In need of diabetic snacks
 

ok I need help, those of you following my blog know that last week I was diagnosed as a type 2 diabetic, I'm now on medication and a "diet".

I think a lot of us know someone who is diabetic or is that way themselves. I REALLY need to find something I can eat as a mid morning snack (keep in mind I eat breakfast at 615 and lunch at 12) that is actually filling. Veggies just arent cutting it, and I'd like it to be something that doesnt have carbs because I only get 224 a day and I dont want to waste them on snacks.

One I have thought of, because pickles are on my freel list, is something I've done since childhood. You take deli ham and wrap it around a pickle. I think 3 of these would probably work but I dont want to have to eat them every day.

(as a side note please dont recommend fruit as fruits have carbs)

So, what do your diabetic family members/friends do when they are starving and its still aways until meal time?

**I should also add that it cant be anything thats fortified with iron or high in iron because I have hemochromatosis (iron overload) or contains artificial sweetner because its a major migraine trigger for me

It seems Splenda causes no issues

I would also like to find out things I can drink (of course all diet drinks are out) its been 3 days and Im already sick to death of water. I have not tried making tea with splenda, I will try that tonite.

I love pickles. Big ginormous dill pickles.

Also, sliced cucumbers in vinegar. not quite pickled, with some freshness still in the taste.

Russell Stover has many lines of sugar free candy. In fact, with the introduction of Splenda, there are several sweets that are now sugar free. You can get sugar free popsicles. They taste just as good.

Seltzer water is also good, it fills you up.

You will find it's mostly veggies that have next to no carbs. This is why I'd recommend allocating at least some of your 224 carbs to one snack, and a mid-morning snack would be the best time for that I would imagine.

One idea I have is a cup of low/non-fat plain yogurt with a handful of nuts, such as walnuts, almonds, or cashews. This is about 20 carbs, but if you only use 1/2 cup of yogurt, it'll be around 12. With the fibre and fat content of the nuts, it would be relatively filling as a snack.

I'm sorry if you can't eat any of that; I don't know anyone with diabetes, so I don't know much about what works and what doesn't. I just thought that something with a bit of flavour that's relatively low in carbs (esp. as a % of total calories) would be a good option for you.

Maybe give us a list of foods you've been recommended overall, and we can assemble snack ideas for you?

Good luck.

BG, I am eating free veggies for snacks, and saving the veggies with carbs for meals. Celery, bell peppers, cucumbers are free and they never take the edge of the extreme hunger. I will eat yogurt if I have to but Im not a big fan of it...Im having to eat it right now cause Im on antibiotics for bronchitis, yogurt doesnt take the edge off either, though I will admit I havent tried it with nuts.

as far as a list of foods, I can eat what I want, as long as I dont go over my carb limit (for this next month anyway while we get a baseline on how what foods are affecting my sugar and what arent) Im logging myself to death here. The only things I CANT have are things with nutrasweet or are high in iron (especially spinach which I dearly adore)

Im going to try the pickles/ham this morning and see what that does

So, nothing is off limits, so long as it fills you up, but still allotting for the fact that you need to be aware of how much sugar you take in daily, right? I, myself, have no tips because the only food that seems to even remotely fill me up are ones with carbs; I haven't been full after a meal for nearing a decade, but I'm most satisfied by foods that take awhile to be processed fully by the body, e.g. muffins, oats, & legumes, among others.

Diabetic Diet Questions - Diabetes Diet Advice


My mother had diabetes as well, but I never took much interest or time to understand it because I was so young, other than knowing of the ritual or checking insulin with the "finger-pricker", and that bananas can save your life.

After they get your baseline, ask them about peanut butter. It helps manage diabetes, particularly in type 2 cases.

That and cinnamon. Not cinnabun, but cinnamon. It think it's available in pill form, but chewing on a stick might help you feel full. Cinnamon actually drops your levels.

Shani, i'll have to look up the diabetic pancake recipe my dad uses. tastes like real pancakes :D i promise! Always good for a snacksel. with sweetener and cinnamon and lemon juice. will post as soon as i find it.

Tea with Splenda is great. In the summer, I often make a big jug of sweet tea with Splenda in place of the sugar.

There are plenty of diet drinks out there that now use sucralose in place of other artificial sweeteners; however, most of them still contain acesulfame potassium (such as Diet Coke with Splenda and Diet Rite) so if you are sensitive to Ace K that won't work.

And as Poppinjay suggested, seltzer water is always nice.

