2 cups wild rice
½ cup pomegranate arils
¼ cup toasted pumpkin seeds or nuts of choice
¼ cup grated goat or sheep’s cheese of choice
Basil Vinaigrette
1 cup EVOO
¾ cup balsamic vinaigrette
½ cup basil
Blend all ingredients thoroughly.
How the Plan Helps You
The beauty of Planning as a diabetic is that we get one more tool to assess foods. We use weight and our blood sugars to guide us to the foods that work well for our systems. It’s exhausting listening to the experts tell you what to eat as a diabetic. The Plan gives you a system to test the foods that you love and see how your body responds to it. This gives you control over your blood sugar, weight and overall health.
Tip For Managing Your Sugar
- Check you sugar!! Especially as you get started check your sugar before and 2 hours after every meal as well as at bedtime and on waking. Even if you aren’t used to checking your sugar this much, doing it for a few days or weeks gives you so much information about what is and isn’t working. I will also allow for quick adjustments to medication.
- Any food that causes high, sustained levels of blood sugar after eating is likely inflammatory for you EVEN if you lose weight with it. Remember that your blood sugar is another tool you can use to judge foods so watch it and learn from it!
- Low blood sugar options: This is especially true for type 1 diabetics as insulin levels are adjusted but try whole grapes, watermelon (if Planning in the summer) or raisins (if on the go) as potions to quickly bring up low blood sugar if you should need it.
Recommended Supplements
- MSM: one of the most bioavailable sources of sulfur. Insulin is actually formed by two proteins attached with a sulphur bridge and many research studies have shown that glucose uptake into the cells is aided by MSM supplementation.
- Ashwagadha: Many research studies have shown lowered glucose levels in diabetics taking ashwagandha. It it thought to improve the uptake of glucose into muscle cells. Ashwagandha is also an amazing adaptogenic herb that can help support our adrenal and thyroid systems as well.
- Liquid B12: This is primarily a recommendation for our clients that are on type 2 diabetes medication (such as metfomin). The medications often rapidly deplete stores of B12 and folate so if you are on these medications then supplementing with these nutrients can help dramatically.
- Probiotics: More and more research is showing that the health of our digestive tracts plays a critical role in blood sugar balance. The most recent study showed that supplementation with L. Reuteri and Bifidobacteria (In the probiotics we recommend) greatly reducing blood sugar and fasting insulin levels.
- Vital Nutrients Blood Sugar Support: This is one of my favorite supplements if you feel like you need extra support in addition to changes in food. It is a combination of chromium and herbs that act to sensitive the body to insulin. I often take this when I travel and have less control over food!
Your friend in health,
Dr. Katie Reinholtz