Diabetes and Diet

South Asians are genetically different from the rest of the world. This makes them more prone to lifestyle related diseases like obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Over the years, our diets have also changed from the traditional Desi Diet to the more westernized fast food with more calories and saturated fats and less fibre.
Children and youngsters are especially moving from a desi diet to a predominantly western format diet. These changes coupled with metabolic syndrome lead to the development of early diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
For those of you who are wondering what a desi diet is and how is it different from the traditional western diet; a Desi Diet can be described as a diet of a South Asian origin.
South Asians have very different dietary habits. Their diets are rich in carbohydrates and many of them are vegetarians. A desi diet would therefore include chapattis and rice in every meal and would mostly be eaten with lentils or vegetables; in contrast to a western diet that is predominantly meat based and has lesser emphasis on carbohydrates.
South Asians mostly prefer cooked hot meals and like to prepare their own food. This means that a Desi Diet is not just a set of different ingredients but a different eating pattern altogether. Many westerners cannot have a desi diet because it is extremely spicy and full of pungent and strong flavours.
Most desi diets, if planned well, are healthy because they are high in fibre and provide a healthy mix of carbohydrates and proteins in every meal. Traditionally, desi diets also included a lot of pulses, milk and milk products, and vegetables.
For South Asians who want to have a healthy diet, it is important that they plan their diets basis their dietary habits. A desi diet can be easily modified into a healthy diet. This will not only ensure a balanced intake of nutrients but will also lead to better compliance since it is better to modify your existing diet to suit your needs rather than to try and take up a different dietary pattern altogether.

Robin
http://www.articlesbase.com/nutrition-articles/diet-plans-india-desi-diet-different-from-the-rest-of-the-world-724686.html

While the Low GI Diet is one of the most effective diets around and the easiest for many people to stick with over the long term, some people have found it difficult to come up with low GI Diet recipes they can fit into their diet plans. Below are two low GI Diet recipes that can be easily fit into your plan and prepared right at home.

For a great main entrée consider this recipe below for grilled salmon served with elegant baby spinach leaves.

Grilled Salmon

Ingredients
Baby spinach leaves, lightly rinsed
2 oz watercress
16 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 salmon fillets, trimmed and boned
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cloves garlic, halved
balsamic vinegar, for drizzling
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cannellini Bean Sauce
14 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 garlic clove, crushed
1½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

First, start by preparing the cannelloni bean sauce. Place the beans, lemon juice, thyme, oil, garlic and 2 tbsp of water in the blender. May add salt and pepper to taste. Blend until the mixture has formed a smooth sauce. You may need to add a bit more water. Move the mixture to a saucepan and heat it on low heat for 5 minutes. Stir frequently until the mixture is very hot.

While the mixture is heating, cook the salmon. Start by placing the garlic in a non-stick frying pan and heating it for about 1-2 minutes. Next, add the salmon and cook for another 5 to 8 minutes. Be sure to turn the salmon halfway through the cooking process.

Next, drizzle the spinach leaves with some balsamic vinegar and toss them well. Place the cannellinni sauce on each plate along with a few additional spinach leaves. Top everything with the salmon. You may wish to add some olive oil for additional seasoning. Serve alongside the salad immediately.

Don’t forget to top your meal off with this luscious and creamy low GI diet recipe for yummy ice cream. It takes only 15 minutes to prepare and is ready to eat after another 2 hours in the freezer.

Mango Orange Ice Cream Dessert

Ingredients
4 large oranges, halved
2 large mangoes, peeled and stoned
2 tablespoons finely grated
unwaxed orange zest
3 tablespoons low-fat natural yoghurt
3 tablespoons low-fat
crème fraîche
2 squares plain chocolate, grated

Directions

Begin by scooping out the fleshy part of the fruit from the oranges, but making sure you have left the skins of the oranges intact. Place the flesh of the mangos and the oranges in the blender along with the orange zest, crème fraiche and yogurt. Blend the mixture until smooth; may take a few minutes. Next, spoon the blended mixture into a freezer safe container. You may need to stir the mixture from time to time to break up any ice crystals that have formed. This dessert can be served in a bowl or you may choose to spoon it back into the orange halves for an elegant presentation. If you choose to serve it in the orange halves, you may need to return it back to the freezer for another 30 minutes or so. Garnish with grated chocolate for an even more decadent dessert.

