Can anyone suggest a cookbook for recipes for people on steroids? Took my first dose of prednisone today. Want to start out right. Very nervous about all of this
Cookbook: Can anyone suggest a cookbook for recipes... - PMRGCAuk
Cookbook
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Libertylane
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I have downloaded Tom Kerridge’s Cook Book The Dopamine Diet. It seems to cover most bases for me. One of our members recommended it. Mind you at present it just sits there undisturbed. Christmas etc 🤭
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Go online and look for low carb recipes - I find cook books are nice to read but I rarely find more than a couple of recipes I use in one and they are expensive.
The website dietdoctor.com/ introduces the concepts of low carb eating and has recipes too. It is important to learn how to apply the principles to your existing meal choices because it is something you need to do long term and we tend to revert to our long term favourites over time.
Thanks. Right now I need low salt low sugar and low carb. Lot to take in. I’m just so new to this. Daunting
Don't try to change everything at once - you will fall at the second hurdle if you don't do so at the first! The changes must be things you can live with - and if they are too big you won't be happy.
One lady who switched to low carb very successfully and lost a lot of weight as a result says to cut a quarter of your usual carbs first, after a few weeks cut another quarter and after another few weeks another quarter. That way you notice the changes less. The quickest and easiest change to make is with processed carbs and sweets - cut bread, cakes, sweets drastically. Don't switch from a load of sugar in your tea to none from one day to the next - half and half again.
Just switching to artifical sweetners isn't an answer either - your body tastes "sweet" and expects a big mouthful of carbs/sugar so sheds insulin to deal with it but it never comes. Your blood sugar plummets and you crave something to bring it back up. The excess insulin makes your body deposit any carbs as fat and also eventually makes the cells resistent to insulin, an early stage of diabetes.
Don't panic, plan your strategy and do it slowly but steadily.
Yes, low carb all the way, especially avoiding "white" carbs like refined grains and all added sweeteners, including artificial ones. I ordered what purported to be a prednisone cookbook and it wasn't even as healthy as my usual diet so I returned it right away. Fill up on variations of salads. They require lots of chewing, so slow us down and make us feel more satisfied. Make your own dressing to avoid the unnecessary sweetenings but healthy oils are good for us.
For years my rule of thumb has been to eat a rainbow every day. I actually dislike meal preparation but there is someting very satisfying seeing a plateful of healthy colours!
I really like the Diabetes Weight loss cookbook by Katie and Giancarlo Caldesi. It follows the low carb principles suggested by many members on this site. Lots of great recipes and a chunky section at the beginning about the science behind low carb eating and diabetes. The book is only £6 on Amazon at the moment or you can download a free sample onto Kindle to see if you like the style.
Good luck!
Save your money and search British Heart Foundation recipes
have lost 1 st 9Ib since end of May
Cook for rest of family the same
I like to use Pinterest for new food ideas , you can find recipes for all sorts of diets and tastes , just join , it's free , then put low carb , low G.I , or keto , your favourite chefs , your favourite ingredients in the search bar and get a world of ideas to make.
It's also good for looking up Self Care advice for everything from different types of exercises to aromatherapy , relaxation, and even making your own organic beauty products , plus it encourages you to sit down and relax for a little while .
I am doing low fat - plenty of fruit and veg and go for foods with 4 or less g of fat per 100g - 20 g is high - taking cod liver oil tab as supplement
That is great if it works for you but low fat almost inevitably means more carbohydrate and it is carbs that are a problem when on corticosteroids. Low fat products in particular have more carbs and sugar to make them palatable so car is required. There have been quite a few people who couldn't understand why they weren't losing weight and even gaining weight despite a strict low fat diet - and it was because the fruit and low fat products they were eating gave them a high carb intake.
Noted - it seems to help and low carb makes me soooo moody. I have gallstones so trying low fat for that.
in reply to Daffodilia
That's because you can't raise the fat, which helps keep mind and body together. If you could raise fat then you wouldn't miss the carbs so much and get hangry. You can swap all your carbs to complex carbs so they don't spike your blood quite so much.
I use Pinterest to find recipes but I also have Tom Kerridge dopamine diet. Not cooked anything from it yet but intend to utilise it and do a couple of low carb days a week. My hubby is T2 diabetic so he's joining in too although the latest "book" he brought home from the surgery was advising low calorie but carb based! I believe the NHS are still sticking to this although research has shown low carb can reverse type 2 diabetes.
Note I said 2 days a week, I will gradually add more days as our systems get used to it xxx
It very much depends on the surgery - more are beginning to catch up but no doubt some are still using up their stocks! My friend was told when first diagnosed that low calorie was what it was about and he didn't expect her Hba1c to fall any time soon. So I watched her sit down to a breakfast of 2 rolls and jam ... This summer she has switched to low carb (lower would be more accurate) and her Hba1c is almost into a good range and she has lost a lot of weight. What I couldn't believe was her practice is just outside Newcastle who did the work on very low calorie and low carb.
Every time he goes to see the diabetic nurse he comes home with different drugs! His tests all show he is stable but he's not lost any weight. The latest drug makes him pee all the time! I think I am going to go with him next time as he's old school and takes everything they give him without question. I think he is seriously over medicated. Project 2020 lol!
in reply to S4ndy
Not all stick to the old school thinking. I was recommended low carb by diabetes nurse a few years ago after years of being told to eat bread and pasta. 🙄
Even before PMR, I followed the Mayo Diet. I have not gained weight from the prednisone, or maybe just a little, which has disappeared over time. It basically takes a plate and says half of that plate should be vegetables, preferably dark green, 1/4 unprocessed carbs like legumes, the rest, protein the size of a deck of cards. Also eat healthy fats like olive oil, cut our all sugar(which we need to do with PMR) I do eat multi grain bread with healthy butter. I've cut back on cheeses which I like and also on wine. I have a glass now and then in moderation.
Hope this helps.
I cut sugar, gluten, dairy and processed foods. Added supplements. Ate lots of eggs, fruit, veggies and nuts. Being a grazer, it was important for me to be able to quickly get my hands on a healthy snack so I keep all fruit and nuts out on the counter. Easily lost 25 lbs. Have added back a good quality cream and butter. Shopping lists and planning help me get the better of my inner spoiled child who loves sugar!!!
I followed a similar track to you cutting out the same things and expecially gluten and dairy that can cause inflammation in your body. I did not intend to lose weight but did lose about 15lbs. I needs carbs to store energy to go running so I am not bought into the low carbs thing.
There are some very interesting blogs about low carbing and running - you can't cut carbs and rush out and run straight away but over time it is possible.
As far as salt goes, it may not be as important to restrict salt when eating a lower carbohydrate diet. Carbs cause your body to retain water. When people eat very low carb, they lose a lot of water weight and don't retain the salt. People doing the Keto diet, for example, need to actually increase their salt intake. Your particular medical situation may vary.
Remember though that these are not healthy individuals - they are taking corticosteroids. I eat low carb, not keto but low carb, but I have to restrict salt or I develop football feet and ankles. Three days of eating out and I can barely get my feet into my shoes.
All the advice above with the addition of no snacking between meals. Difficult because of hunger pangs with high doses of prednisone but if you keep to regular meal times you get used to the not snacking. I struggled in the beginning but managed to keep weight down (three years on with PMR/GCA).
