Recipe: Beef Vegetable Stir Fry

For this dish, you can substitute any vegetables you want. The sauce is very mild, no spice at all, and even though I was suspicious of the peanut butter, it actually added a lot to the flavor. If you ever try this at home I hope you enjoy it almost if not as much as I did.

Ingredients:
- 1 pound of sirloin steak, sliced thinly
- 1 cup of broccoli
- 1/2 cup of carrots, julienned
- 1/2 cup red pepper
- 1/2 cup onion
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
-  1 tsp brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp peanut butter

Materials
- bowl
- nonstick fry pan
- stove

Directions
1. Combine the peanut butter, the brown sugar, and the soy sauce into a bowl
2. Place the nonstick fry pan over medium heat on a stove, and saute the onions in the olive oil until the onions are carmelized
3. Add the sirloin strips and cook for two minutes
4. stir the rest of the vegetables and cook for another two minutes
5. pour the peanut butter mixture and mix. Cook for about another minute.
6. add more sugar if needed after tasting

All the ingredients

The sauce 

Onions caramelizing

Beef and rest of vegetables cooking

Sauce being poured onto dish

The dish plated

Works Cited
Trisler, Barbara P. The Ultimate Guide to Diabetes Type 1 & 2. Barbara P. Trisler, 2017. Print.

Maintaining a healthy weight as a diabetic

Maintaining a healthy weight is important for everyone. But maintaining healthy weight while having type 2 diabetes is even harder, especially when it comes to diets and exercises. although, please note, in the guide, it does say "Most diabetics are under the care of a Specialist at the hospital. They will arrange for you to see a dietitian to help you get your diet under control. They can also refer you to a physiotherapy team, and they will give you the correct "safe" exercises to undertake," (Trisler 80). This Information is written to simply help inform you of that journey.


BMI
BMI is a person's mass body index (the persons weight based on their height). This is what tells you if you are a healthy weight. To calculate your BMI, divide your weight (in kilograms) by your height (in meters) squared.

Ex: through conversions, I weigh currently (1/13/18) 56.56 kilograms (124.7 lbs.). I am currently 1.8 meters (5'10''). so 1.8m x 1.8m = 3.24 meters squared. So 56.56/3.24 = 17.45 BMI. So I am underweight compared to the chart.

Chart
Underweight                                         less than 18.5
Normal weight                                      18.5 to 24.9
Overweight                                            25 to 29.9
Obese                                                     30 or more

Diets
according to the guide, "85% of diabetics are obese or overweight and 70% of these are physically inactive" (Trisler 82). But, it is dangerous for an obese person to start straining exercise suddenly. To help diabetics lose weight, without dramatically increasing physical activity, they need to lower their calorie intake. The daily calorie consumption for an average person shouldn't exceed 3000 for males and 2500 for females. But no lower than 1800 for men and 1200 for women.

Physical Activity
More physical activity gives the person the ability to avoid making dramatic changes to the number of calories consumed. The more a person moves, the more calories are burned. Which results in loss of weight and "the bonus of endorphin release, which improves mood" (Trisler 83). Increasing physical activity should always be a gradual process, no matter if your diabetic or not. But if you cannot find the time for the gym or working out at home, here a re some things you can change up that help:
- Wash your clothes by hand
- Wash your car yourself
- play a physical activity with your children or friends

DISCLAIMER: This article provides information regarding the subject matter covered. However, information provided does NOT replace medical or professional advice. The author specifically disclaims any liability that is incurred from the use or application of the information.

Works Cited
Trisler, Barbara P. The Ultimate Guide to Diabetes Type 1 & 2. Barbara P. Trisler, 2017. Print.

Myths about Diabetes

There are many myths about diabetes. Some of those myths are definitely wrong and you should avoid believing. Here are the top 5 I found the most interesting and/or important to avoid:

Myth #1: Diabetes is only caused because one has ate too much sweet food
Diabetes is not always caused by to many sweets, it is also caused by a malfunction in the pancreas (type 1), or "hormonal imbalances that make your cells resistant  to insulin-type 2 diabetes" (Trisler 63). If you want to monitor or minimize risk of diabetes, you have to watch your carbohydrate intake, so things like bread, potatoes, and peas are just as bad as sweets like M&Ms or Almond Joys.

Myth #2: Type 2 only concerns overweight/obese people
It is a truth that overweight or obese people have a higher risk to diabetes, but that doesn't mean that they will have diabetes, people with thin and healthy physique also have the same risk. The only difference is the amount of risk.

Myth #3: Drinking lots of water helps prevent diabetes
If you continue to eat foods with extra sugar, you still may develop diabetes. Drinking lots of water will only help or prevent dehydration you get because of diabetes.

Myth #4: People who have high levels of glucose in the bloodstream, when tested, are diabetics
Not all people with high glucose levels in the bloodstream, when tested, have diabetes. High levels of glucose in the bloodstream can also be caused by stress, sleeplessness, or medicines that contain steroids. Although people who experience these occasions can be at higher risk to type 2 still.

Myth #5: Eating bitter melon can lower your blood sugar level
Bitter melon is a small melon that grows mostly in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. According to Barbra P. Trisler, "Bitter melon contains a substance called 'Charantin', which may help lower the blood glucose. However, research has shown that the amount of Charantin in bittercmelon is not sufficient enough to lower the blood glucose levels effectively. A diabetic would need to eat 600 grams to 1000 grams of bitter melon, to try and control their blood glucose for the day" (Trisler 70). This means that although bitter melon does in fact lower your glucose levels in the blood stream, a person with diabetes would need to eat about 3-5 cups of bitter melon per day to keep your levels balanced.

