Need all the suggestions and recipes I can get

[Inspector Vol]

for low carb or diabetic diets. Need them for meals and desserts.

I am back on the weight loss wagon. I do not have diabetes as I understand it but I need to get my weight and diet in order or I will be. Overall sugar is good but my body is making more insulin than normal to keep it down. Got to get it under control or I will wear out my insulin producers and then I will have a problem.

[VinnieVOL]

Brazeiros if you're into the Atkins diet.  :-)

[BigOrange Maniac]

I can't really give you any recipes (I'm a terrible cook   ), but I will offer a couple of things I've learned, which your doctor may have already told you. I'm insulin-dependent and probably always will be, but I have found ways to reduce my insulin resistance (which is the problem that eventually leads from pre-diabetes to type II diabetes), which helps tremendously: one is daily exercise. I don't mean just walking for 30 minutes; I mean rigorous exercise. My schedule doesn't allow it every day, but if I do hard work outside - cutting brush, etc. - or do a lot of hiking in our rough terrain here, I can actually eat whatever I want to eat with no ill effects, even without insulin...which is pretty remarkable considering that without routine exercise a leaf of lettuce will cause my blood glucose to spike. Another is caffeine. Nutritionists will tell you that caffeine doesn't have an impact on blood glucose. But I read a study in the New York Times that discovered the equivalent of the caffeine in a cup of coffee raises insulin resistance by 64%. I cut out all caffeine, and it made a marked difference for me. I used to struggle to keep my blood glucose in check even with insulin injections. By cutting out all caffeine, I can keep it within the guidelines recommended by the ADA for "strict" control.

Good luck to you, though. Low-carb is hard to do and stick with.

[Stogie Vol]

Check out Nature's Way Metabolic Reset protein shakes. They are sugar-free, of course, and make for a good breakfast or occasional meal replacement. They are high in fiber and protein. It comes in chocolate, vanilla and strawberry like all the other ones.  I did the research and found this to be a good choice if you are inclined to protein shakes as an alternative.

[ReVOLver]

Eat real food and cut the grains and starches out of your diet.

If God made it, eat it as long as it's not fried, unless it's a grain or starch.

That'll be $250.

[Jedi Master]

Commit to a vegan diet for two months, and it will significantly change your health for the better.  Change that is measurable and objective.   And you will feel much better as well. 

Highly recommended:
1. Rent and watch the documentary movie "Forks over Knives" so you understand what and why you are committing to this diet (i.e., lifestyle). 
2. Google the "Esselstyn Diet", and commit to it for 2 months.

I've done this since Labor Day, and it is the best thing I've ever did.  My blood work results (cholesterol and glucose, etc) were average to good before the diet, but my blood results post-Esseltyn have been impressive.  This will change your life. 

[BigOrange Maniac]

Commit to a vegan diet for two months, and it will significantly change your health for the better.  Change that is measurable and objective.   And you will feel much better as well.  

Highly recommended:
1. Rent and watch the documentary movie "Forks over Knives" so you understand what and why you are committing to this diet (i.e., lifestyle).  
2. Google the "Esselstyn Diet", and commit to it for 2 months.

I've done this since Labor Day, and it is the best thing I've ever did.  My blood work results (cholesterol and glucose, etc) were average to good before the diet, but my blood results post-Esseltyn have been impressive.  This will change your life.  

I'm certainly no dietician but I would be willing to bet that if you just cut all the processed foods out but kept the meat, you would accomplish the same thing.

My dad was on medication for high triglycerides (a top
marker for heart disease risk, incidentally). He went on a strict low-carb, high-fat diet after reading a book advocating it. Every morning he wakes up and fixes a pot of coffee and an entire pound of bacon. I told him he was nuts. When he went back for a checkup, his triglycerides were down dramatically.

He said that proves that it's the carbs, not fat or cholesterol, that's bad for you.

I was still skeptical, but... I have been on medication for high blood pressure since I was in high school (when I was a trim and fit wide receiver). More recently, I had to take meds for high triglycerides. My cholesterol was creeping up, too. After I cut out most carbs (and all processed foods), I began consuming copious amounts of fat bc I can't stand eating broccoli and brusell sprouts every meal. My blood pressure is perfect for the first time in 15 years now, even without meds, and my cholesterol and triglyceride numbers are good as well.

I am now a believer.

[Great Vols of Fire]

I was diagnosed with Type II (more insulin resistant than Type II) a couple of years ago and attended a class at The Diabetes Store here.  I was tearing my hair out after reading Atkins and all the other low-carb diets.  These books offer a variety of menus but they rely on the use of fresh (vs. frozen or canned) ingredients, and I would have been spending a lot of money and throwing out stuff because it would go bad before I was able to use it all.  And frankly, I just didn't have the time to fix myself a mushroom frittata or some other such thing in the morning.

The class simplified everything for me -- no more than 15 total carbs per meal for 45 total carbs per day, and don't "save up" carbs for special occasions...if you are going out to dinner and want to indulge, don't skip lunch thinking you can have those extra carbs at dinner.  The idea is to maintain a level blood glucose reading.  It's the ups and downs that are unhealthy.  They said we can eat anything we want as long as we keep within the 15 carbs per meal guideline.  The instructor held up a plastic chicken breast, then a paper-thin sliver of chocolate cake and said it's our choice -- would we rather have a good-sized piece of chicken, or a sliver of cake?

Learn to read labels and know the amount of "effective" carbs.  If a food item has more than 5 grams of fiber per serving, then subtract the number of fiber grams from the number of carb grams -- that's your "effective" carb number.
 
Get a blood glucose monitor and check your blood sugar randomly three or four times a week -- once first thing in the morning, then within an hour after a meal.  If you have an iPhone, there's an app called "Glucose Buddy" (free!).  You can log in your readings and it graphs them for you.

Exercise, exercise, exercise.  I walked on my treadmill at home every morning, then again after noon at work (I'm lucky that the building my office is in has a fitness center).

I lost about 50 pounds and got my blood sugar (which was borderline high) well under control.  I slacked off toward the end of the year (holidays!) and over the course of a few months, gained back about 20.  Blood sugar is still in acceptable range but I need to get back to losing the weight.

[ReVOLver]

I'm certainly no dietician but I would be willing to bet that if you just cut all the processed foods out but kept the meat, you would accomplish the same thing.

My dad was on medication for high triglycerides (a top
marker for heart disease risk, incidentally). He went on a strict low-carb, high-fat diet after reading a book advocating it. Every morning he wakes up and fixes a pot of coffee and an entire pound of bacon. I told him he was nuts. When he went back for a checkup, his triglycerides were down dramatically.

He said that proves that it's the carbs, not fat or cholesterol, that's bad for you.

I was still skeptical, but... I have been on medication for high blood pressure since I was in high school (when I was a trim and fit wide receiver). More recently, I had to take meds for high triglycerides. My cholesterol was creeping up, too. After I cut out most carbs (and all processed foods), I began consuming copious amounts of fat bc I can't stand eating broccoli and brusell sprouts every meal. My blood pressure is perfect for the first time in 15 years now, even without meds, and my cholesterol and triglyceride numbers are good as well.

I am now a believer.

See my post above. My numbers dropped ridiculously by eating real food and exercising.