We’ve put together these tips to support you in keeping well and managing diabetes while you’re at home, whether you're self-isolating or know someone who is.
We know that this advice may mean you have to completely change your way of life, and we know that may be daunting. We want you to know that we’re right here with you at this difficult time.Whether you’re looking for ways to keep active in your home, easy recipe ideas, or want to know how to connect with others – we’ve got you covered. And if you’d like to share your own tips or stories, we’d love to hear from you so please get in touch.
Updates on coronavirus (COVID-19) and diabetes
We’re working hard to always get you the most up-to-date information and latest news from the government. Here is our latest guidance on coronavirus for people with diabetes.Your emotional wellbeing
Being asked to stay at home or avoid other people is a difficult thing to do. But having diabetes to think about as well as everything else in life can feel overwhelming. Stress can affect your blood sugar levels, so we’ve got some useful advice to help you manage all sorts of emotions including stress.The mental health charity Mind have put together some useful tips too, on taking care of your mental health while staying at home.
What to eat when you’re stuck at home
Eating a variety of healthy foods is important for everyone’s overall health and wellbeing. And though there’s no specific food or supplement that can prevent you from catching coronavirus, eating a well-balanced diet can help boost your immune system to fight infections if you’re healthy. Healthy eating can help you manage your diabetes, as well as help you reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.Avoiding snacking
Sometimes we don’t feel like eating certain foods. Sometimes we just snack because we’re bored or stressed. But this can make you feel worse in the long run, and impact your diabetes. We’ve got information to help you tackle these sorts of feelings about food, like starting a food diary or simply getting into more of a routine.To help with keeping a routine, try to have fairly structured meal times.
And at this difficult time, you may struggle to get the kinds of foods you prefer and usually eat. Try not to worry if you’re having to eat a bit differently, just eat healthy food as much as possible and be mindful of portion sizes. We’re here to help you come up with new ideas of what to cook from your store cupboard and give you suggestions on adjusting recipes using the ingredients you have.
If you have coeliac disease and are having trouble getting hold of your usual gluten-free food, remember that many foods are naturally gluten free. Read about coeliac disease and diabetes.
Shopping hacks
At this time your food shopping trips should be just for essentials, so be sure to take a list with you to help stock up on essentials and avoid impulse buys.If you’re finding it hard to get your usual foods, it can be frustrating, but you could use it as an opportunity to try something new. For example, you could get wraps, wholegrain muffins or crumpets instead of your usual loaf of bread. All of these freeze well and topped with tomato puree, plenty of veggies and a little grated mature reduced fat cheese make great alternative pizzas.
Try these other food hacks:
- Grains - If the shop is out of instant rice, why not swap it with couscous or brown rice, which you can pair with curries or stews. They also contain more fibre, which is essential for digestive health and can help you to keep your blood glucose and cholesterol under control.
- Vegetables - Why not try frozen veg you would not normally buy or and tinned veg in water, these both work well in pasta, stew and soup dishes
- Fruit - if you’re having trouble getting hold of fresh or tinned fruit in natural juice, have a look for frozen fruit, or alternatively if all you can find is fruit in syrup you can simply drain and rinse this before use. They will still count towards your five-a-day.
- Eggs - if you’re having trouble finding your usual eggs, try swapping with egg whites in cartons.
- Pasta sauce - if you can’t find any in stores, why not try making your own? Simply dry fry an onion, soften it with a little water, and add tinned tomatoes and any dried herbs you have to hand. If you don’t have tinned tomatoes try using sundried tomatoes or chopped fresh tomatoes.
Easy recipes
Porridge
Start your day at home with this healthy porridge recipe. Any berries and nuts would work well here and use whatever milk you have available. If you can, try to go for unsweetened versions. Oats are high in fibre and contain a specific type of soluble fibre called beta-glucan which can help regulate cholesterol.
