Need to change dh's diet - where to start?

Try roasted veggies. A little olive oil, S&P, balsamic vinegar or seasonings of your choice, roast until tender, bada bing, bada boom, no trouble, healthier, and taste good too!

ETA: all your root veggies are good this way, along with brussel sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli...

I agree with Marianne. Almost all veggies taste good roasted. I usually just do olive oil and S&P. Our favorites are: fresh green beans, asparagus, squash (summer and butternut), zucchini, brussel sprouts and broccoli. If you are fixing your meat on the grill, you can roast several of these same veggies on the grill along side the meat. Another side dish to try is portobella mushrooms. They are big and meaty and might be more filling if you are looking to replace a potato dish.

Please encourage him to get fasting bloodwork. Diabetes is no joke. It is a *progressive* disease. It starts out with the symptoms you listed then starts to completely break down everything else. Heart disease, cholesterol, blindness, neuropathy are just a few and those are usually the first things to occur. If he is pre-diabetic he needs to be checking his glucose like he already is diabetic. He can prolong the disease by simply making better food choices. Low carbohydrate diets that focus on protein, healthy fats, fresh fruits and vegetables will do wonders for his blood sugar and heart. Diet combined with prescription meds would help get him and keep him on track. Especially if he needs to lose weight. Sugar is not his friend, neither are starchy foods like pasta and white rice. Some man friendly low carb meal ideas are sausage and cabbage, steak & salad, fish & steamed veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, okra, spinach), Alice Springs Chicken. Don't shy away from using healthy fats like butter, olive oil, heavy cream, assorted cheeses and nuts. Then there's bacon. Things are always better with a little bacon. Check out the American Diabetes Association website for more info on diabetes, diets, meds and such.

My husband was on the verge of being diabetic. He was getting some of the symptoms of disabilities and hadn't had blood work in a few years. He was overweight by about 45 pounds and under enormous stress at his job. He would use food as comfort-so that made things worse. An entire box of Mac and Cheese. That kind of thing. He knew it had to change but he didn't know how and I didn't know how to help him. I was so worried he'd have a heart attack or stroke.

I'd been slowing reducing processed foods in our diet and replacing them with whole foods and cooking a lot more home cooked meals, but I couldn't control what he ate or how much he ate. That was up to him.

The turning point (and it was a BIG one) was sitting down and watching the documentary "Forks over Knives" on Netflix. We both learned we didn't have to get diabetes or cancer or even dementia, just by changing our diet. I couldn't believe it, but by the end of it he was all ready pumped up and ready to give it a try. That was February. It's now July. He's lost 20 pounds, feels amazing and has no more symptoms. I've only lost 8 pounds but that's because I'm right smack in the middle of menopause (at least I'm not gaining the dreaded weight most menopausal women do).

Watch the documentary and you will be shocked what you will learn about what certain foods do to our bodies. It doesn't have to be your answer. But it was ours. My parents are doing this too. They've both been successful also, even my mother who has ADD and is very stubborn. They love the difference it's made in their lives.

Debbie in MD.

My DH had two stents put in his heart in January, since then we have done a complete diet change. He was a meat and potatoes kind of guy too. Now we have a grilled lean protein, a green salad (made with lettuce, spinach, avacado, tomato, mushrooms and kidney beans) and fresh fruit instead of a starch. We increased the fish in our diet, eating salmon or another fish at least twice a week. I use hardly any canned or processed foods. I buy all fresh veggies and fruits. We were never big bread eaters, but I have started buying whole grain bread and buns for sandwiches. We have eliminated salt also.

When we go out, which is about once a week or less, we eat what we want and get right back on tract the next meal. DH knows it's important to eat healthlier to prevent anymore damage to his heart.

I'm glad I read this before I tried to type out something that would not have explained my feelings so well.

Question: why replace the diet soda with the crystal light?  Doesn't the CL also have a bunch of artificial sweeteners?  I used to love the raspberry ice but then they changed the sweetener and it tasted funny to me.  If they've changed again, maybe I will buy some to try again.

Good to know-- thanks.  On a slightly related note, when I was trying to look up what CL's sweetener was, I see they now have some with Stevia, which is considered a natural sweetener.  Maybe I will get some of that to try. I really need to drink more water.

Eddie-n-Harley--I agree about the chemicals and artificial sweeteners in CL. They are still not healthy, although perhaps a slightly better option than soda. During baseball season my kids have been wanting Gatorade all of the time, which makes me cringe. I ended up buying some Skinny Girl drink mix drops that are sweetened with stevia. I like that we can just take the little bottle with us and the kids can add it to water if they want. I don't want them having several servings a day, but it is nice to have an option.

I had the same problem 1 1/2 ago. I've lost over 40 lbs and my blood sugar is in the normal range. I'm much more active as well.

Some lessons learned:

Drink more water! I don't drink soda, juice or milk anymore. I drink water, coffee with a bit of milk, green or herbal tea. I put a teapot in the fridge everyday to drink iced with no sugar. I also drink kombucha. I don't do the artificial stuff. Yuck.

I grill or sautéed fresh vegetables everyday for lunch or dinner, sometimes both. Fill the plate half full. I might use peppers, onion, garlic, and maybe throw in some spinach near the end. Today I had a 2 egg omelette with free range eggs, stuffed with a bit of tex-mex cheese and 1/2 plate of sautéed vegetables. Filling and satisfying. Also use lots of colourful veggies. It makes the food more appealing.

Add more lean chicken and fish to your diet. Many diabetics have high blood pressure and or high cholesterol. Have the steak on the weekend.

Nuts such as almonds, walnuts and pistachios are filling and full of protein and minerals. pumpkin seeds are great to add to salads.

Plan your meals so that you can prepare and predict what you are going to eat. If you get too hungry, you grab a quick fix which is often a carb. I know now that I'm eating steel cut oats with raw cacao and natural peanut butter for breakfast, tacos for lunch and a beet/kale salad with hemp for dinner. I'm pretty sure that I'll eat almonds for a morning snack and maybe a smoothie for an afternoon snack with protein powder, almond milk, matcha tea, blueberries and Greek yogurt (thus the lighter dinner).

Eat three meals and three snacks each day. Don't go more than 4 hours without eating except when your in bed. This leads to your blood sugar going up and down.

Use lots of herbs and spice to crank up the flavour of foods. My dh is really enjoying this part. Fresh herbs from the garden are fantastic - cilantro, basil, sage, oregano etc.

Exercise can have a big impact on a diabetic. Get your dh out walking 3-4 times per week or more.

Try to eat well 80% of the time. I still have whatever I want on Saturday night followed by dessert. That might be a big burger on a white bun . I try not to go crazy. I may have a BBQ'd hamburg on a large white bun, stuffed with good toppings and cheese. Usually, I would skip the bun or have whole wheat.

Use sea salt instead of table salt. Less processed, more minerals.

Lose weight if needed. Your insulin resistance changes as your weight decreases.


Pinterest is your friend for new ideas and recipes.

Good luck.

Has he tried to lose weight, or is it coming off by itself, more than just cutting out sugar would do?

I'm sure you know this already, but weightloss can be a sign of diabetes. As for diet changes, I find Pinterest to be very helpful. You can create a bord for yourself with useful recipes. There's a lot of Paleo inspiration to be found there, that might be helpful to you.