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(More customer reviews)I usually don't write a review for books that have been well-reviewed by others. But there are so many different diabetes advice books available, and, like one of the previous reviewers, I have wasted money on several of them. So I wanted to add my voice in praise of this book. Backing her information with clearly explained scientific evidence, Ms. Hiser debunks many of the myths about type II (the "other", i.e. not juvenile) diabetes, particularly about food. Ms. Hiser's book has the clearest information about the insulin resistance, which is, in fact, what most early type II diabetics or pre, or borderline diabetics have. In other words, we make the insulin, but our cells do not respond to it as efficiently as they should. The key thing to know here is that if you, the patient, do not take control NOW to reduce that insulin resistance, eventually, you will burn out the cells in your pancreas that make insulin and then there really is no turning back. This is why it has been so emphasized that in its early stages, the outcome of type II diabetes is virtually completely in the hands of the patient, not the medical profession. Ms. Hiser puts together all the best scientific data specific to type II diabetes (which is quite different from type I, and therefore leads to considerable confusion), principally the "Mediterranean diet". She explains that counting carbohydrate and fat grams per se is not effective; it is the TYPE of fat and carbohydrate you eat that affects all the factors type II diabetics need to control (LDL, HDL and triglycerides). In fact, if you eat a lowfat diet consisting of refined (fiber-depleted) carbohydrates and hydrogenated (artificially saturated) fats, you are doing yourself more harm than good. Hydrogenated fats, aside from being "bad"/saturated fats, also contain trans fats, which are the absolute worst fats you could be putting into your body, in terms of diabetes, heart disease and cancer risks. So the diabetic diet advice books I have read whose menus consist of processed, fast and junk foods are not only worthless, they are dangerous.
Another positive about Ms. Hiser's book is that she emphasizes that her menu plans and recipes are only a starting off point. If the patient does not adapt the eating style to suit their preferences, then the "diet" is useless because the diet is meant to be a way of life from this point onward, not something you struggle to stick to for a few weeks and then go back to your old way of eating. Ms. Hiser also tackles a subject that most books gloss over or give outright misinformation about - including moderate alcohol in your diet. Contrary to other books that have the patient count a serving of alcohol as a fat exchange, Ms. Hiser presents the studies that show that one or two glasses or wine per day may actually reduce insulin resistance. Of course, more alcohol has the opposite effect, raising blood pressure, triglycerides and worsening the cholesterol profile. Exercise plays a role as important as diet in controlling type II diabetes, which Ms. Hiser emphasizes, but since that should go without saying, I won't address that in this review. So much media attention has been given to the "Mediterranean diet", I won't go into much detail, only to say, as Ms. Hiser does, the bottom line is to eat the "right" fats (monounsaturated) like olive and canola oils, to increase fiber and to control calories (by controlling portion sizes), especially if you need to lose weight, as most type II diabetics need to do. With this in mind, it is easy to adapt MANY of your favorite recipes (as I have done) very successfully, substituting canola oil and flaxseed meal for butter, and lowfat buttermilk or fat-free yogurt for milk and cream, for instance. The biggest challenge to those who, due to time constraints, currently eat mostly fast and processed food is the commitment to preparing your own food and snacks (her sample menus include three meals and two snacks a day). Ms. Hiser makes this as easy as possible by suggesting canned or frozen vegetables and fruits as substitutes for preparing absolutely everything from scratch. One of the key factors I personally have found in keeping eating satisfaction high is to use flavor boosters such as garlic, herbs or chilies in the recipes. And one bit of information I have not seen anywhere else is that one-quarter teaspoon of cinnamon has been reported as increasing insulin sensitivity! Such a painless experiment to try on your coffee or in your cereal! (Much easier for me than adapting to flaxseed....although I have, with the help of ground flaxseed meal). I have been on Ms. Hiser's plan for two weeks and have lost several pounds without suffering. I especially enjoy the herbed yogurt cheese and yogurt cream recipes with dinner or dessert (cinnamon baked apple with vanilla yogurt cream - yum!) . More importantly, the peripheral neuropathy pains in my hands and feet have much lessened. I await the results of my blood tests in four more weeks, but I feel sure that my glycosylated hemoglobin and cholesterol profile will be improved. Bravo and many thanks, Ms. Hiser for helping me more than any other source since I found out that I was borderline or pre-diabetic.
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The Other Diabetes: Living and Eating Well with Type 2 Diabetes
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