With a little creativity and imagination it doesn’t have to be hard to follow the low GI diet. These low GI diet recipes are just two examples of how easy it can be to dine well and still lose weight on the diet plan.

If you need to better manage diabetes or lose weight consider the Low GI Diet Plan. It provides numerous advantages such as reducing the risk of life threatening illnesses along with the ability to lose weight and maintain weight loss.

Wesley Atkins
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/top-tips-for-low-gi-diet-recipes-110377.html

Approximately 4% of women who are pregnant in the United States will be affected by gestational diabetes. It is a misunderstood disease in that medical research has been unable to pinpoint why women suffer from it during pregnancy only to see it disappear after the baby is born. The stress and increased hormonal activity associated with pregnancy is thought to be a factor but women who are at risk will need to follow a diet for gestational diabetes.

Expectant mothers who were already diabetic at the time of conception will also need to follow this type of diet.

Any woman with gestational diabetes should consult with a registered dietician to help create the proper diet plan for her and her unborn baby. Control of blood sugar levels during pregnancy is of the utmost importance and modification of dietary intake is the best way to accomplish this.

During a pregnancy the goal of the diet for gestational diabetes is to ensure the proper amount of calories and nutrients for the mother and baby while also keeping blood glucose levels under control. The diet itself is individualized to each woman based on her height and weight.

Blood glucose levels will also need be tested and measured at least four times a day. This is done to ensure that the woman’s blood sugars remain under control through out the day. The frequency of testing can be decreased once good glucose control is established but self monitoring will need to continue through out the pregnancy.

It is important that the meal plan meet the nutritional and weight gain needs of a normal pregnancy. During the first trimester of a normal pregnancy the woman should gain from 2 to 4 pounds. Once the second and third trimester starts the weight gain should average a pound a week. Caloric intake will need to be increased by approximately 100 to 300 calories per day during the second trimester. At the same time protein will need to be increased to 10 grams per day. This can be accomplished by drinking 2 glasses of milk or eating 1 to 2 ounces of meat each day.

One of the biggest dangers of inadequate caloric intake is diabetic ketoacidosis. A pregnant woman should never restrict the amount of calories she eats unless so directed by her doctor. The calories she does eat should come from highly nutritious foods and should not be less then 1700 to 1800 per day.

Any pregnant woman who is diagnosed with this dangerous disease will need to follow a diet for gestational diabetes to ensure the health and well being of her unborn baby.

Andrew Bicknell
http://www.articlesbase.com/diseases-and-conditions-articles/diet-for-gestational-diabetes-671209.html

One of the fastest growing trends in dieting is the so-called Mediterranean diet. This formula for healthier nutrition has been said to have amazing benefits, including cancer prevention and diabetes control. If you’re interested in learning more about this diet plan, you’ll find useful information below.

What is Mediterranean Diet?

If you want to follow the Mediterranean diet plan for nutrition, you’ll need to change a few of your eating habits. For example, you’ll probably need to consume larger quantities of fruits and vegetables, as well as fish. At the same time, you’ll need to lower down your consumption of red meat and get additional protein from small portions of nuts. Drinking red wine and adding more healthy oils, such as canola and olive oils, to your diet are also important.

Benefits of the Diet

According to the Mayo Clinic, a study released in 2007 found that people who followed the diet outlined above had much lower risks of cancer and heart disease than did people who followed a more Western diet. Additionally, the University of Maryland Medical Center reports that choosing to follow this lifestyle change has a number of powerful benefits for people with diabetes, especially because it is lower in sugar and carbohydrates which can cause spikes in blood sugar levels.

Reasons to Switch

If don’t want to go through the stress and negative effects of cancer treatment in your lifetime, changing to eat more of these Mediterranean foods could be a smart idea. After all, many of the known cancer causes do relate to improper nutrition. Plus, if you want to have a healthy immune system to fight back against abnormal cells you’ll need adequate nutrition that you won’t find in your average fast food meal. Most of the foods included, such as the heart healthy oils, will do double or triple duty protecting you from chronic disease.

