Healthy Eating

Many people contact us to ask if Food Optimising will fit in with their diabetes – the answer is a resounding YES! Not only will it fit around the condition – many members tell us that it has
helped control it.

“At my heaviest weight I’d been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and the condition was steadily worsening. After losing 6 stones with Slimming World my confidence and physical health have improved dramatically and I feel great. My GP has even reduced my diabetes medication – she told me that I’m the only person in her diabetes clinic to have their medication reduced. I’m hoping that it can stop altogether eventually!”
Barrie Walters, Shropshire

"I’d been controlling my type 2 diabetes for several years using tablets. When I went to a routine appointment at my local diabetes clinic however, my doctor was pretty blunt. He told me that if I didn’t change my lifestyle, in a few months time I would need to start injecting insulin.

Part of my condition meant that I experienced diabetic lows, where I’d feel light headed and would start sweating. After joining Slimming World and losing 6 stones I experienced my last low nearly a year ago and took my last tablet - my diabetes is now controlled by my diet alone! My doctor is amazed. He’d never heard of someone with diabetes at my level changing their condition so drastically purely through diet."
John Ritchie, Eyemouth

How can Food Optimising help?

Because Food Optimising is extremely generous and flexible, and puts you in control of the foods you eat and when you eat them, it is easy to fit in with any personal advice on diet that your diabetes care team gives you. Taking insulin or other medication need not be a barrier to losing weight; our research shows that Slimming World members with diabetes lose weight as successfully as other members.

Diabetes UK, the leading charity working for people with diabetes, recommends a number of steps to healthy eating, which can help control your blood glucose levels and blood fats as well as regulate your weight.

Here is how Food Optimising helps you take those steps easily and enjoyably to achieve your goals:

1. Eat regular meals each day

Aiming not to skip meals but eating a regular breakfast, lunch, evening meal (and healthy snacks when you need) helps control your blood glucose level and appetite. The fl exibility of Food Optimising means you can choose when and what you want to eat making it easy to meet your individual needs.

2. Enjoy starchy, carbohydrate-rich food at each meal

The Extra Easy and Green choices make it easy to eat regular amounts of starchy carbohydrates at each meal. Pasta, potatoes, rice and noodles are Free Foods, which means you decide how much you want to eat, and when you want to eat it!* Wholemeal bread and wholegrain cereals are Healthy Extras, so you can enjoy them every day if you wish. Filling up on fibre-rich foods is great for weight loss because they help keep you feeling fuller for longer and are low in energy density, which means they help keep hunger at bay without piling on the calories. If you are following an Original day it’s recommended that you include some carbohydrate with each meal, rather than having Healthy Extras as snacks.

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3. Easy ways to eat less fat

When you are Food Optimising you automatically reduce your fat intake:

• high-fat foods are counted as Syns, so they are limited, while oily fish, which is rich in ‘good’ fats, is Free on Extra Easy and Original, and Healthy Extras on the Green choice.
• you are encouraged to choose low-fat and fat free versions of dairy produce, such as milk, yogurt and cheese
• trim off fat from meat, bacon etc. and remove skin (the high-fat bit) from poultry
• cook using healthy, fat-free methods such as grilling, steaming or baking instead of frying.

*NB: Some people with diabetes may be given specific advice on the amount of carbohydrate-rich foods or fruit to eat. If you’ve received this advice, it’s important to bear it in mind when choosing your Free Foods.

4. Fill up on fruit and veg

The Department of Health recommends that we eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day; with Food Optimising you can eat as much as you wish*. This is because fruit and vegetables are super-healthy, low-energy foods to fill up on. All fruit and vegetables, fresh or frozen, are Free Foods so you can keep the fruit bowl full and pile your plate with vegetables at every meal.

5. Include more beans, peas and lentils

Following Food Optimising means it’s easy to include more pulses in your meals. Foods such as butter beans, cannellini beans, kidney beans, chickpeas and lentils are all Free on Extra Easy and the Green choice, and can be added to make satisfying casseroles, stews, soups or salads.

6. Include more oily fish

It is recommended that you aim to eat at least two portions of oily fish a week such as mackerel, pilchards, salmon and sardines. Rich in healthy polyunsaturated fats, oily fish are Free on Extra Easy and Original, and Healthy Extras on the Green choice.

7. Easy ways to eat less sugar

Like high-fat foods, sugary foods count as Syns and so are automatically limited when you are Food Optimising. There’s no need to go without sweet tea or fizzy drinks: artificial sweeteners are Free Foods and can be used in drinks and in cooking; diet and sugar-free versions of fizzy drinks are also Free.

8. Keep an eye on salt

It is easy to monitor your salt intake when you’re Food Optimising because you’re encouraged to prepare meals using fresh foods, rather than eating a lot of ready-made and convenience dishes. Herbs, spices and garlic are all Free Foods.

9. Keep an eye on alcohol

All alcohol counts as Syns, so is limited when you are Food Optimising. A small glass of wine or half-pint of beer are both around 5 Syns, so with a typical daily allowance of 10 to 15 Syns, you can enjoy one or two drinks a day if that is how you like to use them. Drinking on an empty stomach, which is not recommended if you have diabetes, need never be a problem as there are always Free Food snacks to fill up on.

For more information on all aspects of diabetes check out www.diabetes.org.uk.

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