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Diabetics shouldn’t beat themselves up over cheating

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Only about 7 percent of the U.S. population has diabetes. Yet, minorities like us Latinos are nearly twice as likely to have diabetes than whites. These aren't my numbers. They come from the American Diabetes Association. The ADA says Latinos with diabetes are significantly more at risk for complications due to their diabetes.
That should be enough to get us to stop eating and drinking the stuff that makes our blood sugar spike, right? Well, not so much.
I have friends and relatives, who are younger than me, who not only don't adhere to a good diet, they just don't bother to check their blood levels at all. I'm not one to preach. I've only been diagnosed with diabetes for about three months. Sure, I check my blood every other day, watch what I eat - most of the time.
OK, I had some McDonalds' french fries last week. But it was a medium size, and I ended up giving about half to my kids, who didn't even end up eating them. Hello, wasteful, especially since they are so tasty!
Have I broken down and eaten four doughnuts or downed a six-pack (or more) of beer? Have I drank a regular soda or eaten a bowl of regular ice cream?
No. And I consider those all small victories for me. That doesn't mean I don't crave something like that every single day. Because, let me tell you, I do.
I still serve my kids ice cream, and yes, I'll grab a tiny spoonful while I'm at it. Heck, I've been eating that stuff for 44 years, and I'm supposed to just give it up?
It's just not possible. Even my doctor told me that! He said if I'm going to cheat, than to do so, just once a week.
Sure, easy for HIM to say! I'm trying NOT to cheat once a day at this point.
Then, we went to Legoland for a few days last month. Más temptation! And, we are planning a four-day jaunt to VEGAS this month. Yeah, that's going to be easy!
Even writing about food makes me want to eat something. So, I'll change the topic to exercise. Sure, the first month, I was good about walking after work. But then came our recent heat wave, and other regular family and personal commitments that helped me “forget” to walk.
Last weekend, I took out our treadmill, so I could walk at home. I checked it carefully for black widows and put it by the kids' pool for me to hop on Monday morning. Right! It's Thursday, and it's still standing there unused. Yes, I'm ashamed. But not that much. I'm human, and that's what we humans do. I promise I'll get on it this coming week - at least once!
OK, this is my public service for the week. I went ahead and poked my fingers nine times in one day - remember I hate needles - just to give you an inside look to my real diet.
Your blood sugar is supposed to fall into the 70-130 range when you have an empty stomach. Of course, it goes up and down accordingly during the day as you eat.
• 6:45 a.m. - 131 (Empty stomach/no medication)
• 8:45 a.m. - 157 (Ate wheat toast, took 500 mg of Metformin, drank coffee with Splenda at 7 a.m.)
• 10:45 a.m. - 127 (Drank 32 ounces of water at my desk)
• 12:45 p.m. - 159 (Ate two small chicken breasts, medium salad, Wheat Thin organic crackers, unsweetened ice tea from 11:45 to 12:15)
• 2:45 p.m. - 137 (Drank more ice tea)
• 5 p.m. - 129 (Ice tea and sunflower seeds - large handful)
• 7 p.m. - 153 (Ate dinner at 5:30, medium salad and piece of lasagna - the size of my fist, ice tea)
• 9 p.m. - 115 (Ice tea, diet fudgesicle - actually VERY tasty)
• 11 p.m. - 178 (Ice tea, regular size bag of popcorn at 9:30 p.m.)
OK, that popcorn was my undoing. I should have used the small bags my wife bought me. But I was so happy with my 115 reading, I splurged. See, that's where the cheating happened. You knew it was coming! Usually, I'll eat a 100-calorie snack bag before bedtime.
But, I have to admit the next morning, my blood was back to 129. Do, I always eat like this? Well, no. Sometimes I eat better, sometimes way worse. The point being that your blood is going to go up and go down. Don't be hard on yourself. If you slip a little bit, then you have to get back on that wagon. Remember, your life is not just your own. It also belongs to your spouse or significant other, your kids, your extended familia and even your friends. Do it for them!

Are you battling Diabetes or know someone who is? I'd love to hear your story. Go to our Web site: www.masbakersfield.com and create a free profile and you can begin posting stories, photos and blogs today.
  

Previous column can be seen here.