Amit Kothiyal
http://www.articlesbase.com/cancer-articles/preventing-cancer-and-diabetes-with-a-mediterranean-diet-719804.html

When a person is so overweight that it starts affecting his health is when the person is obese. Obesity can also be explained as the excess amount of fat in your body. Obesity in adults was an epidemic already and now obesity in children is also spreading fast.

Obesity among kids may become a cause of concern leading to health complications and the kids being obese even before they enter the adulthood. Not only the child’s risk of getting severely ill gets increased due to obesity but it also has a lasting effect on the child’s social and more importantly, emotional issues.

There were rare cases of obesity in the past, but of late, obesity cases are on a rise and even alarming is the rate it is rising amongst the kids. It is estimated that 15% of the adolescents and kids in the US are obese.

Why is this sudden increase in the amount of people affected by obesity? Blame it on the lifestyle! Two major reasons for the rising cases of obesity amongst kids’ are- the unhealthy diet, that is very rich in sugar and fats and the lack of exercise which leads to fat accumulation as there is no burning of the calories.

Those were the reasons for putting on weight now let’s see the effects on the child who is suffering from obesity.

• A child’s risk of suffering from heart problems like, heart attack, or heart stroke is increased,
• Obesity may lead to many problems of bones and joint as well(like bow legs),
• Hypertension which leads to headaches or may affect the vision,
• High blood pressure, Gall bladder diseases, Diabetes, are some to name.

These are only the physical effects of obesity, the harm it does on the psychological front of your child is even worse. Obesity causes embarrassment which further damages the self- esteem of your child.

Why let your child go through such an ordeal??? Why let his or her self esteem be affected? Lets help them make a better tomorrow by changing their lifestyle today. Improper diet is one very important reason of putting on weight. Give yourself and your families a diet meal plan which will help you reduce your weight and rid you of obesity.

Statistics show that one in three children is overweight by the time they leave primary school. Help us; help you, make your child one of the two who leaves their primary school in a fit state!

Sheldon
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/the-need-of-a-diet-meal-plan-for-kids-to-avoid-obesity-687959.html

Have you found yourself asking this question after 6 months or 1 year of weight loss program? Maybe you have been dieting for a year now and you are probably also exercising, yet you don’t seem to be making any progress and you are worried. So you are now asking, why?

Some people actually loss the weight, maybe in their first 6 months but later gain it back. If you’re troubled by this it is most likely that you have been digressing from you plan. You’re not alone in this if you must know there are about 70% of the populations who suffer this problem.

First check out with your doctor to make sure you are not suffering type 2 diabetes mellitus. But it could also be that you are suffering the same problem every body out there who is trying to loss weight is suffering. They fail to seek expert advice. Or they have but are not adhering strictly to what was prescribed. The thing is that, we know fat binders work, but not every fat binder out there works as expected or promised. You can not afford to exercises just every now and then and expect that because you are on a diet, you should loss weight. It doesn’t just work that way. There has to be a well thought of diet plan as well as exercise plan.

Something I would suggest is maybe trying a particular kind of meal works for you, it makes sense to keep going with that food combined with fruits and vegetables. You can not keep trying different regimen forever; you need to stick to things that work. Use only tested diet plans.

If you have been using say, 1% milk that contains a very low amount of fat, then start using skim milk. You might want to incorporate lean protein like fish or chicken. You can also get good proteins from things like beans (some have more/better protein than others) or nuts.

Another secret is to stay away from snack bars. Don’t buy and don’t have it at home. Even if it belongs to someone else, the kid for example because, sometimes you will need a cooperative family to succeed in losing weight. The allure of these snacks is difficult to avoid sometimes. However, if you consider that you health’s worth more than a couple of snacks, it should serve as enough motivation for you to want to stay alive.

I am out lining some of these steps because I believe your problem is in either your wrong diet plan or lack of consistency-maybe ignorance too. So you should include some weight lifting exercises into your routine. This weight does not have to be heavy- Cardiovascular exercise is great and plays an important role in reaching your goal weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, however, once you stop the exercise you stop burning calories as well. With this you not just burn calories during exercises but continue even after the exercise.

Find out more on how to Natural weight loss

Rimzan Farook
http://www.articlesbase.com/women’s-health-articles/why-am-i-not-losing-weightweight-loss-701780.html