How A Dietitian Can Assist With Diabetes

9 November 2021
|In Blog, Dietitian, Healthy Recipes, Men's Health, NDIS, Telehealth, Women’s Health
|By Marketing Team

Dietitian cutting an array of fruit

TRS Dietitians are qualified to deal with an array of conditions from cardiovascular disease and cancers to gastrointestinal diseases and diabetes. Our team also use their special interests to assist with eating disorders, weight loss/ gain, IBS, PCOS, and much much more.

Specifically, we want to inform you Total Rehab Solution Dietitians can treat Diabetes and how they can be an integral part of the health and wellbeing journey when managing Diabetes.

How a Dietitian can assist with Diabetes:

  • Dietitians can improve blood sugar level control
  • Our Dietitians provide advice on meal timing and portion sizes to help manage blood sugar levels
  • We provide education on what carbohydrates are, their different types, and which ones are best for people with diabetes
  • We help to manage other health conditions that may affect diabetes
  • Dietitians can help reduce the risk of complications from diabetes
  • We can teach people what a carbohydrate portion looks like and how to “carb count” to help better manage blood sugar levels
  • Dietitians can create plans tailored to individual needs, lifestyle and any other medical history a person might have
  • We can help with diet management with insulin therapy

Misconceptions of Diabetes and the role food plays with the condition

???? Fruit is not bad for people with diabetes

???? You don’t need to cut out carbs or go low carb to manage your diabetes – life would be boring without bread and pasta!

So how do food and Diabetes work?

  • When we eat food that has carbs in it, the carbs are broken down into individual sugars which are absorbed into our blood. These sugars need to go into our cells to give us the energy we need to function.
  • But, for people with diabetes, these sugars might not go into our cells as easily as in someone that does not have diabetes.
  • The sugar needs a “key” to unlock the cells and let them in. This key is a hormone called insulin.
  • People with type 2 diabetes still have insulin, but it doesn’t work as well in their bodies compared to someone without diabetes.
  • People with type 1 diabetes aren’t able to produce insulin (or can’t produce enough to do its intended job) so need to get this from medications to make sure that carbs can be absorbed into their cells.
  • We don’t want lots of sugars sitting in the blood as this can lead to problems in the long run that could otherwise be avoided with appropriate diet, exercise and/or medication management.
  • Eating a balanced diet with regular carbohydrate intake can help manage diabetes and avoid hyperglycaemia or hypoglycaemia – speak to a dietitian for individual advice

5x easy ways to maintain healthy blood sugar levels through nutrition

  1. Have regular meals – breakfast, lunch and dinner with small snacks in between to keep blood sugar levels stable
  2. Choose wholemeal and wholegrain bread, pasta, rice and cereals. They don’t spike blood sugars as much as white bread, pasta, rice and cereals
  3. Have balanced meals that include a source of protein, a source of carbohydrates, and vegetables
  4. Be mindful of meal and portion sizes
  5. Spread carbohydrate intake across the day to avoid blood sugar level spikes

If you or someone you know may need help with managing their Diabetes get in contact with the Total Rehab Solutions Team and see how our Dietitian Team can help you! ????

???? admin@totalrehabsolutions.com.au

???? 1300 685 046

 

Written By, Dietitian (APD) Caitlin Follett