Healthy Eating Blog (Health and Well Being)

November 14th is World Diabetes Day, and I thought it would be a good idea to blow some of the most popular myths about Type 2 Diabetes and Diet.

Diet is one of the most important features of the management of Diabetes and it has been shown that adhering to dietary recommendations can make an impact on glycaemic, or blood sugar, control. (DCCT, 1993). Diabetes is one of the areas in which Dietitians have some concrete proof that what we advise people to do can make a difference to their health and well being. It’s a great area to work in and is really rewarding for those of us who want to make a difference.

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You should avoid bread if you are trying to lose weight, right? It’s a seriously big bad guy when it comes to weight loss? Well bread has had a good result in a recent trial testing the effect of bread in a meal on hunger, satiety and amounts of food consumed.

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This time of year, a lot of people are turning their attention to preparing for the winter and the Christmas season. Out comes the winter wardrobe and even winter decor starts to appear. Lots of us like to include warm and inviting fragrances in the home to brighten up those dark and cold days. Scented candles, plug in fragrances and bath bombs and scents give that added appeal. There are cinnamon, clove, sweet orange, spicy floral and even chocolate scents to stimulate our senses. Problem is, the chocolate ones may actually also be stimulating our appetite.

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When you sit down to your meal, do you tuck into the carbohydrates first? A lot of people with Type 2 Diabetes concentrate on the carbohydrate in their meals, thinking this is the most important part of the meal for blood sugar control. In fact, eating the carbohydrates first may be doing you a disservice.

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There used to be a time when the recommendation was to avoid red meats and go for “white meat” when considering cholesterol and cardiovascular risk. The usual fare for people trying to keep their fat intake down was chicken, chicken and more chicken!
But it doesnt necessarily need to be all “white meat”.

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So you’ve made the choice. You want to stop smoking… But you’re afraid of weight gain? Ultimately stopping smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health. If you experience a small weight gain, you may have to “weigh up” the health risks between the effects of smoking or a small weight gain. A small weight gain may be the least of your worries. Weight gain when considering stopping smoking is, however, as barrier for a lot of people considering the change. So is weight gain inevitable and how can you avoid it?

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This week, I had a query about diet and acne, whether or not there is a link and what sort of dietary changes could help to reduce or avoid acne.

Acne can be very distressing for young people and older people alike. A high proportion of 11-30 year olds are affected by acne (over 80%). There have been many suggestions about the links between diet and acne in the past, but there have been variable amounts of evidence to support many of the claims.

Foods such as sweets, chocolate and fatty foods have been blamed for being acne triggers and suggestions have been made that zinc and vitamin A can help to reduce outbreaks.

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You’re eating all your vegetables and you’re sitting pretty, right?
Can you be sure you are getting the best out of them? Sadly, fruit and vegetables can start to lose their vitamin content as soon as they are picked. The longer they are hanging about on the shelves and in the refrigerator, the more losses occur. And then there is the cooking. In fact, you can lose your vitamins from fruits and vegetables at every stage before you eat them. The degree of vitamin losses in your vegetables is affected by variety, way of cutting and preparation and method and duration of cooking. The longer a food is exposed to heat, the greater the nutrient loss.

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Are you finding that your performance is slipping at work? It could be time to think about changing your diet. For day to day living and for peak performance in the workplace, it’s important to supply yourself with the right fuel to combat stress as well as to help concentration, alertness, memory and cognition.

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