Tag: diabetes

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 Sugar-Free Banana Pudding Recipe by The Diabetic Pastry Chef 

This past Wednesday night, we presented another diva-style diabetes wellness program with our friend, Stacey Harris, who is known as The Diabetic Pastry Chef.

I love the way Stacey experiments and encourages others to experiment with different flours and sugar substitutes in recipes. For example, Stacey will substitute one cup of sugar for a half cup of Splenda and a half cup of Whey Low D or replace white flour with a mixture of almond, soy, or bean flour in her recipes. Her approach corresponds to leading experts’ belief that a ‘one size fits all’ diet doesn’t exist for people living with diabetes. They recommend that we should develop our own personal nutrition plans for diabetes wellness.  Read MORE.

Sugar-Free Banana Pudding Recipe by The Diabetic Pastry Chef 

Ingredients 

1 pkg. Sugar-free Vanilla Wafers

1- 1-oz. box Sugar-free Instant Vanilla Pudding

2 cups Whole Milk, Almond milk, or a combination of the two

1-2 ripe Bananas

1 cup of Sugar-free Whipped Cream or Sugar-free Whipped Topping

Directions

Prepare pudding per package directions using the 2 cups milk, almond milk, or a combination of the two; set aside. Line a small casserole dish, parfait dish, or trifle bowl with a layer of vanilla wafers. Top with a layer of prepared vanilla pudding. Add a layer of sliced bananas, and spread the top with a full layer or dollop of whipped cream. Garnish as desired (toasted coconut, raspberries, lemon twists, or cherries.

Do You Know?

Cup for cup, whole fat milk contains fewer carbohydrates than low-fat or skim because more of its volume is made up of fat, which does not contain lactose. It also has slightly less protein.

Stacey Harris has a blog full of great recipes. Click HERE.

Personally, I feel the kitchen is a great place to stretch, your creativity. It’s been widely reported that baking has the benefit of enhancing creative expression – which has been found to have a strong connection with overall wellbeing. Lately, I have been having fun creating fruit platters to glamorize good health!

The happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic talks to divas living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes about their favorite forms of exercise at NYC Summer Streets.

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2 Out of 100 People Infected with COVID-19 May Develop Diabetes

Researchers estimate that about 2 out of every 100 people who are infected with Covid-19 will have a new diagnosis of diabetes.
Several studies have found a link between a new diabetes diagnosis and Covid-19 reports CNN.

People who had mild Covid-19 infections in Germany found that they were 28% more likely to have a new diagnosis of type 2 diabetes compared with people who were never infected.

Americans who had recovered from Covid-19: a 40% increase in risk at least a year after infection.
It appears the more severe someone’s coronavirus infection was, the higher their risk of diabetes. For people who were treated in the ICU, the risk of diabetes jumped 276%. This connection could be related to the steroids that some patients get while receiving acute care in a hospital setting, which can increase blood sugar levels.
A number of studies suggest that SARS-CoV-2 can attack the beta cells of the pancreas (that produce insulin) and may cause at least temporary harm, if not more permanent harm.
Another theory is that acute inflammation might lead to insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is when the body is still making insulin but grows resistant to it and thus cannot respond to it.
“We already are challenged to care for all of the people with diabetes that currently exist. The last thing we need is increasing the numbers,” Dr. Robert Gabbay, chief scientific and medical officer at the American Diabetes Association told CNN.

Words have the power to elevate or tear down someone’s perception of themselves and their diabetes health.

For decades, much of the language around diabetes has been focused on adverse outcomes and laden with judgment and blame without considering individual needs, beliefs, and choices.

On the other hand, encouraging and collaborative messages can enhance health outcomes.

Guests include Poet Lorraine Brooks, and Susan Weiner MS, RDN, CDCES, FADCES. Throughout the podcast, we will be featuring music from Prince & The New Power Generation’s Love Symbol album courtesy of SONY Music.

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Divabetic’s Next Baking Party on Zoom – Date Change

Due to unforeseen circumstances, our upcoming Baking Party has been rescheduled for this Wednesday, April 27, 2022, 7 -8:30 PM, EST on Zoom.

We hope you are still able to join us for this free, fun Virtual Mother’s Day-themed Baking Party with special guests, Stacey Harris, aka The Diabetic Pastry Chef and Divabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller, on Wednesday, April 27, 2022, 7 – 8:30 PM, EST on Zoom.

During this Baking Party on Zoom, The Diabetic Pastry Chef prepares a Mother’s Day Sugar-Free Dessert recipe, demonstrates one of her favorite kitchen tools, and shares expert baking tips for substituting sugar substitutes and alternative flours in recipes.

