Key considerations in choosing a diet to manage type 2 diabetes effectively

In this post, I’ll talk about the considerations that go into finding a diet that works for me and can support the reversal of type 2 diabetes. A bit of a content warning: I’m also looking at sustainable weight management because, as explained in my previous post, I’m not healthy fat, which means that aside from being obese (BMI words, not mine), I also struggle with what we call metabolic diseases. Being in the traditionally considered healthy weight range will, in the long run, decrease the chances of complications from these diseases, like heart and liver issues.

I don’t want to be seen painting with a broad brush, so along with sharing my experiences, I recommend having discussions with your healthcare team before you make any drastic changes to how and what you eat.

My journey with pre-diabetes and disordered eating patterns

When I learned about my pre-diabetes diagnosis back in 2018, I didn’t know much about a healthy diet, plus I was in absolute denial about my disordered eating patterns. Like many, I was obsessed with trying different diets and going full throttle with them - I tried Flexitarian, Mediterranean, keto, low-carb, and low-calorie, but there were always two possible outcomes. I either overate, which led to shame and stop, or I over-restricted, which led to overeating, shame and stop. The same broken routine every single time.

The turning point: guided self-help programme

Last year, I finally reached out to a registered dietitian who quickly recognised my patterns and suggested I do a ‘guided self-help’ programme specifically developed for people with diagnosed and undiagnosed eating disorders or disordered eating patterns.

Through the programme, I’ve identified things that work for me and certain things that will never work for me (I’m pretty sure never). This exercise - or series of conversations with myself - is vital in finding a lifestyle/diet that works for me and can support my health goals.

So before we jump into diets and decisions, it’s important to put some time aside to do the exercise of listing out what works and what doesn’t work for you. If you, like me, spent years or even decades trying to find the lifestyle or diet that gets you healthy, you probably already have some ideas for your list.

I absolutely encourage you to talk to your GP (or PCP) if you need support; they can point you towards mental health support in your area and other resources to support your wayfinding journey. I want to point out, though, that not many GPs are well-versed in nutrition, so don’t be discouraged if the only advice they give you is to drink less sugary fizzy drinks (duh, who would have guessed).

And if you have limited resources or access to support, I can offer you my experience as a learning source as I embark on my journey to reverse my type 2 diabetes and try my darndest to become healthy.

Let’s connect

I’m keen to hear from you—your struggles, your victories, and everything in between. Have you found certain diets helpful in managing type 2 diabetes? How do you deal with disordered eating patterns? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below or reach out via social media. Together, we can navigate this journey, learning and growing along the way.

What works for me

Flexibility

No strict guidelines, no strict calories and if some days don’t work out as planned, the flexibility and kindness to accept adaptations. It’s so important that we accept that control and rigidity have caused the distorted view of food and eating in the first place. Learning flexibility is essential and can be supported by therapy, whether CBT or person-centred psychotherapy (for me, the latter works better).

I can change my mind when I learn new things

I’m not married to any diet, method or ingredient, so I can try what works for me and adapt it to myself and what suits me the most. This is very important today in our world, where there is this constant noise of what is and isn’t healthy, and it seems everybody is an expert. Never has critical thinking been more important, and instead of taking every diet at face value and in isolation (what I have been doing before), I look at my specific health needs and what science says. Even then, there can be overlaps or just plainly different things working for different people.

Scheduling meals

Because of my history of disordered eating, I didn’t know how to listen to my body’s hunger cues. I ate whenever I felt I needed to eat, and that was any time I felt a little bit of emotional, mental or physical discomfort. Plus, I had no feeling of fullness because I always overate. Scheduling mealtimes and setting alarms to remind me helped me massively. When I began doing it, it felt very much like adding back the training wheels on my bike - I had to overcome the shame of not knowing when to eat, but I realised there is no shame in it; it’s just another way anti-fat bias points the finger at the individual instead of accepting systemic issues around food and eating and their connection to mental health, interpersonal relationships and generational trauma.

Focusing on my meals when I’m eating

You’ve probably heard about food noise, the constant ticking in people’s heads that preoccupies them with thoughts about food and cravings so much that it disrupts their day-to-day lives. It is hard, especially as a comfort eater, where food seems to be the answer to every one of life’s pains. Two things have helped me with this; first, as uncomfortable as it is, I try to find the root of my pain or discomfort. What is it that I actually need instead of food? Is it love? A hug? Or maybe rest away from the world’s noise. With practice, supporting the actual need takes the mind off of food. The second thing is focusing on each meal and having a mindful approach to eating. Sit down, remove distractions and enjoy your meal.

What will never work for me

Calorie counting

Overcoming disordered patterns is a life-long effort, and previously counting calories without fail led me down the path of restriction. As soon as I see the numbers, I want to decrease them like a race to zero. So, for me, counting calories on apps like MyFitnessPal or LoseIt! is causing more harm than good. My hope is that at one point, these apps will allow you to disable the showing of calories so you can decide what measurements count for you. To bypass this issue, I’m using an old-school little notepad to keep track of what I eat and how I feel and see if any foods cause any symptoms, like bloating, heartburn, or others.

Measuring ingredients

This triggers the same ‘race to zero’ effect as calorie counting. There are certain things I still have to measure, for example, when baking. Previously, I measured even the dollops of zero-fat yoghurt I put on my plate. You are absolutely right if you see a pattern emerging that controlling behaviours caused me to step into the restrict-binge-shame cycle. It’s not easy to stop if this is all you have done in your life, which is why I decided to follow general advice on portion control. You probably heard the old Confucian saying “Hara hachi bun me”, which translates from Japanese loosely to “eat until you’re 80% full”. Easier said than done if you’ve been struggling with eating your whole life, but it is a good principle to follow as a ‘training wheel’. It is a journey, but if it helps me, I’ll keep the scales away from my food and focus more on the food in the present when I’m eating it.

Rigid Restrictions

In all honesty, strict restrictions only work for very few people, and yes, it could be a sign of absolute discipline and self-control, but for many of us, these two things are coping mechanisms when other parts of life are slipping through our fingers. Restrictions are especially unhelpful for people with a history of disordered eating as they can couple up with shame and self-loathing, which is precisely the opposite of what we deserve. Also, restrictions are very ableist and classist if you think about it; most of us don’t have the physical or financial freedom to cut out sometimes entire food groups from our diets. Anything with rigid rules and restrictions gets a pass from me.