Nourish
Nutrition therapy and you If you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes – or pre-diabetes – you should have access to up-to-the-minute dietary advice and support from your GP or a dietitian. Helen Gibbs looks at exactly what care you should be getting.
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any people with a new diagnosis of type 1 or type 2 are uncertain how they should be eating, and even more confused when they start googling all the competing views, theories and research papers. That’s why we recommend you have access to professional Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT). In April 2019, The American Diabetes Association released an important report: Nutrition Therapy for Adults with Diabetes or Pre-diabetes: a consensus report. In it they reviewed recent research (up to the end of February 2018), and distilled it into key messages. Any MNT needs to aim to achieve or maintain good blood glucose control, while also managing or improving heart-disease risk factors, such as cholesterol or high blood pressure. However, MNT should be individualised to fit the patient’s culture, lifestyle and values.
Helen Gibbs is a New Zealand registered dietitian and accredited DESMOND educator working for WellSouth PHN. She also runs her own private practice seeing clients, writing about nutrition and advising the food industry while maintaining a social media presence focused on food and nutrition.
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DIABETES WELLNESS | Spring 2019