The Diabetic Pastry Chef

One lucky participant will win a Divabetic Gift Basket featuring Arthel Neville Design FABULOUS East/West Tote, Dr. Remedy‘s Enriched Nail Care gift set, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes‘s Camper Cozy Mystery, and Peak 10 Skin’s Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream in our random drawing. You must be present at our Baking Party to enter our gift drawing to win.

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

Over 150 people registered for our last Divabetic Baking Party on Zoom, so don’t miss out!

After being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, Stacey Harris (The Diabetic Pastry Chef) taught herself how to make pound cake, pecan rolls, pies, muffins, cupcakes, and other baked goods with about half the carbs you’d get from a traditional bakery item.

“I started experimenting by using almond milk or whole milk mixed with water to cut down on carbs, then tried different flours, incorporating white whole wheat flour, soy flour, oat flour, black bean flour, and other alternatives into my brownies, cakes, and cookies,” she said in a How 2 Type 2 article.

She adds,” To cut back on sugar, I started using all-natural substitutes, like agave nectar, and trying erythritol. I also bake with a store-bought blend of sugars that tastes delicious.”

The Diabetic Pastry Chef shares her recipes in a fabulous book so that people with type 2 diabetes and others looking for sugar-free treats can make their lower-carb versions of baked goods at home. Her customers frequently say, “I don’t even miss the extra sugar!”

How it works: Once you register, we will send you the unique code to sign in to our Zoom Video feed. You will need a camera. We’ll all get acquainted and share niceties before the baking demonstration begins.

Cost: Free.

Donations are greatly appreciated. Paypal Click HERE Paypal

REGISTER NOW

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Divabetic Mysteries: Suspect Boulevard, Part 1

How did the lady in red wind up dead at the bottom of the pool on the lush estate of one of the world’s most famous writers? To solve this mystery, we have to step back in time.

SYNOPSIS

On a bright sunny morning, our happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic, arrives at the resplendent Beverly Hills estate of NYT Best-Selling Author and Socialite Marjorie Melbourne Blaze. He’s here to deliver the keynote address at the Annual Heart of the Diva Gala on diabetes and women. But he soon learns that a roomful of rich and famous faces is full of way more drama than he had ever expected . . . and now murder. So can Max and our team find the killer before this red carpet event is covered in blood? Divabetic’s story of diabetes mystery and intrigue stresses why it can be deadly to blame others for your heart’s misfortunes.

FEATURING

Max “Mr. Divabetic’ Szadek, Lorraine Brooks, We Are Diabetes Founder Asha Brown, Catherine Schuller AICI, CIP, Susan Weiner MS, RD, CDCES, CDN, Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic,’ USA Today Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes, Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDCES and Mama Rose Marie. Produced by Leisa Chester-Weir.

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Divabetic Remembers Traci Braxton

Traci Braxton, the sister of singer Toni Braxton and “Braxton Family Values” TV show star, passed away after battling cancer in the esophagus.

During the past decade, Traci Braxton was an outspoken diabetes advocate. Most of her comments and confessions about living with diabetes centered around her weight. Like many of us, she had a rollercoaster journey with her weight. But her journey was seen by millions.

If you struggle with managing your weight and/or maintaining a weight loss, you know all too well how challenging that can be. And to have diabetes on top of that can make it doubly difficult. Traci Braxton was no different.

Back in 2018, she said, “I was diagnosed diabetic and didn’t want to take any more pills, so I had to go on this healthy kick.” As a result, she successfully lost 4o pounds. “Now I control it through my diet. Because of that, I am no longer on the pills.”

Years earlier, in 2013, Traci Braxton faced harsh criticism from her sisters about her size. The Braxton sisters confronted her about her weight during a weight-loss intervention. The driving force behind their actions, it seems, was to tell Traci what the extra weight was doing to her health.

In the heat of the moment, Traci was not happy. “I really wanted to punch them in the face,” she said. However, Traci later changed her mind about the confrontation. Later, she made several lifestyle changes to get her health back on track. “I had to really change my eating habits, and it’s [still] a struggle. But my sisters were exactly right,” she admitted showing off her newly slimmed-down figure. She lost thirty-five pounds. “They saw me gaining weight … I developed (type 2) diabetes, high blood pressure, and I was in denial.”

Managing diabetes day in and day out can be a grind. Sometimes family members, friends, and healthcare providers telling you to ‘just lose weight’ doesn’t help or motivate you.

