"You Cant Eat That" You Are A Diabetic?!!!!!

I suppose it would be nice of them to be thinking about what you can or cannot have, but, on the flip side, they really should trust your judgement

I think everyone should trust you and your doctors judgement also when it comes to what you eat. You know what you can handle and what you can't.

i take care of my 84 year old grandmother. who is a diabetic. she is also stubborn and always "right" lol! she hates doing what the doctor tells her to, so its up to me to either convince her or slowly nudge her into eating/doing the things she needs to eat or vice versa..stay away from things she should not be eating. of course i also respect the fact that she is a woman grown, not a child, aware of how her body is responding to things (even IF she claims its cause she ate a piece of celery and she's sure its NOT the medication making a difference ::sigh::) since i make the shopping list, i try to limit the types of things that are in the house and have plenty of the good stuff..like fruits and veggies. when she does get an eye on something that is too sweet i subtly mention for her to make sure to check her sugar level after eating that, cause it might kick it up pretty high..and that usually makes her think about it lol. it never actually deters her from eating whatever the sweet might be, but she will severely cut the portion..which i figure is the best i can do right?

It is a common saying 'you are what you eat'. So it goes to say that whatever we put in, we have to be accountable for the reaction of the food to our body. My mom who is allergic to most kind of nuts and seafoods has avoided eating this stuff and of late she has become phobia to all kind of food even chicken is no longer in her diet. She has deprived herself of almost all nutrient giving food and live mostly on plain rice broth. It didn't take her long to become anemic and was hospitalised due to her low blood count. Due to this incident she is slowly accepting food that she would not take before. Others can only give out their opinions but it is up to us to analyse what food is good or not good for us. We are our best dietician who can conform to our body needs.

well they yell and tell only for the benefit of the diabetic patients and their dear ones!! and definitely for them selves!!

Hi hatley, Yes you are so right! I'm sure it is rather annoying when people butt into your business and say things like that to you. Don't they understand that you know what you are doing and what you should and should not eat by now. It must be really frustrating to have to hear this from others time and time again. I now how difficult it is to be a diabetic to begin with. I have know quite a few diabetics and how difficult it was for them to watch every little thing that they ate and all the things that they had to give up and the last thing that they wanted to hear was people telling them what they could or could not eat. So I'm sure that is the very last thing that you want to have people saying to you.

May be they don't know that we know what we are doing.They yell for different reasons.I.Out of concern for you. 2.To derive a sadistic pleasure of not letting you eat things they can indulge.3.To show off their medical knowledge about diabetes and drag you in to their boring speech on diabetes maintenance.Well I have come across all kinds of these people.Ijust take them with a pinch of smile.

i pretty much have what i want within moderation i dont eat a lot of sweets but i do have my fruit and within moderation you can have it.i hate diabetes this disease is a scary one there are days i don,t feel well maybe from something i have eaten.i have lost so much weight from this disease i lost 75 pounds at one time i was gaining a lot of weight i didn,t know why it changed and now my weight is ok iam losing about 2 pounds a month.i had this all my life but wasn,t treated until i was in my late 30.

One of the very reasons why I decided to back off when it came to my husband and his Type 2 Diabetes. I was constantly getting in his face about his food choices, his smoking, this and that and after I joined a online Diabetes group to learn more about it, and to help him start to focus on his diet and sorts, one of the moderators, even though nice, gave me the hard word and pretty much said to me to back off and let him make his choices. He is an adult and knows what he has to do to get this under control. I appreciated her comment and needed to hear it, so I backed off. Nothing much has changed. He's put more weight on, considers walking to the metro and to his office exercise (10-15 mins), and has not quit smoking. He stopped checking his blood glucose a couple of months ago and after a very hard word from his recent check up from his doctor, he is now checking his BGs. His eye sight is deteriorating, he's lethargic and just looks sick to me. I've given him lots of encouragement, went along with him to his Diabetes Education workshops, cleaned out the cupboards and got rid of the bad foods, and now trying to stick to a more healthy diet. I've encouraged him to try the Nicotine patch, even the gum and if he didn't want to, to ask his doctor at the last checkup for help. He didn't ask. It really hurts to not see him try and even though I've told him how I feel, all he says is that "You and Maddy will be taken care of." WTH?!? Aargh, I am frustrated and don't know what to do. Sorry for going off on a tangent - I might just make a discussion out of my reply. Thanks for letting me vent Hatley :)

