Helping Patients Eat Healthy with the Diabetes Cookbook

Many patients may not know where to start when they are told they must change their eating habits to help them reach a healthy weight. They also may not be aware that reaching and maintaining a healthy weight plays a critical role in helping them work towards their diabetes goals.

What Can You Do to Help?

Discuss with your patients the challenges they face in adjusting their diet and set goals that are achievable. Share examples of healthy eating and simple recipes to help get patients started. The Diabetes Cookbook and many other online resources contain healthy recipe ideas.

The more patients know about how good eating habits can help keep their blood glucose within normal range and slow down the progression of diabetes, the more likely they are to be motivated to eat healthy. Direct patients to the Nutrition Know-how brochure to help them learn about the basics of nutrition and healthy eating.

You can also teach patients how maintaining a healthy weight can help them control their blood glucose and provide them with simple ways to start incorporating daily physical activity into their lives.

Encourage your patients to make incremental changes in their eating habits and set reachable goals to eat healthier.

Traditional recipes can be modified to make them healthier. See the Healthy Food Swaps suggested by the American Diabetes Association. Ingredient substitutions can be made one at a time instead of all at once, making the transition easier for patients.

The Diabetes Cookbook contains several easy recipes that you can download and print for your patients to take home and try. The Cookbook is available in both English and Spanish.