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'It's all about portion control' |
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Written by Barbara Quinn
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Friday, 16 March 2007 |
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This month — National Nutrition Month as designated by the American Dietetic Association — I'll answer as many letters from confused readers as I have room. Here is one that caught my eye:
Dear Mrs. Quinn:
My husband and I are in our 60s. We eat what I think is a normal and sensible diet, with lots of grains, fruits, vegetables, fish, small amounts of lean meat, and very little bread. My husband loves sweets and can't resist; I do not eat them at all but should I be found passed out, just put a Frito under my nose and you will be able to tell if I am still alive. We love to try the cuisine of other cultures and countries and our very favorite is Vietnamese. We exercise vigorously and regularly, five to six times a week.
Problem: My husband has type-2 diabetes and to my shock and dismay, my doctor told me my fasting blood sugar rate is creeping dangerously high. Our doctor suggested that both of us follow the South Beach diet eating plan. In reading through and following the diet plan, I could see that our biggest mistakes were eating pasta occasionally, potatoes sometimes, and white rice more often than brown.
However, many Asian people eat only white rice several times daily with very little else along with it. They also eat sugary tropical fruits such as pineapple and watermelon, which are huge no-no's on the South Beach eating plan.
So why aren't these people overweight with high blood sugar numbers careening toward diabetes? It can't be a matter of different lifestyle because many Asians in this country live the same kind of lives we all do here.
Does our heredity play the biggest part in how we use the food we eat? Or am I missing something? I hope you can shed some light on this perplexing problem.
Dear Reader:
Unfortunately, many Asians in this country —and in their own —are careening toward diabetes, just as we are. And much of it has to do with our change in lifestyle —too much food (fuel) for muscles that barely move.
Our genetic makeup does influence how fast we burn calories and where we store excess calories, however. Identical twins tend to weigh the same —even when they are reared apart in different families. Heredity and lifestyle both influence our risk for developing diabetes. "Genes load the gun and lifestyle pulls the trigger," some experts say.
Eating pasta or rice or tropical fruits does not cause diabetes (or obesity) any more than wearing green makes you Irish.
However, a bowl of rice three times a day "and very little else along with it" will affect a body way differently than a full-course dinner with a few cocktails and dessert that also includes a bowl of rice.
It's good to remember that one cup of pasta or rice contains the same number of calories and carbohydrates as 3 slices of bread. People who learn how to "count" carbohydrates are free to eat a variety of foods from all sources and still control their weight and their diabetes.
Your habit of trying cuisines from other cultures is very healthy in my opinion —from a nutritional as well as relational view. When you eat a wide variety of foods, you expose your body to a broad mixture of healthful nutrients.
Like one patient with diabetes told me, "I get it! It's all about portion control."
Amen.
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Barbara Quinn is a registered dietitian at the Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. E-mail her at
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