# Do any of you treat yourselves to a naughty meal?



## collectors (Sep 13, 2019)

Now my sugar levels were up around the 16-18 mark & about 12 weeks ago i got onto a strict diet & a very careful food watch with the exception of one chinees when visiting my brother about 5 weeks ago. My readings are now a weekly average of 6 & have also lost 2 stone. But do fancy a chinese or indian every now & then. I will aim for some more weight loss first & will then have a treat once a month to a meal of my choice. How about you guys??


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## Ljc (Sep 13, 2019)

Hello  Chris.  Yes an occasional treat is fine.  Though I suggest you cut down/out  on the rice and bread products. 

I had a lovely chicken korma and rice yesterday.


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## Pine Marten (Sep 13, 2019)

Yes, I agree that an occasional treat is ok. I don't like spicy food so hate curries etc, but love Italian and Mediterranean food. The danger I find is that 'occasional' can easily become 'often'.... so I do try and be good


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## Drummer (Sep 13, 2019)

No.
What a treat - to feel 'not right' rather tired and feeble, and know that there are high amounts of glucose being pushed around the capillaries for several hours afterwards, plus the scales will show an increase the following morning and for several days afterwards.


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## bakebeans (Sep 13, 2019)

Yes, you’ve got to have a great every now and again otherwise you’ll go crazy. You might find like I have that your taste buds change or you don’t want to eat as much. I often find that once I’ve had a little treat I’m then back on it and determined again


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## Kaylz (Sep 13, 2019)

no I don't, twice a year on Christmas day and New Years day I'll have a pudding and that's my treat twice a year, I will add that I have suffered an eating disorder after my diagnosis so that's partly the problem too xx


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## Bronco Billy (Sep 13, 2019)

An occasional treat won’t do any harm at all. It will help you maintain your sanity.


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## nonethewiser (Sep 14, 2019)

Sure do, when on me travels been known to pop in to M&S or local cafe and have a cream tea, had one 2 weeks ago in Edinburgh, sitting in John Lewis overlooking the beautiful city, spectacular view and worth a visit.


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## Eddy Edson (Sep 14, 2019)

Gelato once in a couple of blue moons & on the other blue moons, maybe a sirloin steak. 

Don’t really want them more often that, for now.


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## Sally W (Sep 16, 2019)

Yes it’s what keeps me going!

I think it depends on your personality. Saw Tom Kerridge do a talk on his weight loss at a good food show & he went from drinking several pints & shorts every night to teetotal. He’s an all or nothing kind of guy.

I eat healthy & lower carb at home but since I’ve followed this Clever gut diet if I have a treat meal out once every 10 days it’s not made any difference. (A year ago I was almost on statins with high blood pressure as well as sugar) Everything’s now back to normal, despite the occasional treat.

What you need to ask yourself is will one meal set you back to a craving for chips, ice cream or whatever? If so, probably best not to. If you can get back on track next meal then go for it!


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## Docb (Sep 16, 2019)

Don't give up your Chinese or Indian food.  Treat it more as an adventure.  The problem for T2's with the English versions of those cuisines is that they always have a heavy carb base to them, either rice, bread or noodles.  Look for dishes which do not contain those things.  You will find things that are much closer to the real cuisines of those countries which will really open your eyes without shoving your BG into the clouds. 

My choice for Indian for example is a sashlik of some sort, a spicy, dry veg bhaji, some poppadoms, mint yoghourt and onion chutney dips.  Around 30g carb and if cooked well, absolutely delicious and closer to what the chefs eat after closing than the stuff they serve to the punters.


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## Felinia (Sep 17, 2019)

The GP clinic told me I had to be very strict for the first 6 months after diagnosis, then the occasional treat was fine.  They felt the knowledge that knowing you could have a very occasional treat was less likely to result in a complete meltdown and binge.


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## Docb (Sep 18, 2019)

I find the idea of "treats" a bit bizarre.  Bit like saying that it's OK to have the occasional fag when giving up smoking.  

I much prefer to take the style of food that I fancy and figuring out how to enjoy it without overloading on carbs. You can then enjoy it whenever you want without any feeling of guilt.  Works most of the time but it's a bit tricky with Italian.  When pizza and pasta are out of the question, you have got to put your thinking cap on.


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## Felinia (Sep 18, 2019)

I see where you are coming from.  The examples I was given were:  a single scoop of ice cream; a small packet of oven baked or popped crisps; a couple of squares of dark chocolate.  And occasional meant one treat only, every couple of weeks.  Not sure I could go through the rest of my life never having ice cream again!!!  
But this might help you.  I discovered Bare Naked noodles which are virtually carb free, due to being made with soya and one other type of flour.  I had them with a Bolognese type sauce made with turkey mince and diced veggies.  I think I could probably do a decent Chinese style stir fry as well.  I've made lasagne with butternut squash sheets, and had courgetti or boodles.  Aubergine slices also work well.  I make moussaka with them, without any potato topping, and use Greek yogurt with mustard powder for a topping.  I also use roasted butternut squash and carrot/swede puree instead of potatoes.


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## Docb (Sep 18, 2019)

With you there Felinia.  

As for ice cream, I have found that decent ice cream - and we have a couple of local dairies who make their own and supply quite a lot of outlets -  do not give me a spike and on a hot day are a good alternative to a brew on an afternoon out.  I think I would avoid the big name, nationally advertised stuff which mostly taste of sweet whether I had diabetes or not .  Same with dark chocolate, the better the quality, the smaller the problem.  Not treats, just part of the normal diet.


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