After being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, getting your diabetes under tighter management is a reasonable first goal without the added extra burden of a weight loss goal. Doing so may mean starting on medicine (including, possibly, insulin), adding a different type of medicine to your regimen, and/or increasing the dose of diabetes medicine that you’re already taking. And, of course, meal planning and physical activity work with your diabetes medicine to help you manage your diabetes, as well.

Our big takeaway from Traci Braxton’s candor regarding diabetes advocacy is that conversations about diabetes shouldn’t start and end with weight loss. There’s much more in play regarding diabetes management than just the number you see on the scale. Maybe it’s time for society to realize there are many ways to manage your diabetes and avoid complications that don’t involve the word ‘diet.’

Gone far too soon, we celebrate Traci Braxton’s life and memory and send our heartfelt condolences to the entire Braxton family during this difficult time.

We’re talking about the power of words to elevate or tear down someone’s perception of themselves and their diabetes health on Divabetic’s podcast scheduled for Tuesday, March 15, 2022.

Guests include Poet Lorraine Brooks, and Susan Weiner MS, RDN, CDCES, FADCES. Throughout the podcast, we will be featuring music from Prince & The New Power Generation’s Love Symbol album courtesy of SONY Music.

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Divabetic Mysteries: A Christmas Peril Available On Demand

You can now enjoy our latest Divabetic Mysteries podcast, A Christmas Peril in its entirety (Episodes 1-11), on Facebook, YouTube, and BlogTalkRadio. We pack our annual mystery podcasts with diabetes and diabetes self-care information, a suspenseful mystery, and a few laughs.

Our main character, Mr. Divabetic is perfectly flawed to help us illustrate some of Divabetic’s cornerstone messages.

1. He’s resilient. Minor obstacles like a disastrous recipe or big problems like getting mixed up in murder investigations don’t deter his dreams of becoming the Next Food Network Star.

2. Healthy food doesn’t taste terrible. Unfortunately, Mr. Divabetic hasn’t figured out how to make one of his culinary creations taste good yet, but he has learned from his mistakes.

3. He doesn’t have all the answers, and that’s okay. Instead, he solves problems with the help of a team of friendly, upbeat certified diabetes care and education specialists, friends, and family members.

4. He doesn’t take himself too seriously. Instead, he rolls with the punches and punchlines and keeps his eye on the prize.

Divabetic Mysteries are a team effort that takes almost a year to produce. Each podcast is performed live on-air without interruption.

We have a blast from the initial story outline and first read-through to endless scriptwriting and fact-checking sessions and the final live broadcast! Of course, performing a 60-minute play without interruption is a bit nerve-racking and stressful for our cast of diabetes advocates, educators, authors, musicians, and poets.

Everyone’s afraid to make a mistake or even cough! But it’s also exhilarating to challenge yourself to step out of your comfort zone and try something new. We might not be trained actors, but we sure do like pretending to them for an hour!

Our story was inspired by Kevin Houdeshell’s tragic true-life story. Thanks to the Houdeshell family for their advocacy efforts on behalf of the Emergency Insulin Act of 2019 and the emergency prescription refill legislation. Known as Kevin’s or Howdy’s Law, it allows pharmacists to dispense an emergency supply of a chronic maintenance medication if the doctor cannot be reached – a common-sense act that could save a life.

Starring Max ‘Mr. Divabetic’ Szadek, USA Best Selling Author Tonya Kappes, Mama Rose Marie, Patricia Addie Gentle, Terri Seidman, MaryAnn Nicolay, Trisha Artman, Catherine Schuller, Chef Robert Lewis, Seveda Williams, and Wendy Radford. Special thanks to the Houdeshell family, and Pharmacist Mandy Reece. Original music by Ivan Hampden Jr., Celine Dion’s vocals courtesy of SONY Music. Produced by Leisa Chester Weir. Video by Joe Hackney from Pixabay.

In the spirit of Scrooge’s awakening at the end of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, we encourage you to honor Christmas in your heart by living in the Past, The Present, and the Future. Try to embrace the Spirits of all Three and the lessons that they teach.

Thank you for listening!

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Lizzo Speaks Our Kind Of Language On Divabetic’s March Podcast with Music From Prince

Have you ever thought about the language we use when talking and writing about overweight and obesity and people living with obesity?

If the rash of criticism directed at superstar Lizzo is any indication, we have a long way to go before society embraces and supports people of different proportions and sizes.

