Seriously - almost every nutrition book you can grab will tell you that vegetarians have a much lower incidence of diabetes than consumers of the standard American diet (SAD). This would lead you to believe that there are no diabetic vegetarians in the world. A Google search will further qualify this idea. Try searching for "diabetic vegan recipe" and see what turns up. I already did that, so I can save you the trouble: not stinkin' much.
This is interesting, since Dr. Neal Barnard (in conjunction with the ever talented Bryanna Clark Grogan) produced an entire book about the benefits of a vegan diet on diabetic patients. He argues that a lack of animal fats in the system, combined with healthy starches and plenty of fiber, will actually help you control blood sugar levels better than the modified SAD the American Dietetic Association recommends for diabetics.
I don't normally care much at all about blood sugar or fats, but right now I'm riding the diabetes train, and I have no scheduled stops until March. I'm expecting a little bundle of veggie joy near the end of that month; and just like my last pregnancy, I have gestational diabetes as my fun little friend on the way. Gestational diabetes is usually a temporary condition. Last time mine lasted until about the time they wheeled me out of the delivery room. Since I now have a second helping, though, it's likely that I'll be fighting type 2 diabetes a few years down the road. So it's time to get serious about my health. And I can't think that eating modest portions of lean hamburger is my road to health and wellness, no matter what it says in the ADA handbook my nutritionist gave me. The hamburgers I ate until age 28 are probably the reason I'm in this mess now.
So that means it's time to get serious about food, too. And this month, it's all about the vegan food. I'll be trying out some of Bryanna's veg-abetic recipes, of course, but I'll also try to improvise and cull things from the web that might be of use to those of us with blood sugar issues. I figure that I can't be the only veggie diabetic out there. Let's get together, insulin-resistant friends! Together we will fight the glucose demons!
(Don't be scared away if you're not diabetic, though - come and play, too. Please?)
Whatever the situation, we need to have some breakfast first. More on that tomorrow...
6 comments:
I am looking forward to checking out your veg-abetic adventures! Mr. Wing-It's triglycerides get too high if he goes a little crazy on the sugar and the starches.
My husband is type 1! While he isn't vegan, he happily eats everything I make at home, which is vegan. I'm excited to see what you come up with!
A very good theme!
I guess you are not going to like my MoFo entries this month then, I'm making mostly baked treats, and they are rather heavy on sugar :(
But I'm not scared away! I'll come and play!
I look forwards to seeing what you come up with :D
Thanks for all the kindness, everyone! I hope I don't disappoint!
Becks, I'm always up for sweets, even if I can't eat them. I might even turn around and make one of your recipes diabetic-friendly - you never know!
I'm 24 years type 1 diabetic and 5 years vegan.
November is also World Diabetes month. On Fridays I'll be posting my lunches for the week with carb counts and insulin doses.
I'm looking forward to your posts this month!
Thanks for coming by, Molly! I've got you on my blogroll now, and I'm also excited to see your doings over the next couple of weeks. And I'm always on the lookout for a good lunch idea :)
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