Noodles
This noodle dish is great for all the family and really easy to make. You can use whatever veg you have in the freezer. Perfect for lunch or dinner. This recipe uses chicken, but you could swap for oily fish, or a vegetarian alternative. Try not to use red or processed meat as these have links with heart problems and cancers. With fresh vegetables difficult to get hold of, don’t overlook any veg that you might normally put in your compost bin, such as any that might be starting to wilt.Bean stew
Try this bean stew for dinner. Any combination of beans and lentils would work for this recipe, just check the cooking instructions. If you can’t find tinned beans, see if dried ones are available and follow the instructions on the packet. This might make the stew slightly more time consuming to make, but cooking can be a great way to pass the time.You can make use of the herbs and spices you have in the cupboard for this recipe. Paprika will work fine if you don’t have chilli, or use a pinch of thyme or rosemary in place of oregano. This recipe contains lots of fibre which can be helpful in managing diabetes as it doesn’t affect blood sugars levels too much. Slow cookers are great to make stews and soups and can help stretch out ingredients. If you don’t have one a casserole dish or saucepan should do the trick.
Thai chicken stir fry
This Thai chicken stir fry is another great dinner option. Stir fries are an ideal way to help you get your five-a-day, and you can add in whatever you have to hand. Ordinary onions will work fine for this recipe if you don’t have spring onions, and you could swap chicken out with pork, beef, prawns or salmon. The basil adds flavour, but isn’t essential to the dish.Blackberry and apple cake
Looking for a fun activity to do with your kids? You could try baking this delicious blackberry and apple cake. You could even turn baking into a science and geography lesson with the kids, and look on the internet and find out why ingredients change when they are cooked or combined together and where the ingredients come from. Any berries would work for this recipe, fresh or frozen, or if you can’t find anything you could simply use extra apple. You could even use dried fruit if that’s what you’ve got to hand. This recipe contains minimal free sugars which can be helpful for managing blood sugars.And the good news is that you can freeze most things. It’s useful to do this so you always have food to hand if canned or frozen food runs low in your local shop. It’s also a great way to make the most of your food, and your money. Get our tips on freezing food.
You’ve also been asking us about diabetes and alcohol too, like how it affects your blood sugars. Get all the facts about alcohol and diabetes.
You can also get regular food tips and advice arriving straight in your inbox with our monthly Enjoy Food newsletter.
Keeping active at home
Getting active has so many benefits if you have diabetes or if you’re at risk of type 2 diabetes. And physical and mental health often affect one another. While we’re stuck inside, we can still find ways to get active and keep moving that much more.We’ve got lots of info on how exercise can affect blood sugars too, so you can keep an eye on any highs and lows. There isn’t one type of activity that’s best for everyone with diabetes. It’s about finding what works for you and depends on lots of things, like what you enjoy and how much room you have in your living room.
Getting active can be anything that gets you moving more and – even better – something that increases your heart rate.
How about:
- Hoovering the house and cleaning all the windows
- A spot of DIY– time to tackle that shelf you’ve been putting off
- Gardening – if you have a garden. If you don’t, do you have any house plants you can water, prune and re-pot while standing up?
If you need to start off at an easier pace, try standing during a TV advert. If you can manage it, work towards standing for the whole advert break, then to walking on the spot during adverts. You can mix this up by doing stretches instead, or jogging on the spot while the ads are on. This will help you get your steps up.
Everyone’s different, and some people find video workouts helpful to keep them motivated and follow a routine.
There are lots to choose from, but the NHS fitness studio might be a good place to start. Whether you’re into aerobics, Pilates, even belly dancing – there are plenty of options for beginners and experts.
But remember to warm your body up first, try this warm-up video from the NHS.
Staying connected with others can help with both your physical and mental health. The online workouts we’ve suggested could be done with family and friends through a webcam or an App.
Checking your feet
Having diabetes means you’re more likely to develop problems with your feet. But if you take good care of your feet and check them every day, you can reduce your risk of developing foot problems. This is especially important when you’re not able to go to your foot care appointments.Watch our Head of Care and Diabetes Specialist Nurse Dan show you exactly what to do when it comes to checking your feet at home.
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/managing-your-diabetes/staying-home?utm_source=bronto&utm_medium=email&utm_term=READ+MORE&utm_content=READ+MORE&utm_campaign=Enewsletter+April+2020+-+pt+1
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