Battling Diabetes

The Traffic Light Diet is a simple diet plan that may help adult diabetics as well as children get started on the road to healthy eating. While called a diet it is really a lifestyle plan. It is easy to follow which means long term compliance in any situation. This may be a perfect educational starter to teach newly diagnosed diabetics healthy choices.

The Traffic Light Diet or Stop Light Diet was developed by Leonard H. Epstein and colleagues for use in their family-based childhood overweight research. It has been since copied (as noted in Battling Books!).

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June 12, 2008, Reuters Health: Diabetic Weight Loss Plan Yields Long Term Success. One year later. The findings of the follow up of the Joslin Diabetes Center, Why Wait? program show that the participants of the 12-week program for Type 2 diabetics resulted in an average weight loss of 24.6 pounds and good control of blood glucose levels and blood pressure.

What is Why Wait?

The 12-week program involves exercise, dietary changes, education, counseling and adjustment of diabetes medications. Participants meet weekly and the program is insurance reimbursable. There is a monthly support session fee of $25 out of pocket.

Program components per the Joslin Why Wait? site:

• Intensive and interactive medication adjustments
• Structured modified dietary intervention
• Graded, balanced and individualized exercise intervention
• Cognitive behavioral intervention
• Group education

The dietary component portion of the Joslin Why Wait? program includes meal replacement shakes for breakfast and lunch. Snacks between meals. Dinners are from 14 menu selections from the Joslin Nutrition Guidelines. Nutritional breakdown of the meals are about 40% carbohydrate, 30% fat and 30% protein.

Additional Joslin weight notes per Why Wait? site:

• A modest weight loss of one pound every one to two weeks is advised.
• Reducing daily calories should be by 250 to 500 calories; total daily calories should not be less than 1,000 to 1,200 for women and 1,200 to 1,600 for men.
• Weight loss is different for each person and should be continued until a person reaches a target body mass index, or BMI.

Calculating target body mass index or BMI:

• Fit Watch
• Target Health
  

The exercise component portion of the Joslin Why Wait? program recommends ” A minimum of 150 to 175 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity is recommended. A target of 60 to 90 minutes most days of the week is encouraged.”

The medication component portion includes working with a diabetologist to reduce or eliminate medications that interfere with weight loss. It is includes more frequent glucose monitoring. Medications are adjusted weekly based on your personal results.

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My first encounters with diabetic diets came from my grandmother. Our large extended family spent many Sundays in her huge kitchen for the family meal.

Grandma spent the entire day preparing homemade tomato sauce which simmered on the stove from early morning until evening. The final product of red velvet sauce was served over fresh pasta with side dishes of pork hocks, sausage, and homemade meatballs. Freshly grated Parmesan cheese was passed around the tables (at least two tables to fit the family) along with homemade bread and a large bowl of salad. Our salads were a meal in themselves, tossed with an oil and vinegar dressing.

The entire family enjoyed the feast–well that is most of us. Not my grandmother. I distinctly remember that most of her meals consisted of a bowl filled with a horrid looking combination of greens and plain meats.

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