THE Bay Weekend’s natural health columnist is naturopath Kim Webby (B.Nat) of Kimiora Health and Wellbeing.
JUST changing one meal a day can make an important difference to health.
A meal can have a big impact on blood sugar levels and managing blood sugar is essential for all people. It helps to maintain energy and avoid big spikes or drops in blood sugar.
These can affect our mood, energy, ability to think clearly and ultimately have a bad effect on our organs and overall health.
For people with diabetes, blood sugar management is essential.
A recipe I call Kim’s Marvellous Muesli can be a great way to set steady blood sugar levels and a tasty breakfast to start the day.
I make it in a big meat dish then store it in an airtight container. It starts with six-to-eight cups of rolled oats, which should be as big and unrefined as possible.
Rolled oats are full of fibre which slows the absorption of glucose or sugars from the intestines to the blood steam, preventing sugar spikes. So you get steady absorption of glucose into the blood and steady transferral from the blood to cells.
Rolled oats also contain vitamin B, which is important for energy, the nervous system and can assist with nerve damage caused by diabetes.
For added fibre, I add a cup of rye flakes if I have them.
Wholegrains such as rolled oats and rye also contain chromium. This mineral helps carry glucose out of the blood and into cells where it is needed for energy.
Chromium does this by stimulating insulin. Diabetics struggle to make healthy insulin from the pancreas and the cells of diabetic sufferers become resistant to insulin, so chromium is very important for healthy blood sugar regulation.
A high-sugar diet causes a loss of chromium from the body, which leads to glucose intolerance, anxiety and fatigue.
Brown rice, beef, turkey and fish are also good sources of chromium.
As a wholegrain, rolled oats also contains magnesium. It has been shown that 400 milligrams a day of magnesium improves insulin sensitivity. People with diabetes and heart disease tend to be low in magnesium, according to studies.
You won’t get 400 milligrams of magnesium from a bowl of muesli alone but it is in a range of food including fish, meat, seafood, dairy products and leafy green vegetables to name but a few.
Magnesium is also high in a little grain called millet, nuts and sesame seeds. So on top of the rolled oats and cup of rye, add half a cup to a cup of millet and the same of sesame seeds.
I add a handful of raw, unsalted nuts to my muesli bowl each morning. I don’t add it when making up the muesli just in case I end up sharing my muesli with someone with a nut allergy. But nuts boost the magnesium.
Pumpkin seeds are high in zinc so I add in a cupful. Zinc is also essential for healthy glucose metabolism and insulin production. Zinc also contains magnesium and B vitamins.
A cup of sunflower seeds adds in more fibre, some protein and a bit more zinc and B vitamins.
Cinnamon increases the action of insulin so I add in lashings of that. I go with a tablespoon, well mixed in and usually sprinkle on some more when I serve it up, but you might like more or less depending on taste.
Extra spices can be added too so perhaps some nutmeg, cloves or anything else to your liking. Fenugreek helps improve blood sugar control but I don’t add it to muesli, preferring to save it for a savoury curry.
Kim’s Marvellous Muesli
6-8 cups rolled oats (big ones not refined)
1 cup rye flakes
½ - 1 cup millet
½ - 1 cup sesame seeds
I cup pumpkin seeds
1 cup sunflower seeds
Lashings of cinnamon and other spices
A cup of dried fruit of your choice.
Mix all ingredients together in a big meat dish and store in airtight containers. Serve with natural, unsweetened probiotic yoghurt and a little fresh fruit.
If you prefer a lightly toasted muesli, add in quarter of a cup each of olive oil and honey. Mix well and gently roast it in the oven on a low heat of about 100 degrees for an hour, turning frequently.
You don’t want to ruin the good oils in the seeds and olive oil by destroying them by heat. I used to cook mine, now I don’t bother and prefer it raw.
-Contributed