We’re tackling this topic and more on Divabetic’s upcoming podcast scheduled for Tuesday, March 15, 2022, with guests Susan Weiner MS, RDN, CDCES, FADCES, and Poet Lorraine Brooks. We will be featuring music from Prince and the New Power Generation’s Love Symbol album courtesy of SONY Music.  Please join us! 

We love Lizzo‘s attitude about herself and her music. She has no patience for fat-shaming and neither do we! Her body-positive, self-love anthems are part of our workout playlist.

I feel like [being] fat is the worst thing people can say about me at this point,” Lizzo shared on Apple Music’s The Zane Lowe Show. “This is the biggest insecurity. It’s like, ‘How dare a pop star be fat?’ I had to own that.” She added, “I feel like other people who were put on that pedestal, or who become pop stars, probably have other insecurities or have other flaws, but they can hide it behind a veneer of being sexy and being marketable.”

Unfortunately, it’s all too common to see and hear obesity talked about negatively, which risks reinforcing stereotypes, simplifying the causes of obesity, and contributing to weight stigma. Currently, obesity is commonly described in the media and society with negative images of people living with obesity and weight stigmas.

“There’s still so many people who suffer from being marginalized systemically,” she says. “Meanwhile, there’s a plus-size Black girl at the Grammys. But plus-size Black women are still not getting the treatment they deserve in hospitals and from doctors and at work.”

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Dr.’s Remedy is the Best Alternative to Traditional Nail Polish

Divabetic is proud to partner with Dr.’s Remedy nail care to empower women at risk, affected by and living with diabetes to look and feel their best.

You can win a Dr.’s Remedy gift set in a random drawing at our upcoming free Baking Party on Zoom,  scheduled for Thursday, April 28, 2022. Register here

Dr.’s Remedy has a ‘less is more’ philosophy which centers on finding the right products, rather than lots of them. As a result, their nail care delivers straightforward solutions and clean formulations that cater to every nail concern. A perfect mix of luxury and performance, Dr.’s Remedy is ultimately a brand with a mission: to give your manicure everything it needs—and nothing it doesn’t.

Dr.’s Remedy is the brainchild of a podiatrist searching for clean, safe nail polish to recommend to his patients and his pregnant wife. He ended up doing what any podiatrist, doting dad-to-be, and budding entrepreneur would do; he created one himself.

As the first-of-its-kind, doctor-formulated polish– Dr.’s Remedy pure and pampering formulations are the perfect solution for consumers who desire cleaner beauty products.
Dr.’s Remedy offers over 30 different nail color shades and nail care products such as base coat, top coat, cuticle care, and nail hydration. Each product is infused with a unique blend of ingredients, including wheat protein, tea tree oil, garlic bulb extract, and lavender.

Dr.’s Remedy products do not contain formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, toluene, camphor or phthalates, or DBP. Dr.’s Remedy is the best alternative to traditional nail polish.

Looking for a fun way to socialize without putting your diabetes wellness at risk? Do you need a little help staying on track with your diabetes self-care?

Join the happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic, hosts this free, fun Virtual Mother’s Day-themed Baking Party with special guests, Stacey Harris, aka The Diabetic Pastry Chef and Divabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller, on Thursday, April 28, 2022, 7 – 8:30 PM, EST on Zoom.

Win gifts courtesy of Arthel Neville Design FABULOUS East/West Tote, Dr.’s Remedy Enriched Nail Care gift set, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes‘s Camper Cozy Mystery, Walden Farms Zero Calories, Zero Net Carbs Salad Dressings, and Peak 10 Skin’s Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream during Mr. Divabetic’s random drawings. You must be present at our Baking Party to enter our gift drawings to win.

Over 150 people registered for our last Divabetic Baking Party on Zoom, so don’t miss out!

REGISTER NOW – FREE REGISTRATION

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Celebrate Self-Love with Divabetic on Valentine’s Day

In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’re sharing this special performance by our friend pianist Rohan DeSilva of Claude Debussy’s Clair de Lune.

We’d like to encourage you to make time for yourself and your diabetes health. You cannot do everything for everyone else and nothing for yourself. Making time for yourself and your diabetes health is an act of self-love. Learning to accept a diabetes diagnosis isn’t easy either. It takes time, patience, and support. For many people, acceptance starts with loving themselves enough to treat themselves with tending loving care. How do you practice self-love as someone living with diabetes? Do you tell yourself I love you? Do you smile when you look in the mirror?

People high in self-love nourish themselves daily through healthy activities, like walks, meditation, sleep, intimacy, and healthy social interactions. When you genuinely love yourself, you create a mindset of acceptance.

