Transcript Slide 1

Diabetes And The Holidays:
Practical Tips To Help Managing
Your Diabetes And Keep Healthy!
Grazia Aleppo, MD, FACE, FACP
Associate Professor of Medicine
It’s the most wonderful time of the
year….
• …BUT, holidays can be also be the most
stressful!
• 'Tis the season for shopping, decorating,
parties, and cooking.
• Tempting treats are everywhere…
• Exercise plans are put on the back burner...
• For anyone, these are the ingredients for
diet disaster
• For some, another problem is added to the
mix: Diabetes
Diabetes
• Is a disease that results in high levels of
sugar (glucose) in the blood
• Diabetes type 1, usually in children, almost
total lack of insulin production
• Diabetes type 2, usually in adults, both
insulin resistance and decreased levels of
insulin
Holidays= especially tricky time of year to
manage health with diabetes
Even though you can take a holiday, diabetes
never does!
With some careful planning
and smart choices, anyone
can have holidays
that are both happy
and healthy!
Planning Ahead
• Look at your schedules!
• Are you going out of town with your family?
• Having visitors stay with you?
• Do your plans usually include a lot of parties and
food-oriented events?
• Are your holidays more active?
Tips To Get A Good Start
• Just like everything else with diabetes, you
have to take a few extra steps
• Put yourself at the top of your list
• Be aware of challenging environments
• Make a “Healthy Eating Contract”
• Focus on friends and family instead of food
• The holidays are a time to slow down and catch
up with your loved ones
• Monitor your blood glucose level
and don't skip meals
• Be positive. YOU control your diabetes; it doesn't
control you
Exercise
• Stay active, follow a regular exercise
routine to help regulate metabolism
• Try 10- or 15- minute brisk walks at
intervals throughout the day;
they all add up
• Start a game of pick-up
football or play other games
in the yard
• Go for a walk with your loved ones after
eating a holiday dinner
• Offer to help clean up after a meal instead
of sitting in front of leftover food or the
TV!
• This will help you avoid
snacking and get you
moving around
Few More Tips On Exercise
• Walk
– Park your car at the far end of the lot
– Power walk while shopping the mall
– Take a twilight stroll around your
neighborhood to admire the holiday lights
• Try a seasonal activity
– Snow shoe
– Ski
– Build a snowman
Planning A Meal with Diabetes
During The Holidays
Menus
• Do you have traditional dishes that you
make every year?
• You may need to fine-tune the menu a bit
because of diabetes, but not totally
• There are some ways for making your
traditional holiday foods a bit healthier
Revising Recipes
• Steam the green beans instead of sautéing them in butter
• Lower the amount of fat, sugar, and carbohydrate in your
favorite foods while keeping taste and texture
• Replace sugar (up to half)in dessert recipes with a sugar
substitute
• Increase the use of cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and other
sweet-tasting spices and flavorings
Example Of Holiday Meal
Are You Hosting A Dinner?
• Make sure the menu includes fruits,
vegetables and lean meats
• Baking, broiling and barbequing are good
methods for cooking meats such as turkey
• Avoid frying or
adding extra fat
during cooking
Avoid sampling the foods while
cooking more than necessary
• Calories may add up with “just tasting”…
• Clear the table and put unused food away
to help guests avoid grazing
Family Members With Diabetes
Extra treats and late meals
that can alter blood sugar
levels of your loved ones
with Diabetes
Ask your guest with
diabetes if he/she must
eat within a certain
window of time
If so, plan on serving
food at that time, and
let the rest of the
celebration fall around
the meal
• Find out if there are foods that must be avoided. Add
alternate choice without removing a favorite dish from the
menu
• Offer your guest a private spot to test blood sugar or to
inject insulin
• Find out what your guest uses to treat a low blood sugar
(juice or fruit), stock some, just in case
• Stick to the planned timetable. If your meal is later than
anticipated, tell your guest, so insulin adjustments can be
made or provide a snack to keep blood sugar steady
You Are Invited To A Holiday Meal
• Eat breakfast or snacks earlier in the day
• “Saving carbs” for the big feast later on does not work!
• Do not skip meals, blood sugar mar be more unstable
• Eat before you eat. If you arrive hungry, you will be more
likely to overeat!
• Eat a small meal or snack
before you leave home
• Bring what you like. Don't worry about what will
be served
• Consider a vegetable-based dish that contains little
or no carbohydrate
• Study ALL of the food options, and think (!) what
you are going to have before you put anything on
your plate
• Decide which foods are worth eating and which can
be ignored
• If the meal is at your usual meal time, try to eat
the same amount of carbohydrate you normally
would for a meal
• Limit the number of servings of starchy foods on
your plate, choose one item or take a few spoonfuls
or bites of each
• Choose vegetables first. Broccoli, baby carrots,
cauliflower and tomatoes are good choices. Go easy
on the dip or skip it!
• Avoid vegetables in creams, gravies and butter
• If you taste something that you don’t enjoy, leave
it on your plate—don’t finish it!
