What is a healthy diabetes diet and is this the same for everyone?

The phrase "healthy diabetes diet" gets thrown around a lot. I hear medical professionals and others using this term as if you can just go pick it up in a store. Really, a healthy diet is a healthy diet, AND should be "healthy" for everyone.

From this perspective, then, there is no such thing as a diabetes diet. Whether I am a diabetic or not, if my diet does not contain normal and adequate amounts of all the essential nutrients for normal life it should be called "malnutrition".

As a type 2 diabetic who wants to lead a normal and very active life, I cannot be distracted by low carb preparations that will force me into a low energy state. No, I want lots of carbs BUT complex, high fiber carbohydrates that don't cause a blood sugar spike.

These complex carbohydrates are not usually what you find in fast food restaurants - the best diabetes diet (for me) is what is prepared at home. Still, it is amazing to see how packed the fast food places and restaurants are nowadays; especially on the weekends.

My experience tells me there are at least two ways to control your diabetes:

• pills and insulin - and if you have to use these as recommended by your doctor, that is not a problem, but DON'T accept it as the "state of the rest of your ever waning life". You can change that.
• the anti-diabetes diet and lifestyle approach - in conjunction with your doctor's recommended treatment, learn what a healthy diabetes diet should mean. Your diet should be "anti-diabetes" not "anti-diabetic" - which most popular diets are, since they don't remedy the diabetic syndrome.

The anti-diabetes diet (the healthy diabetes diet) and lifestyle is your best bet to help prevent and reverse the metabolic syndrome; which includes type 2 diabetes.

Beware These Diabetes Tips - Diabetes Nutritional Supplements

Every piece of the puzzle is important in order to solve it. Two major diabetes nutritional supplements are the last piece of my "bounce-back" puzzle.

Normal I would not distinguish these from my regular diet, but since the health improvement that I have experienced is also shared by so many users of the Tongan Seaweed extract and the miracle of the forest tea I have to mention these.

I've used these food supplements and have benefited significantly. Although I don't need Milagro de la Selva anymore, I have to note that this liquid nutritional supplement or tea made the first big dent in my glucose level. After 10 days I noticed I was not getting the high readings I was getting before. (It could have been less, but I was taken by surprise and only realized what was happening on the 10th day after taking it.)

But the real magic is still working...
I've listened to hundreds of people tout the praises of the fucoidan-rich Limu juice. I'm a "rebel" of some sort and a loner to some extent. I never follow the crowd. But when my coworker lost her seasonal allergies "just-like-that" I had to pay attention.

I have been using Original Limu for over two years, and while I know my exercise program, my rest, and my eating habits are major factors why I don't need diabetes medication anymore, this diabetes nutritional supplement is still a regular and vital part of my diet because of

• the wide range of benefits,
• the over 700 independent scientific studies confirming the health benefits of its main ingredient (fucoidan), and most of all,
• the testimonies of thousands of people who have literally "gotten their lives back" from common illnesses like allergies, type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, on down to cancer.
  

I'm totally convinced that this Fucoidan-rich seaweed supplement is a healthy habit breakthrough that will make you lose your medication. My doctor is sorry, she's happy for my recovery. I hope your's won't mind.

Beware These Diabetes Tips - Sleep and Glucose Metabolism

And now, my friend, go and take your rest. Sleep. I mean, sleep early - wake early. This is one of the important things I learned since developing type 2 diabetes - it matters

• when you sleep
• how long you sleep, and even
• where you sleep

And all these facets of our sleep affect our ability to metabolize glucose - which is the type of impairment diabetes is, anyway.

There are several studies on sleep and diabetes that really my attention and helped me change my sleep pattern. Some of these findings are quite recent but it is a long-known fact sleep deprivation affects glucose metabolism and can lead to type 2 diabetes.

1. "Role of sleep duration and quality in the risk and severity of type 2 diabetes mellitus," published by the Archives of Internal Medicine, and
   
2. In Biological Research For Nursing, an article published in 2008 echoes the same warning: sleep affects diabetes and diabetes affects sleep.

This sounds like a double-edged sword. You have it either way. That's why your decision to handle type 2 diabetes needs to be an aggressive decision. Don't just settle for pills that simply mask the symptoms. Aim to lose your medication all together.

How sleep works
Our bodies rebuild tissues better at nights - it seems. Our bodies know the difference between night and day, and our metabolism depends on this circadian pattern to function properly. (Read about circadian rhythm in this WiKi article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm)

Researchers say that an hour of sleep before midnight may be twice as beneficial as an hour of sleep after midnight. Instead of challenging their findings, I thought it was reasonable so I did (and have been doing) that, i.e going to bed early - like by 10PM. It works for me.

"But I can't sleep that early!"
That may be so for other people, but I'll make myself do anything in order to NOT have diabetes or other lifestyle-related health problems. After nearly decades of going to bed long after midnight, it was difficult, but I've gotten used to it. Glad I broke the habit.

If you want to lose your diabetes medication and be symptom-free (like me), then seriously consider practicing these simple habits: have the best diet there is, start moving, and go to bed early! Look out for my other tips.