Claude Debussy started writing the piano piece Clair de Lune in 1890 when he was just 28, but it wasn’t published for another 15 years! The title means ‘Moonlight’ and the piece is actually part of the four-movement work Suite Bergamasque.

Pianist Rohan DeSilva graciously agreed to record this piece while on tour with violinist Itzhak Perlman.

Among Rohan De Silva’s awards is the best accompanist special prize at the ninth International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. He performed at the White House in 2007 for President George W. Bush and Queen Elizabeth, and in 2012 with Itzhak Perlman for President Barak Obama and Shimon Peres. He has also appeared on television on The Tonight Show with Midori; and on radio stations WQXR, WNYC, and WNCN, as well as the Berlin Radio, Japan’s NHK, and CNN’s Showbiz Today, Millenium Grammy’s 2000. De Silva has recorded on the DGG, CBS/Sony Classical, Collins Classics, and BMG labels. Rohan De Silva holds BM and MM degrees from Juilliard where he studied piano with Martin Canin and chamber music with Felix Galimir.

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Sugarfree Cake Truffles, Go Red & Big Prize Giveaways at Divabetic’s Baking Party

We hope you had a fabulous time at Divabetic’s Baking Party on Zoom. If you couldn’t join us, here’s what you missed:

During the program, Stacey Harris, The Diabetic Pastry Chef, demonstrated how to make Sugarfree Cake Truffles (recipe coming soon). Stacey also shared her favorite sugar substitutes for pies, cakes, and cookies. Surprisingly, Stacey prefers to use different sugar substitutes for pies, cakes, and cookies. For example, Splenda is her ‘go-to’ sweetener for fruit pies.

Diabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller shared “50 Shades of Red, Okay 5 Shades of Red” for Valentine’s Day. Since there seems to be a new shade of red coming out every day, Catherine created these tips for you to find the perfect shade of red for your skin tone:

 If you have fair skin with cool undertones, mid-tone reds like cherry, ruby, scarlet, and apple would add some warmth and won’t appear harsh against your skin. 

If you’re fair skin with naturally red hair, cool, brighter colors like candy red will showcase your beautiful red hair in the best way!  

A deeper, luscious, darker hue is perfect for warmer skin tones if you have a medium-light skin tone. Think the shade of blood. That rich hue will compliment your skin tone the best.

If you have a golden skin tone, you can really rock various shades from a deep, vivid red such as ruby to a vampy red like a jam.

Suppose you’re a woman with medium skin and have yellow undertones and tan skin with warm undertones. In that case, the orange-ish reds like candy red or other hues with a tiny bit of tangerine will look dynamic on you. If you’re a brunette, don’t be afraid to wear this shade of red. Some women think that brown and orange don’t look good together, but this color pairs amazingly well with brown hair. 

If you have dark skin with warm undertones, then reds like ruby cherry and lipstick will provide a gorgeous contrast to your darker skin.

If you have dark skin with cool undertones, you can pretty much wear any color. Still, a berry would look incredibly flattering against the skin.

The happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic, hosted a Cake Pop Quiz testing people’s Baking IQs throughout the night. Our Peak 10 Skin Save My Soles Rescue Cream winners included Sandra T. from Las Vegas, NV, Geneva P. from Brooklyn, NY, Elizabeth R from Guelph, Canada, Nancy S. from Marlboro, NJ, and Chandra S. from Blacklick, OH.  

Our Grand Prize winner, Anita from Buffalo, won gifts from Splenda, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes, Peak 10 Skin, Harlem’s Heaven, and Walden Farms. 

This year, the ‘V’ in Divabetic stands for ‘VIRTUAL’!! We’ve got more fabulous outreach programs and podcasts to help boost your ability to manage your self-care available than ever before! Also, stay tuned for details about our next Divabetic Baking Party to celebrate Mother’s Day. 

We’re talking about 50 years of living well with type 1 diabetes, alcohol’s effects on blood sugars, sexual wellness, and the Spare A Rose, Save A Child campaign with musical inspiration from Dean Martin.

Dean Martin was born Dino Paul Crocetti and was later nicknamed “The King of Cool.” His big break while performing as a duo with comedian Jerry Lewis, diagnosed with type 1 diabetes later in life at the age of 71.

Guests: Fran Carpentier, Mama Rose Marie, Lynne Steger, and Sex Therapist Janis Roszler PhD, CDCES. Throughout this podcast, we will be featuring music from The Essential Dean Martin album courtesy of SONY Music.

 

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