Thanksgiving is one of the biggest food holidays in America. It is a time when people look forward to getting together to eat themselves silly.
For people that are concerned about their blood sugars this could be a challenge. For diabetics and pre-diabetics it can be a time when it is hard to manage their blood sugars if they eat way too much.
I propose this year that you create a Healthy Holiday Alternative by designing a meal that is friendly for diabetics eating whole foods.
I’m sure as you read this if you are diabetic you automatically think that Thanksgiving dinner is going to suck. The best way for diabetics to balance blood sugars is to eat vegetables and proteins.
I have a great surprise for you – you can eat great food for every course. Let me give you some examples.
For your first course you can have salads or soups that have plenty of vegetable or lean meats. If you prefer to have dips, try beans dips or vegetable dips, spinach or artichoke or crab dips adding small amounts of low-fat cheese or sour cream. Serve them with multigrain crackers, or vegetables.
For your main dishes consider organic lean meats, turkey, Cornish game hens, lamb and lean cuts of red meats. Some families are moving to fish or vegetarian sources for the main dish.
For your sides to accompany your meal you have so many options -- green beans, collard greens, kale, Swiss chard, butternut or acorn squash, mushrooms, Brussel sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower.
If you are eating starches focus on root vegetables like carrots, sweet potatoes, creamed corn (light on the cream, heavy on the corn), roasted parsnips and red potatoes.
To finish off your meal, consider poached fruit like pairs, peaches or homemade fruit pies. They have much more fiber than cookies or cakes. You can also make pumpkin pies or sweet potato using agave or stevia as the sweetener.
Healthy Holiday Alternatives for Thanksgiving can give you a great meal and keep your blood sugars balanced at the same time. Just remember, don’t overeat all these yummy foods because overeating will ruin all of your good meal choices!
Live Vibrantly,
Dr. Dae
Dr. Daemon Jones
Dr. Dae's website: www.healthydaes.com
Dr. Dae's Bio:Dr. Daemon Jones is your diabetes reversal, hormones, metabolism and weight loss expert. Dr. Dae is a naturopathic doctor who treats patients all over the country using Skype and phone visits. Visit her or schedule a free consultation at her website www.HealthyDaes.org/
Sources:
Dr. Bernstein's diabetes solution: the complete guide to achieving normal blood sugars. Newly rev. and updated ed. New York: Little, Brown and Co., 2007. Print.
The Balanced Diet. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.
http://www.diabetes.org/for-media/2011/the-balanced-diet.html.
Reviewed November 26, 2013
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith