables, beans and grains. But again, if holidays aren't the same without
dark meat and mashed potatoes, allow yourself a small portion of each and
then fill up on the steamed vegetables.
Keeping your fun in
"Accu-Chek"
Trying to monitor every
aspect of your diet can be a cumbersome task. However, thanks to new
technology from Roche Diagnostics, a product introduced this year, the
Accu-Chek Complete, helps diabetes patients manage not only their blood
glucose levels, but also their diet and exercise over the course of several
days.
The Accu-Chek Complete,
tailored for people with diabetes who seek to actively manage their disease,
allows patients highly personalized monitoring of their blood glucose
readings, and other significant lifestyle data. Through the use of
menu-driven, ATM-like screens, users select information icons such as
"exercise" and "carbohydrates" and enter personal data to customize their
readings. This process is designed to give people with diabetes and their
physicians an all-inclusive look at the factors affecting the patient's
blood glucose levels, and patients can view trend information over a variety
of time periods.
As you prepare the
holidays, don't let diabetes spoil your festive mood. Remember to monitor
your blood glucose level routinely, watch your diet and practice moderation
when you decide to indulge.
