Holiday Diet Tips for Diabetics


The holidays can be tough on anyone’s diet, but for those living with diabetes, the season poses particularly severe challenges to achieving proper nutrition.

Throughout the holiday season we are all exposed to more food, sweets, and alcohol. For diabetics, anxiety over what to eat often accompanies them throughout the holidays.

"The biggest thing to remember is that the holidays aren’t really about food,” says Kevin Borst, D.O., an endocrinologist at Lakewood Hospital.

“It’s about getting together with family and friends.”

Keeping this holiday perspective in mind, Dr. Borst offers the following strategies to help diabetics survive the holidays without making significant changes to their weight or blood sugar:

• Plan ahead. Avoid temptations by having your plate planned out in advance. Check on the recipes and carbohydrate content of foods ahead of time. Eat holiday meals around your normal meal times instead of snack times.

• Avoid sweet or high fat beverages packed with concentrated calories. If you must, limit drinks like punch or eggnog to one serving.

• Don’t not to go to parties or events hungry, as it will increase your chances of overeating.

• Take your time and socialize while you are eating. It removes the focus from the food and allows you to get fuller faster and consume fewer calories.

• Broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and celery, are a great low-carb, low calorie appetizer, helping you to save your carbs for dinner.

• Spread out your carbohydrates throughout the day. This helps your body process glucose efficiently and work properly with your medications.

• Take a post-meal walk to provide you with energy, help digestion and burn off extra calories.

• Monitor your blood glucose; do so even more often if you are eating more frequently or at irregular times.

• Stick to your diabetes nutrition plan. Keep a food journal if it keeps you from overeating. Keep counting your carbs.
 

“If you are drinking, it’s important for someone to know that you have diabetes,” says Dr. Borst. “The symptoms of being drunk and of low blood sugar are similar, so if you begin to exhibit these symptoms, they can take you aside and have you check your blood sugar level.

For more information on the Lakewood Hospital Diabetes and Endocrine Center or to make an appointment with Dr. Borst, call 216.529.5300. Want more information on Diabetes and all that Lakewood Hospital offers? Order our free diabetes resource kit!