Diabetes, Cancer, Me And My Diet

A few days ago, my husband came back from work and told me an acquaintance of his had passed away in his sleep. Another one suffered from stroke. Last month a hotel staff that he used to know died because of diabetes. All of them suffered from diabetes.

I am diabetic too. I had it since late 2010. My diabetes was most probably hereditary. My grandma had it. My grandpa had it. Both my parents had it too. I was never a sweet tooth person. If somebody were to bring me a box of chocolate, it could well be frozen inside my fridge for some time. The children were not really into it too. We all ate chocolate but once in a while. Even ice cream. We rarely indulge ourselves in this all time favourite except for Mr Hubby. He simply loves it. Sara & Sophie hardly drank carbonated drinks. I did years ago. But I had got rid of that habit a few years ago.
So, when I was told that I have diabetes, it took a while for me to gulp the news down.

It is compulsory for a diabetic person to watch their daily dietary. I remember my late dad, he used to love this mung bean dessert, very sweet and creamy. Whenever he had the crave for this dessrt, my mom would cook for him. Since he was a diabetic patient, my mom had lessened out the amount of sugar as per doctor's  instruction. He grumbled something like, "As long as we can eat, we should eat it. If we were to die, we will die no matter where we are. So, my mom,whether she liked it or not, had to cook the same way as before. I personally think, the older generation or the generation prior to us loved sweet food.

After the news of my diabetes, I was told I had gallstone. The pain was unbearable so I agreed to go for an operation. That was two years ago. Within a few months after that, I was shook with the news of breast cancer. And while under going chemotherapy treatment, I had to endure another unbearable pain, I had shingles. And it lasts about a week but the pain was more than that. I watched one documentary on T.V, it says at times the pain of shingles can be more that of a labour pain. I second to that.  

If only I am a doctor., I could be a damn good doctor, considering all kind of sicknesses and diseases that I had gone through.
What I am trying to say is how I watch my daily diet. Well, I was never good in dieting, ever! But this time around, I had to. It's for my own good. I received many words of encouragement from my well-meant friends and acquaintances.

What I do was, I read all kind of health related news be it from watching it in T.V, radio, google, magazines or newspaper, I read it all. From there, I do my own conclusion and pick the best to suit my way.
Lets see, my daily fluid source comes from hot Milo (chocolate) and just plain water. I drink it without cream or sugar. My afternoon tea will be the same, without sugar. But there are times, especially for diabetic person, we had this cravings for sweet things every now and then. When I had that cravings for sweet iced-tea, I would make a pitcher full of iced-tea with normal count of sugar. Since I can't drink the way normal people do, I'd pour maybe about a quarter of the glass , then mixed it with a half glass of plain water. So I got a little taste of iced tea. If any one were to drink my drinks, they could have just throw it away. As for me, I've gotten use to it already by now.

The same goes for my breakfast, I don't take the Malaysian favourite Nasi Lemak (rice cooked in coconut cream) or noodles or anything that is too heavy for me. I will usually have two piece of currypuffs (look up malaysian currypuff in one of my posts if you don't have the idea of how it looks like) and one smal piece of another malay delicacies. That's all for my breakfast.

After breakfast, I don't go for in between snacks or tea until lunch. I use only Basmathi rice now at home. It's because this rice is low in sugar level. Too much of dairy products are also not advisable for the diabetic. I had always love these fatty creamy food.
Now, it has all become a memory (being melodramatic).

My dinner is even simpler. I eat whatever leftover there is to eat. Maybe a slice or two of sandwich loaf goes with some chicken curry or prawn sambal. Or some fried noodle (pad thai). Noodles, any type of noodles has become a favourite of mine, but still I can't indulge much more than I supposed to. Or I'd bake myself a paratha-like bread and dippped in curry. Heavenly!

I used to weigh about 79 or 80kg a couple of years ago. After diagnosed with diabetes, I noticed I am losing weight slightly. I feared the cancer was back again. I quickly consulted my doctor and after some blood test and what not, he told me it's natural that I am losing weight since I watch my food and keep sugar away as much as I can. Phew! That's a big relief. The culprit of all the diseases comes from diabetes. We all should watch what we eat in order to keep away all other diseases especially the hypertension, kidney problem and cardiovascular disease.
I am trying my very best to stay healthy and keep away all other unwelcome diseases. My weight now is at 69kg.

I know it's tough to refrain ourselves from all those mouth-watering food being laid right in front of our eyes day in day out. But we had to be strong for our own sake. Fruits are good for diabetic person but we still can't over do it. Sweet fruits like papaya, watermelon, banana and many others are to be taken in a small portion.

If I were to sum up what is my daily consumption, it will come to this : breakfast; 2 currypuffs and a piece of malay delicacies. Lunch; a little rice with some malay salad and fish (fish is my favourite, thank god I can still take this without much reservation) and dinner with 2 slices of bread or rice noodles or paratha roti.

I don't blame people with diabetes and high blood pressure  if they can't control the food temptations. I truly understand them. No sweet taste, no salty taste no greasy fries or burgers. That's tough. You think everybody can sit and enjoy a selection of steamed food all the time? Or green vegetables with boiled fish every time? Whoever can follow the regime, he or she is truly a saint.
Now you know why I am slowly losing weight, which is a good thing if I were to look on the bright side.

Moral of the story, we had to be positively strong mentally and physically. Feast upon the food temptations with our eyes only not by chewing them. Watch what we eat and hopefully we will be healthy till the ripe old age.

Cheers!
Rose
13th.Oct '13