Enjoying Thanksgiving With Diabetes

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Thanksgiving is a lovely holiday with lots of family and gratitude and so forth. However, it also revolves around food, usually food that isn't part of your normal routine if your have diabetes. How can you have a healthy holiday without all the stress of wondering what to eat?

Planning your Thanksgiving strategy before you go can really cut down on the stress you feel about controlling your diabetes on the special day. Here are some tips on how you can make your Thanksgiving fun and delicious.

Think about timing. With all of the turkey preparation and the family interaction, sometimes Thanksgiving dinner ends up being at an off time. Plan for that in advance, e.g. bring a snack for your regular meal time to prevent low blood glucose if you're controlling your blood sugar with insulin pills.
Be active - it's one of the best ways to compensate for more eating later. Participating in the Turkey Bowl is one good way, but if football isn't your thing, try starting a new family tradition.Take a walk with the family, play frisbee, have a morning sprint.
Have low-calorie snacks on hand. Vegetable trays are a great way to do this, especially with a good low-calorie dip.
Be selective about your food choices. Instead of sampling everything, have just sweet potatoes or just mashed potatoes. Try to stick to your favorites and pass on some of the other things on the table. If you don't like stuffing, this is the perfect excuse to ignore it.
Eat small portions. Thanksgiving is all about the carbs. If you don't want to leave something behind, have very small amounts of the carbs and more vegetables.
Turkey isn't a problem! It's healthy, low in fat, full of protein and vitamins. You can take that to the bank.