This past Saturday, Art and I attended a TCOYD (Take Control Of Your Diabetes) Conference at the Hawaii Convention Center.
Wouldn't you know there was a torrential downpour that we had to drive through in order to get to the Convention Center.
The morning session began with visits to a lot of interesting booths where different companies gave samples and/or brochures of their products.
The opening session gave recognition to partners who were trying to keep loved ones healthy.
The joke was to remind care givers not to be too much of an aggressive Diabetes Police because it could cause some rebellious behavior. Who me? Rebel? Of course not.
Cellphone flood alerts kept going off during the session which had many of us worried.
There was one very hopeful statistic they mentioned.
Apparently there has been a LOT of progress in developing new medications and treatments for diabetes in the last 30 years.
These graphs show how complications from Severe Vision Loss, Amputations, Nephropathy, Fatal MIs has gone down substantially because of that progress.
A chef then did a demonstration to show us how to cook what was served to us for lunch.
Our elegant lunch menu was paprika roasted chicken on a bed of tomato, arugula and roasted eggplant quinoa (342 calories) along with almond panna cotta topped with mango and fresh berries (170 calories) for dessert.
Our carbs for lunch was just 42 grams which was amazing!
Servers kept us filled to the brim with tea and coffee.
It's hard to believe that registration for all this was just $15 a person (per couple) or $20 if coming alone.
Then came the afternoon sessions.
Art and I split up to attend different workshops.
He went to Microbiotics and Good Bacteria: How Your Gut Flora Affects Your Blood Sugars.
I went to Danger and Safer Foods: The Mystery Beneath. It was informative but too short.
Sigh.... I knew the mocha frappuccino wouldn't be good for me because it just tastes decadent. However, just to know that it contains 13-14 teaspoons of sugar confirmed that I should never have it.
Smoothies are also not good for me. I asked if it was still not good if I made it myself. They said it didn't make a difference.
Sigh....
I can do without scones, but I love smoothies.
The conference closed with Hawaii's own Frank De Lima. He is a comedian we have always loved and he kept us in stitches for over half an hour with his hilarious insights into our diverse Hawaiian culture. Frank sent us on our way with a sweet taste to our memories of a wonderful day.
When we left the convention center, the sun was shining again and traffic was moving smoothly. Oh yes! All in all, an excellent day.... even if I can't have a mocha frappuccino.
The morning session began with visits to a lot of interesting booths where different companies gave samples and/or brochures of their products.
The opening session gave recognition to partners who were trying to keep loved ones healthy.
The joke was to remind care givers not to be too much of an aggressive Diabetes Police because it could cause some rebellious behavior. Who me? Rebel? Of course not.
Cellphone flood alerts kept going off during the session which had many of us worried.
There was one very hopeful statistic they mentioned.
Apparently there has been a LOT of progress in developing new medications and treatments for diabetes in the last 30 years.
These graphs show how complications from Severe Vision Loss, Amputations, Nephropathy, Fatal MIs has gone down substantially because of that progress.
A chef then did a demonstration to show us how to cook what was served to us for lunch.
Our elegant lunch menu was paprika roasted chicken on a bed of tomato, arugula and roasted eggplant quinoa (342 calories) along with almond panna cotta topped with mango and fresh berries (170 calories) for dessert.
Our carbs for lunch was just 42 grams which was amazing!
Servers kept us filled to the brim with tea and coffee.
It's hard to believe that registration for all this was just $15 a person (per couple) or $20 if coming alone.
Then came the afternoon sessions.
Art and I split up to attend different workshops.
He went to Microbiotics and Good Bacteria: How Your Gut Flora Affects Your Blood Sugars.
I went to Danger and Safer Foods: The Mystery Beneath. It was informative but too short.
Sigh.... I knew the mocha frappuccino wouldn't be good for me because it just tastes decadent. However, just to know that it contains 13-14 teaspoons of sugar confirmed that I should never have it.
Smoothies are also not good for me. I asked if it was still not good if I made it myself. They said it didn't make a difference.
Sigh....
I can do without scones, but I love smoothies.
The conference closed with Hawaii's own Frank De Lima. He is a comedian we have always loved and he kept us in stitches for over half an hour with his hilarious insights into our diverse Hawaiian culture. Frank sent us on our way with a sweet taste to our memories of a wonderful day.
When we left the convention center, the sun was shining again and traffic was moving smoothly. Oh yes! All in all, an excellent day.... even if I can't have a mocha frappuccino.
You are so tiny to have diabetes. My husband was 5 foot 10 1/2 inches tall and weighed 157 pounds and he developed diabetes. I usually think of obese people getting diabetes. My sister also was relatively slim and she developed diabetes too. Later she also developed Alzheimers and died of that at 79.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you are getting your diabetes under control, Kay. I have a friend who still eats and drinks what he pleases and has graduated from pills to injections, and he still doesn't seem to manage his food intake very much. I worry about him. Wish we had something like that program here, I would drag him to it. :-)
ReplyDeleteI am diabetic and was happy to see the chart of complications. You might want to read Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution. He is much more mainstream now. And his very low carb diet is easy once you get used to it.
ReplyDeleteYou guys go everywhere. What a full program for $15. The meal looked delicious. I am so happy to see the progress that has been made because I lost a valuable friend 30 years ago to diabetes after he went through multiple amputations. It was sad to see.
