The Dieter and Diabetic's Best Friend
Written: Jul 25 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: small enough to carry with you, easy to understand, packed full of info
Cons: The food categories are not organized in the easiest way to find individual foods
The Bottom Line: Small enough to fit into a small purse, this book is a must for diabetics, dieters, and anyone trying to eat healthy.
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| RBenson1's Full Review: The Doctors Pocket Calorie, Fat & Carbohydrate Cou... |
A few months ago I was diagnosed with Type II diabetes which meant that suddenly I had to watch every bite I put in my mouth. I was referred to a dietician who suggested that I eat 1300-1500 calories a day and about 150 grams of carbs. OK Easy enough, I thought. Oh, and don't forget, she told me, you really need to eat low fat because diabetics are at a higher risk of heart disease. I soon realized that this was going to be a little bit complicated. Then my doctor reminded me that since I was already on blood pressure medicine I should watch my sodium intake. Suddenly I had to become a nutrition expert. It was all a little overwhelming.
Then my husband walked in and dropped this little book on my desk. _The Doctor's Pocket Calorie, Fat, and Carbohydrate Counter plus 150 Fast-Food Chains & Restaurants_ Whew! That's a mouth full. Measuring in at only 6" X 4.25" and about a half inch thick, the title is bigger than the book. This book made my life so much easier.
_The Doctor's Pocket Calorie, Fat, and Carbohydrate Counter plus 150 Fast-Food Chains & Restaurants_ starts out with about 20 pages of useful info like weight control tips, a food pyramid, portion sizes, fat percentage explanations, hints to reduce fat and sugar, sample diet plans, exercise info, food diary info, diabetes guide, and an explanation of the abbreviations and measures that will be used in the counter section of the book. There is a lot of helpful information packed into those 20 pages.
The next section of the book contains nutritional information on foods. So far I have never looked for anything that wasn't in there. I don't know how they got so much information in this 286 page book but it seems complete. Foods are divided by category then alphabetized within those categories. Each food is listed with a serving size then calories, grams of fat, and carbs. It's easy to know with just a glance how many calories and carbs a food has before I eat it.
My only complaint is in how this section is divided. First there is the blue section. It contains milk, flavored milk drinks, soy and non dairy drinks, rice and cereal drinks, yogurt, ice cream and frozen yogurt, ice cream bars and pops, cream and creamers, fats, spreads, and oils, then cheese. Then there is an orange section starting with eggs, beef, bacon, ham, and game, sausages, franks, hot dogs, deli meats, luncheon meats, etc. Each food under each sub-category is then alphabetized but to me there doesn't seem to be a logical order of the sub-categories. Fortunately there is a very easy to use index that allows me to locate the page number of any food that I am wanting info on in just seconds. I also would like to see fiber content of foods listed but I guess you just can't put everything in such a small book.
Following the nutritional info on individual foods, there is a section of 101 Restaurants and some of their common foods. Since this book fits into my purse, it's convenient to just pull it out and glance at a list from Burger King before I go inside and see what they have that fits my diet needs. No standing at the counter staring at the menu wondering what I should eat. This has been a lifesaver in sticking to my eating plan. Not every food from every restaurant is listed but there are enough listings from most common restaurants that I haven't had trouble getting the info that I needed to find a nutritious meal.
The final section of this book contains listings of calcium, fiber, iron, protein, and sodium from common foods, just as additional information in making smart food choices.
This book was just the tool I needed to enable me to follow a healthy eating plan and get my weight and blood sugar levels under control without medication. It's small enough to carry with me but still complete in it's food listings. Without it I would still be struggling to juggle calories and carbs and fat, too frustrated to plan anything but the simplest (and most boring) of meals and scared to eat out. I highly recommend this for any one dieting or following a healthy eating plan. It was so helpful that I bought the updated 2003 edition that now has 150 fast food restaurants listed. And my dietician/diabetic educator was so impressed when I showed her the book that she ordered a few cases to hand out to new patients to help them control their calorie and carb intake.
This book has definitely helped me change my life for the better. However, ignorance is bliss, and I wish I still didn't know that Dairy Queen's medium chocolate chip cookie dough blizzards have 950 calories and 150 grams of carbs. *sigh*
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
RBenson1
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Member: Rebecca
Location: Mississippi
Reviews written: 58
Trusted by: 48 members
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