DISCLAIMER: This article provides information regarding the subject matter covered. However, information provided does NOT replace medical or professional advice. The author specifically disclaims any liability that is incurred from the use or application of the information.

Works Cited
Trisler, Barbara P. The Ultimate Guide to Diabetes Type 1 & 2. Barbara P. Trisler, 2017. Print.
American Diabetes Association. “Types of Carbohydrates.”. 2017. Website.

Do you have any myths you believe in? if so, be sure to comment below ones you have found or believe in.

Recipe: Marinated Chicken Tenders

As a diabetic,  it's important to keep your glucose and insulin levels even to each other. Recipes that are high in protein and low in fat and sugar are ideal.

Ingredients:
-  2 lbs of chicken strips
- 1 cup of pineapple juice
- 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar OR 1/2 cup of honey
- 1/3 cup of light soy sauce
- (optional) sliced chili peppers

Materials:
- skewers
- bowls
- measuring cups
- pans
- grill or broiler in oven

Directions:
1. Cut the chicken into strips and then skewer them.
2. Mix all the other ingredients in a bowl to make a marinade.
3. Put the skewers in a pan then pour the marinade over them, set the chicken aside for about an hour.
4. After marination, place the chicken skewers on a sprayed piece of foil on a cookie sheet if using oven, grill the chicken for 4-5 minutes on each side, until the chicken's juices run clear.
5. Serve with either brown rice, a green salad, quinoa, or couscous.

Ingredients You will need

Materials you will need

Chicken skewers marinating
  

Plated Dish

Works Cited:

Mayo Clinic. Metabolic Syndrome. Mayo Clinic, 2017. Mayoclinic.org. Web. 11/30/17.

Trisler, Barbara P. The Ultimate Guide to Diabetes Type 1 & 2. Barbara P. Trisler, 2017. Print.

Diabetes: What Is It?

When I was five-years-old, my dad had been diagnosed with diabetes. Ever since then my family's meal choices have changed, and blood sugar spikes or drops cause my dad to have to eat or take insulin. He also has to take insulin before every meal so his blood sugar doesn't spike in the first place. So I've done this research to help me and others better understand what diabetes is and how to better live with it. So lets start with the first question:

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is difficult to define as one thing because of all the different types. But when most people use this word they talk about "Diabetes Mellitus". Which is where the body cannot produce enough insulin or the body does not accept the insulin produced. So I will just cover the main types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2. The symptoms of these types are the same really, with a few rare ones thrown into the mix, but some the main symptoms of both types of diabetes is:

- Frequently having to go to the bathroom

- Excessive thirst

- Easily tired or exhausted

- Sleepy

- Extreme hunger

- Blurred vision

- Weight loss or difficulty gaining weight

What Is Type 1 Diabetes?

Type 1, also used to be known as "Juvenile Diabetes", is a chronic condition. this condition prevents the pancreas from creating enough insulin. This also causes the beta cells to not function. Beta cells are cells that recognize when even amounts of glucose are released into specific cells. So then the beta cells produce the insulin that regulate the glucose levels. Insulin is a hormone that is responsible for how your body stores and uses glucose. There are two different versions of type 1, these versions are Autoimmune Disease and Acquired Disease.

-Autoimmune Disease: Autoimmune Disease is a disorder that causes your immune system malfunctions. The immune system starts attacking good cells, thinking they're bad cells. This can cause a lot of harm to your organs and a variety of tissues. In this case the immune systems attack the beta cells, which then the beta cells cannot produce insulin, this makes the glucose levels in the bloodstream eventually toxic.

-Acquired Disease: Acquired Disease is rare. But when "acquired", it is usually because of pancreatic cancer or an accident that injures your pancreas. This is when the beta cell count is affected. The pancreas cannot produce enough beta cells to provide enough insulin for the body.

The treatment used for Type 1 is insulin injection and/or a pancreas transplant.

What Is Type 2 Diabetes?

Type 2 Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorder. Meaning a disease that causes high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and other things that increase rate of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Type 2 is when the beta cells/agent in cells may resist naturally produced insulin and glucose, causing the glucose to go back into the bloodstream until acted upon by medicine.

There is a great (and long, but worth it) analogy in a book I am reading called "The Ultimate Guide to Diabetes Type 1 & 2" by Barbara P. Trisler. The analogy of the cause of Type 2 is "Imagine a pizza delivery guy, who delivers pizza for free. Every minute, he delivers a pizza to your house. Perhaps, for the first dozen boxes, you still get excited, because pizza is great. However, after a few dozen more, you would tell the pizza guy to stop delivering.

If he continues to deliver, you will stop opening the door to him, so he would send the pizza to our neighbors. But, your neighbor has been receiving the same amount of pizza and refused to accept it. The pizza guy would have no choice but to find a place to deliver the pizza. The pizza may become rotten and toxic, before e can find a new recipient, and when they eventually receive it, it causes them harm" (Trisler 39).

That is Type 1 & 2. If you have any questions let me know in the comments. I would love your feedback!

DISCLAIMER: This article provides information regarding the subject matter covered. However, information provided does NOT replace medical or professional advice. The author specifically disclaims any liability that is incurred from the use or application of the information.

Works Cited:

Mayo Clinic. Metabolic Syndrome. Mayo Clinic, 2017. Mayoclinic.org. Web. 11/30/17.

Trisler, Barbara P. The Ultimate Guide to Diabetes Type 1 & 2. Barbara P. Trisler, 2017. Print.