ReplyDeleteGood for you Kay! I think there is a lot of positive power in knowing that we can control our health, at least to some extent. Diabetes is one of those sneaky diseases (like heart disease) where you can't really "see" the damage, until the unfortunate consequences occur. You have found the key to controlling diabetes - knowledge!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this most interesting and educational seminar!
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice event. I keep giving up food items and habits but the seems to always be something I need to work on and of course you have to remain on guard not to slip back. My biggest challenge was ice cream and 'real' Dr Pepper.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a positive and informative day.
ReplyDeleteI wish you could have stuck me in your pocket and taken me along,.
ReplyDeleteHoney:think of fruit juice as a heavy syrup. We should NEVER drink it straight. BUT you can water it down, even blend in some fruit, some plain greek yougurt... you get the idea! A splash of watered juice will eventually satisfy you and a smoothy will taste way too sweet if you taste it later. Trust me. :)
ReplyDeleteI have been told I'm pre-D and doing all I can to prevent: walking morning on treadmill @ 3 mile per hour on 3 incline. Afternoon stroll in the sun. NO sweets! (including prunes I was addicted to). Oatmeal in the morning (made from rolled organic oats from down to earth: NOT packaged stuff which ALWAYS has sugar and preservatives. I'll let you know how I'm doing. YES!great new meds to try before insulin! Thaanks for the reassurng chart of lowered complications! WhewW Good luck
DeleteSorry you have to give up some favorites, but I can guarantee you will find new ones. Here's to better health through education and a willingness to change!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting to read this and see your photo's.
ReplyDeleteAs you probably know my husband Eddie is a Type 2 diabetic, our daily meal plans are kept to no more than 50 carbs per day (often less. We eat low carb, higher healthy fats and moderate protein. In the almost nine years now he has been diabetic, since changing to the LCHF lifestyle, his blood sugar numbers have stayed non diabetic and his only medication is two 500mg Metformin tablets per day.
What we always say is ... if you ask a six year old child would you eat food I gave you if it made you ill? The obvious answer is no ... need I say more?
Our health is so important
All the best Jan
The whole hidden sugar thing just frosts me. Divide grams on the package by 4 and that's how many teaspoons of sugar are going in. I had to ban smoothies. My grandchildren's mother is a nurse and she endorses smoothies. She also weighs 400 pounds. I can't make the kids understand, so I just forbid them. The closer to the ground we eat, the better off. It's this simple--eat the apple, not the juice.
ReplyDeleteWhat a bargain. A meal, entertainment and education all for $15 a head. Wow. Goodness, are even green smoothies bad? Must be the yogurt.
ReplyDeleteThis week I had half a cheesecake slice for valentines and checked my blood sugar and it was skyhigh. Enough motivation to not do that again. I like to snack on sugar free chocolates they are tasty and help me not to feel so deprived. Visited my doctor today and he said my numbers for blood sugar and high blooc pressure are good for a 76 year old. Don't know how I got that old so quickly...lol!
ReplyDeleteWow! Half a slice did it? I'd better start checking my glucose more diligently. I seemed to be doing pretty well.
DeleteGuess I'm lucky that my diabetes is controllable, even reversible, if I continue to lose weight which I am naturally doing. Unfortunately there are folks like you whom the body just can't control the insulin, like Type 1 diabetes. Everyone is different and it's all dependent on the genetics we inherited and have no control over. I have a seafood allergy and I haven't touched shrimp and crab - my total faves - for 20 years now. If I do, I die. So think of your smoothies that way. Death. Terrible but for you that's what it is. BB
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice event! Frank DeLima is SO funny. He is one of the very few comedians who is positive, isn't mean (except I wonder if he did political jokes?) and can make us laugh at ourselves.
ReplyDeleteTreat yourself once in a while, without guilt or regret. Maybe sprinkling some cinnamon powder on your frappuccino will help stabilize the sugar you ingest.
Live long, live healthy, be happy.
Diabetics need all the help they can get to do well in combatting it.
ReplyDeleteI hope they cure it one day
ReplyDeleteThat WAS a lot for a little price. Lots for you to think about.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your note about Diane. I posted a paragraph from her daughter today...if you haven't seen it.
ReplyDeleteMore on Diane: "GOOD DIANE NEWS from her daughter. She can swallow water from a sponge and can move her right leg a little. Both her eyes are now open. She's in the Acute Stroke Unit, so she is now out of ICU. She is at George Washington University Hospital in the District of Columbia if anyone is wanting to send flowers"
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for keeping us posted, Mage. This is so scary.
DeleteWhat a helpful post, Kay. It is so full of valuable information on diabetes. Thank you for sharing it. I learned a lot here that will help me continue to manage my mama’s diabetes the right way. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteWhy not smoothies, if you use plain yogurt? Are you not supposed to eat berries, kiwis, etc? I also put chia seeds and flax seed in mine, both of which are supposed to be good for diabetics, I think.
ReplyDeleteI asked them and she said it doesn't matter. There's just a lot of fruit you're having all at once. I have no idea.
DeleteI wonder what they call 'a lot.' My smoothie has 1/2 c blueberries and 1 kiwi. Doesn't seem like too much. Plus, the protein in the yogurt would balance it, I think.
DeleteI have managed not to cross the line into diabetes, but I am now confronted with cancer.
ReplyDelete