Diabetes is a disease which is so common that, in one form or another, we are all acquainted with someone who has the condition. Along with cancer and heart conditions, diabetes is a disease which is shared by many, and is one of the most well-known diseases by the public at large. For all of that, however, there are still many questions about the condition, particularly regarding what can and cannot be eaten as well as the proper daily calorie intake for a diabetes patient.
To begin with, for those who may not know, diabetes is caused by high glucose levels. Type 1 diabetes results in the destruction of insulin, whereas Type 2 involves one’s body becoming immune to the insulin it naturally creates. In either case, glucose levels need to be carefully monitored, and injections of insulin are needed.
When it comes to your daily caloric intake, there is no one right answer. Rather, as with much of the condition, there are a great many factors which must be taken into account, including:
- BODY SIZE: This is a rather common factor in dieting advice. Simply put, different body sizes require different amounts of energy to move around. Calories are, at their most basic, units of energy, so the amount you’ll need will depend greatly on your own body’s size and proportions.
- AGE: There’s a section from Norton Juster’s children’s classic The Phantom Tollbooth wherein our hero Milo comes across a young boy, Alec Bings (“Who Sees Through Things”) who floats in the air at the height he’ll arrive at when he’s fully grown and his legs touch the ground. Milo finds this odd—as one might be expected to do—and Alec, in turn, finds standing on the ground and growing upwards odd for, as he says, “things won’t look nearly the same at fifteen as they did at ten, and at twenty everything will change again.” Like it or lump it, age and this changing perspective can play a big role in how many calories you consume per day, whether you’re diabetic or not—a growing boy or girl will need a different amount than a fully-grown adult, and an elderly person will need a different amount still. Check with your doctor to ensure that your caloric intake is appropriate for your age.
- HEIGHT AND WEIGHT: These may go without saying, and really do factor into the Age category above, but for what it’s worth, you will want to inform your physician of your height and weight as well.
- ACTIVITY LEVEL: If you have a highly-active lifestyle, you’re naturally going to need more calories than if you live a sedentary life.
- GENDER: Interestingly enough, gender does matter when it comes to calories, and while there’s no hard and fast rule to it, as a mere generalization, men typically require slightly more calories than do women. However, this is, again, just a generalization.
SO HOW MANY CALORIES ARE RIGHT FOR ME?
Estimates vary depending on all these factors and what health authority you ask, but as a rule of thumb, you should never drop below 1200-1500 calories a day on average, and you should run into the 2000s as a fully-grown adult. There are diets which fall all across that span, and some which even fall outside of it (albeit usually on the “over” side, since again, under 1200 calories is not advisable.) If you are looking to lose weight, one pound is generally considered to be roughly equivalent to a couple hundred calories. Even so, whether you’re looking to lose weight or simply want to maintain the weight and health you have, you should schedule an appointment and meet with your doctor to determine your optimal BMI and caloric intake as a diabetes patient.