How a diabetes diagnosis changed my food habits

I grew up in Delhi – A city with a rich gastronomic history.

Indian foods are renowned for being high in sugar and drenched in ghee. They’re rich, indulging and delicious. However, most of them aren’t diabetes-friendly.

So, when I first got diagnosed with the disease, I was overnight hit with a reality check and had to make some serious changes to my food habits. I had to say goodbye to buttery aloo parathas and sugary desserts. Instead of enjoying late-night snacks of Maggi noodles, I had to munch on fox nuts and pumpkin seeds. And there weren’t any more late nights because I had to be mindful of my blood sugar levels and not allow anything to disrupt my circadian rhythm.

Because the thing about diabetes is, the day it strikes, your life changes forever. It gives you no options – You must immediately change your relationship with food.

The drastic change

The biggest change I had to make was  in the foods I was eating – I was given a long list of things I should avoid eating, which my GP insisted I follow religiously.

It felt like everything I loved about Indian cuisine was suddenly prohibited. And it was depressing, to say the least. Changing my diet overnight didn’t sit well with me, nor did eating boiled or bland food.

Being a lifelong foodie, I was faced with the hardest decision possible – Take steps to manage my disease or fall prey to it until it took over my body.

Reality was inescapable. I had to regularly check my blood sugar levels after meals, and following any cheat meal, I would instantly notice a dangerous spike in my levels. This was a real eye-opener, forcing me to review my lifestyle and improve my health.

Small mindset changes and their big impact on health

I knew I couldn’t just  stop eating certain foods instantly; it would be a journey into healthy eating.

Here are the small steps I took to stay on top of my health:

#1 – I started taking my tea and coffee without sugar

This is something only people who’ve always taken sugar with their caffeine can relate to, but never in my life had I taken tea or coffee without sugar.

I’d previously tried Stevia and other artificial sweeteners but hated their taste. So, knowing that wasn’t an option, I decided to start going without.

It was hard to begin with. But over time, I got used to it. And now, I even find my unsweetened chai sweet.

#2 – I said goodbye to Indian desserts and found healthier alternatives

No Indian celebration is complete without sweets, and I had to quickly find alternatives to keep my sweet tooth satisfied.

I started eating dates, dark chocolates, cherries, and other low glycemic index fruits.

Again, at first eliminating sweets from my diet seemed impossible. But after a few weeks it became a habit, and I stopped craving them altogether.

#3 – I eliminated fried foods from my diet

I love fried foods, and giving them up was painful, but it was a necessary evil.

So, I stopped eating samosas, pakoras, puris, and all other fried Indian snacks. And I replaced them with roasted peanuts, fox nuts, and homemade chaat with bean sprouts (which gave me some comfort).

#4 – I started reading food labels

Finally, I started reading the labels of all food types to learn more about their nutrition.

This was an eye-opener for me, as I was shocked to see how much sugar is in certain packaged foods. Even digestive biscuits and ‘healthy’ juices are packed with sugar!

Learning this and making it a habit to read nutrition labels before eating anything played a big part in helping keep my blood sugar levels in check.

Final thoughts

The changes I made to my diet to help manage my sugar aren’t massive. But they went a long way in helping me control my symptoms and manage my disease.

And it doesn’t mean you can’t indulge every once in a while. Just that consistency, balance and discipline will be your best friends when it comes to keeping your diabetes in check (take it from someone who’s lived a good part of their life with diabetes)!

So start small, don’t put too much pressure on yourself, and try to look for healthier alternatives.

It’s a long road. And the key is to make steady progress, not try and spring to the finish line.