Dieters With Special Needs

Due to specific health conditions, a person may require a certain diet to ensure better health and a better quality of life. In some instances, if these dietary requirements are not met, serious consequences can ensue, including death.

Here are a few special needs categories that require precise monitoring:

Diabetics: In very simple terms, people that have diabetes have a broken internal food processor. My father was a victim of diabetes and I have witnessed firsthand the damage that it inflicts on the body. Diabetes tends to go after one body part after another. It slowly takes it wear and tear.

Diabetics must closely monitor their blood sugar levels. A special diet is vital in managing this disease, although in many cases, diet is not enough.

We do not post sample diets for diabetics as we feel it's such a serious disease that the diabetic must get with their personal doctor for one-on-one advice.

Heart Patients: Many doctors recommend that salt be very limited in the diet. Some salt is required to keep the electrolytes in balance, but that small amount can be met without adding salt to foods.

Shaking the Salt Habit: I once ordered a certain chicken and rice soup and when I went to the table in the restaurant, a friend had also ordered the same soup. I told her than I hoped it was good - that it looked and smelled great. She said that it was okay, but needed more salt - a lot more salt. There was only one pot of the soup, so I knew that if her soup was not salty enough, then mine wouldn't be either.

I was tempted to add a bit of salt before I ate a spoonful, but decided to test it first. And was I glad that I did! The soup was so salty that I was not able to continue eating it after a few bites.

I commented to my friend about how salty the soup tasted to me and we both laughed. She then told me that she had a terrible 'salt habit' and that she was always adding more and more salt to her food. If this sounds familiar, begin to wean yourself from the salt shaker. Sodium affects blood pressure, and is a contributor to "water weight gain".

Gout & Kidney Disease - Individuals with gout and kidney disease must avoid certain foods so as not to exacerbate symptoms. Foods to avoid for gout include, but are not limited to: asparagus, mushrooms, sardines, anchovies, capon, chicken giblets, chicken wings, duck and pork liver.

Foods to avoid for kidney disease include, but are not limited to: beet greens, lamb's quarters, purslane, rhubarb, spinach, swiss chard, and foods high in salt such as pizza, canned soups, hot dogs, olives and ham. A diet that is high in protein should be avoided (ix-nay on carb restricted diets).

For those susceptible to calcium oxalate stones foods to avoid include: beets, chocolate, coffee, cola, nuts, rhubarb, spinach, strawberries, tea, and wheat bran.

Migraines, Medications - Some foods collide with medications, so ask your pharmacist if there are any foods that you need to avoid so that your medicine will do what it was intended to do. Some foods also trigger migraines.

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