• Eat chips and crackers in moderation
• Take small portions of holiday treats, eat slowly,
and savor the taste and texture
Focus On The Fun, Not The Feast
• Eat slowly, and enjoy the foods that you may only
have once a year
• Make sure your portions are reasonable and resist
going back for second helpings!
• Focus on socializing instead of eating, enjoying the
entertainment than worrying about what’s on your
plate
• After your meal, take a walk with family and friends
Alcohol And
Diabetes:
How To
Accomplish
“Healthy
Drinking”
What Do I Drink With My Meal?
• Sip a large glass of water or mineral water, it keeps
you hydrated and is a better option than alcohol
• Stick to calorie-free drinks such as water, tea,
seltzer, or diet sodas instead of punch or mixed
drinks
• Drink in moderation!
• If you drink alcohol, eat something beforehand to
prevent low blood glucose levels later
• Holiday drinks can add a significant amount of
calories to your holiday intake
What Is Allowed:
• Women should drink no more than one
alcoholic beverage a day and men should
drink no more than two
•
•
•
•
•
A DRINK IS:
12 fluid ounces (fl oz) of beer
5 fl oz of wine
1½ fl oz of 80-proof distilled spirits
1 fl oz of 100-proof distilled spirits
Fitting in Sweets
• Dessert, one of the most
tempting part of the holidays…
• Decide ahead of time what/how much you
will eat and how you will handle social
pressure ("No thank you, I'm too full.")
• Most sweets have a lot of carbohydrate in a
small portion, so keep portion sizes small
• Substitute small portions of these sweets for other
carbohydrate already in your meal plan
• Share one portion of dessert with someone else,
and scrape off whipped-cream topping or extra
frosting
• Volunteer to bring your favorite dessert to social
functions. Some ideas are plain cookies, baked
apples, or sugar-free puddings
Oops,
I ate too much….
• Don’t beat yourself up! Make a plan to get back on
track
• Stop eating for the night, focus on the people
around you
• The next day, exercise, monitor your BG, and get
back on track with your usual eating habits!
Holiday Stress
and
Diabetes
• The holidays can be a very busy and stressful time
of year
• With stress, blood glucose may increase
• Try to simplify this holiday season
• Avoid taking on extra duties or extra cooking for
holiday events
• Focus on spending time with people! (think less
about food and gifts…)
How To Beat Stress During The Holidays
• Plan your gift-giving list and shop before Thanksgiving to beat
the crowds
• Save time! Shop online or from catalogs
• Don't always cook from scratch
• Say no! You don't have to accept every holiday invitation
• Find some quiet time for yourself every day
• Listen to favorite carols,
have some hot tea
or just sit and watch the snowfall
• Stay organized and do things ahead of time
• Plan diabetes-friendly meals in advance
• Make a plan so you know how to deal with the
pressure of indulging in holiday food.
• Exercise! It helps stress
AND blood glucose
Traveling
With Diabetes
During The
Holidays
Tips for Travelers
• Diabetes travels with you!
• Get your diabetes scripts refilled before you go
• Get an influenza vaccination before traveling
• Take enough medicines and supplies for the entire
trip; better yet, take extras!
• Always wear medical identification, i.e. a bracelet
• Monitor blood sugars regularly
• Remember your basic rules of foot care:
– Don't wear new shoes on vacation since you may get
blisters
– Never go barefoot
– Check your feet daily and take care of any cuts or blisters
immediately
Air Travel
• Carry all medicines and equipment with you on the plane!
• Tell the flight attendant or someone you travel with that you
have diabetes
• Drink plenty of non-alcoholic, caffeine-free beverages
throughout the flight
• Because of increased security at airports, get a Diabetes travel
letter from your doctor
• Bring the original containers, as they usually have a label and
pharmacy instructions
• Get up and move around every one to two hours to increase
comfort and reduce risk for blood clots
Smart Checklist For The Diabetic Traveler
•
Prescription medicines (insulin, pills) for
diabetes and other medical conditions
•
Med- alert bracelet or Diabetes
identification
•
Pack twice amount of supplies in case of
travel delays in carry-on
•
Fast acting sugar such as glucose
tablets/gel or candy
•
Keep your insulin cool with insulated
bag with refrigerated gel packs
•
Complex carbohydrates (crackers, granola
bar, trail mix) in case meals are delayed
•
Bring two blood glucose monitoring
devices with extra batteries
•
Keep time zone changes in mind
•
For insulin pump users: pump supplies,
extra batteries, insulin and syringes in
case of pump failure
•
If you're flying and do not want to walk
through the metal detector with your
insulin pump, tell a security officer that
you are wearing an insulin pump and ask
them to visually inspect the pump and do a
full-body pat-down
•
Pack syringes, lancets, and test strips
•
Health insurance card and emergency
phone numbers, including your doctor's
name and phone number
•
Glucagon emergency kit in case of
hypoglycemia
References
http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/Holidays_and_Special_O
ccasions/Christmas/Desserts/
http://www.diabeteseducator.org/export/sites/aade/_resourc
es/pdf/general/AADE_Holiday_toolkit.pdf
http://www.myabetic.com/
www.diabetes.org
Thank You!