Hi :wave:

I'm an old boardie back on after a long absence. I have a question I hope someone here can help with. My 85-year old dad was diagnosed with Diabetes last week. He's also been recently diagnosed with lung cancer and he's been a heart patient for quite a few years (quintuple by-pass and pacemaker).

My question is: what's left for this poor man to eat? In his condition and age, I'm inclined to say anything he wants...but in efforts to do things by the book, how does he find a diet designed for his needs.

Thanks for any help anyone can provide.
Hunni :)

At his age, and given his multiple medical conditions, I would tend to agree with your philosophy of "anything he wants"...within reason. Just watch the carbs. If he's having bread with a meal, no potatoes. If he's having potatoes, no bread. And if he wants a dessert, no bread OR potatoes with the meal.

It's really only carbohydrates that diabetics have to manage carefully, and probably up to 50 grams of carbs at each meal, with another 40-50g divided into two snacks a day (or one of about 30-40) should be enough to keep his numbers at a level that would be acceptable at this stage of his life.

What type of lung cancer does he have...do you know? Is he being treated, and if so, with what? I think his status re the lung cancer would help determine whether or not you need to manage his blood sugar levels more or less aggressively. If his prognosis isn't good anyway, sheesh...let him eat what he wants! On the other hand, if it's been caught early and the prognosis is good, then you have more years to consider, so you'd want to make sure that the diabetes doesn't contribute to his medical problems.

Also, if he IS being treated, you do want to make sure his blood sugar levels aren't TOO high, because it could affect how well he tolerates/responds to treatment.

I guess my answer is as clear as mud, huh? <sigh> Look at the diabetic diet, which is fairly heart-healthy anyway, and then I guess you'll have to use your own judgement.

Ruth