Diabetic Diet

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

I would like to know of an 'easy' diabetic diet that I can suggest for my clients during patient teaching. Our hospital's dietician is so backed up that they are booking appointments in October and November. I get confused with the calorie counting, plate methods and such, and if I am, I know that the clientle we serve would be as well. We have no material to give these patients...even the RNs are confused as to what to teach them.

I don't want these people to walk away from me with nothing while waiting so long for counseling by a nutritionist. Waiting that long would surely discourage them, and I am sure that most of them don't even bother to go. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

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Specializes in HH, Psych, MR/DD, geriatric, agency.

This is the website we used to teach my step-father about his diabetes and controlling his carb intake...

http://www.endocrineweb.com/diabetes/treatment.html

One key element that we wanted him to follow was "Each gram of carbohydrate provides 4 calories. A diabetic on a 1600 calorie diet should get 50% of these calories from carbohydrate. This would be a total of 800 calories or 200 gms of carbohydrate (at 4 calories per gram) spread out over the day. At 15 grams per exchange, this would be about 13 exchanges of carbohydrate per day."

If you can teach them that exchange to follow and to avoid sugars, that should hold them over until they can see the nutritionist and set up a daily meal plan.

There's lots of other information on that website too. HTH!

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.
This is the website we used to teach my step-father about his diabetes and controlling his carb intake...

http://www.endocrineweb.com/diabetes/treatment.html

One key element that we wanted him to follow was "Each gram of carbohydrate provides 4 calories. A diabetic on a 1600 calorie diet should get 50% of these calories from carbohydrate. This would be a total of 800 calories or 200 gms of carbohydrate (at 4 calories per gram) spread out over the day. At 15 grams per exchange, this would be about 13 exchanges of carbohydrate per day."

If you can teach them that exchange to follow and to avoid sugars, that should hold them over until they can see the nutritionist and set up a daily meal plan.

There's lots of other information on that website too. HTH!

I appreciate your response! Thanks!

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