I was diagnosed as a borderline diabetic some 13 years ago...they told me to control it with diet...no sweets, very few breads and no soda. I quit drinking sweet tea and soda and got used to water. I cut out cakes, candies, cookies, doughnuts and only occasionally have a piece of pie. I look for sugar free candies or (and here's a trick) if I have regular candy I drink 2-3 bottles of water with it. The water washes it through your system faster so it doesn't get the chance to let the sugars soak into your system. I've managed over the last 13 years to control it...without any medication. The way I see it when the time comes that I really do need the medication, it'll still be an option. As for ppl telling me what I can and can't have, most ppl around me know that I control mine on my own...if anything they are always offering me doughnuts, cookies and such and I have to be strong and tell them no. [b]~~IN SEARCH OF PEACE WITHIN~~ **AGAINST THE STORMS, I WILL STAND STRONG** [/b]

Hatley, why do people seem to think they know better than we do what's right for us? One of the women I have lunch with examines my lunch every day to be sure I have no sugar. Since my jaw's been dislocated and I can't eat, she's really frustrated, because she doesn't know what's in the smoothie in my thermos! She makes a big show of telling everyoe she can't eat this or that because she doesn't want to become diabetic and suffer as I do. I don't. I've been diabetic for so long, I sort of automatically know what I need to do, and I do it. No fanfare is necessary. It's not suffering, by any means.

I don't think anybody has the right to get all over somebody else for what they eat or drink (or choose to read, watch, listen to, or wear). Even if it is not a HEALTHY choice, it is still up to the person to make that choice, don't you agree? I don't even think you have to explain that you know what you're doing. You don't have to prove anything to someone else. I feel people should trust each other that other people make the best choices for themselves and you make the best choice for you.

My mom is diabetic, and she knows what she can have and can't have. However, there will be times when she accidentally slips up and has something small that she shouldn't. That's okay. She's only human. If I feel that it's something that'll mess her up, I will let her know my concern. She doesn't trust doctors (and there's a good long story why), and so, she trusts what her body does. If her body tells her that she can or can't have it, she'll listen. So far, she hasn't had to go back to a doctor since being diagnosed 2-3 years ago. Then again, she must have some super human powers that I apparently didn't inherit.

As a diabetic you shouldnt eat too many fruits (especially not sweet fruits like grapes for example) but that doesnt mean you shouldnt have any fruits at all. Its like saying you shouldnt enjoy a candy if you really feel like it. You shouldnt overdo it of course, which I doubt you did. To react in such a way like your friends did its a bit extreme. A reasonable diet is important, but noone can stick to a diet if its too strickt. I am no diabetic my self, but my father has been for over 30 years, so I have quite some idea whats it about :)

I am not diabetic but people tell me what to eat because I'm bigger than you're allegedly supposed to be. More often than not this doesn't work out for them because I will just eat what I want to anyway just to spite them. So they had no gain by making this assertion. In fact, it resulted in behavior they didn't want. However, as stubborn as we tend to be about what we eat, especially if you're from certain cultures, we should also respect people who are trying to help us but you can do that without being annoying.

I am not diabetic but my father in law is. He is strict when it comes to food intake. So there is no need to be vigilant on him. If I were a diabetic I would be irked if someone tells me what I can eat or not. But deep within down I would feel thankful to be surrounded by people who care about my health

My mom is a diabetic and she eats what she likes although she knows her limit. She said if she will follow all what she would not eat, she will starve. She also think that she knows her body better. Up until now, her blood sugar is under control and that is what really matters. She religiously takes her medicines and I think that helped her control her sugar level.

Yes! I do know people like that. I'm overweight, not diabetic and the same people that yell at you over your food choices are the ones who tsk tsk me over pasta. They compare low fat pasta with icecream and the two are NOT the same. They don't understand that any healthy food in small portions is alright to eat. And, it's smarter to eat a little healthy food (though high carb) when feeling hungry than to wait until cookies are the only other option! Thanks for your discussion.

Aww--- well...I think your friend was just so concern about your health though. However next time he or she shouldn't yell at you. She/ he could just grab you politely and say,"Are you sure you are allowed to eat that?" This is a good way to initiate and putting her/his concern towards you, not to yell in front of many others. Yeah, you are so responsible about your own health though and you know what's right or not right for you. You know what is complicated or not. Take care!

Yes, it definitely irritates me. My blood sugar is usually controlled quite well with medications. Thanks to that I AM able to eat candy, or sweets, in moderation. But other people only know I'm diabetic - and think they know more than me. It frustrates me to no end to have others think they should be the food police and tell me what I should or should not eat. I'm 49 years old for goodness sakes, I can surely determine what I can or cannot eat!!!