I'll think on this a bit and get back to you with some other suggestions. I've never really had to think about carb intake before, except for that one time I tried the Atkins Diet for two days.

yeah its amazing how many things you'd think would be ok to eat are full of carbs....and apple for example, if I eat an apple I've used up any where from 14-43 carbs depending on the size bananas are 23-35 each fresh pineapple is 7-86 etc.

How much splenda do you use for a gallon of tea?

I love to toss chicken breast strips, celery (1.5g per stock), onions (3g per 1/4 cup), and a pinch of garlic salt and pepper in a pan with some olive oil. Take a few minutes just to combine a few flavors and you've got something tasty, simple, and filling.

I have a box with a pour spout so I have no idea--I've never measured, just gone by the taste. When it's sweet enough, it's sweet enough. Generally, though, you can measure Splenda like sugar, unlike other artificial sweeteners.

Tofu Jerky
 

* 1 (14 ounce) package firm tofu, drained
* 3 tablespoons soy sauce
* 2 teaspoons maple syrup
* 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 3 tablespoons barbecue sauce
* 2 teaspoons brown sugar

Place tofu block between paper towels on a plate. Set another plate on top, and put a weight on top of the plate such as a can to press the water from the block of tofu while you prepare the sauce.

In a medium bowl, stir together the soy sauce, maple syrup, liquid smoke, garlic powder, black pepper, barbeque sauce and brown sugar until smooth.

Slice tofu into 1/4 inch thick slices, and dip them in the sauce to coat. Place in a tightly sealed container. Place in the refrigerator, and let marinate for one to two hours.

Preheat the oven to the lowest temperature, around 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Line the oven rack with heavy duty aluminum foil, and place in the lowest position of the oven. Place the tofu slices on the foil.

Bake for about 8 hours, checking and turning over tofu slices every few hours. Tofu jerky is done when it is hard and uniformly dark in color.

You could try to lessen the amounts of the sugar, or use a lower carb barbecue sauce but this should have pretty low carbs per serving.

Tofu Jerky II - Allrecipes

I may have to make that soon myself.

Hi Shanifaye,

Sorry about your diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes...looks like your on track though with your diet management and all.

I am a Dietitian and my specialty is in Diabetes. I understand that if you are not on any diabetes meds then avoiding carbs in your snacks is fine but if you are, I would suggest you include carbs in your snacks just so you decrease ure risk of hypo's. carbs SHOULD be distributed evenly over the day (more for main meals and less ofcourse for mid-meals) eg: Breakfast 45-60g, morning tea 15g, lunch 45-60g, afternoon tea 15g, dinner 45-60g, bedtime snack 15g. (just an eg but varies from person to person)

But you did want some suggestions for carb free snacks. I know you found vegies unsatisfying but have you tried vegetable soups?? you can be quite creative with them and I find them more satisfying than munching on raw vegies. Also, try carrot, cucumber or celery sticks with a dip such as salsa or hummus or avocado.

Nuts has been mentioned before and they are a great idea too.

As for your heamochromatosis, not sure if you have been adviced this, but try drinking a cup of tea or coffee every time you have iron rich foods such as meat. The caffeine helps decrease the absorption of the iron. Avoid having vitamin c rich foods such as citrus fruits with any iron containing foods such as spinach, lentils and meats.

Hope this helped and good luck!! :thumbsup:

There are some really low carb yogurts, if you're down for that. Works perfectly.

Isn't it great helping people for a living? I adore it.

You might want to check out herbal teas. If you get sick of black tea, that is. I love the tang of hibiscus and calming rosehips. Be careful how long you allow herbal teas to steep, as they start tasting "dirty" if you leave them too long. Cheap teas such as Celestial Seasonings are especially bad this way. I find I'm less inclined to want to sweeten fruity herbal teas (splenda gets expensive).

Delicious veggies you may not have tried:

Daikon Radishes
http://www.banana-tree.com/catalog%2...s/image150.jpg
Turnips
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/senio...ge/turnip2.jpg
Parsnips
http://www.mariquita.com/images/phot...parsnips11.jpg
Celery root
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Foto4/CeleryRoot2.jpg
Finocchio (enlarged stem of fennel)
http://www.foodsubs.com/Photos/stalk-fennel.jpg
Jicama
http://www.foodsubs.com/Photos/jicama5.jpg
Since these are root vegetables, you may find they are more satisfying. Celery root has hardly any starches.

yeah..and i get all the stuff drilled into me conciously and subconciously..so i may as well be a walking dietitian also.

I pm-d you after trying to reply three times. At a hotel at the moment, posting problems, grumble grumble.

There is one diet drink with splenda now, btw. I don't remember which one it is, or if it also has other artificial sweetener.