An estimated 18 million Americans already have type 2 diabetes and another estimated 16 million Americans have prediabetes. The Complete Diabetes Prevention Plan, A Guide to Understanding the Emerging Epidemic of Prediabetes and Halting Its Progression to Diabetes (Avery/Penguin Group USA) is written by two of the country's leading authorities on nutrition and diabetes.
Sandra Woodruff, MS, RD, author of several books on healthy cooking (all of which are already on my personal bookshelf), and Christopher Saudek, MD, director of the Johns Hopkins Diabetes Center and former president of the American Diabetes Association have combined their expertise to present a total life plan that addresses the emerging epidemic of prediabetes.
Complete with information on preventing, or even reversing, the development of diabetes with a total nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle program, The Complete Diabetes Prevention Plan is highlighted with a checklist of diabetes risk factors, thoughts on drugs versus diet and lifestyle changes, strategies for weight-loss success, foods that help fight diabetes (what belongs in your pantry), eating out, and the power of physical activity (the big-E word).
The Complete Diabetes Prevention Plan features 150 easy and appealing recipes that emphasize good carbs, healthful fats, and controlled calories -- all crucial elements in a diabetes-fighting meal plan. Useful Appendices include a body mass index table and sample menus (14 days of meal plan options ranging from 1,200 to 2,100 calories/day) using recipes by Sandra Woodruff, who has also written the bestselling cookbooks The Good Carb Cookbook and Best-Kept Secrets of Healthy Cooking.
The Complete Diabetes Prevention Plan gets two thumbs up for its simplicity of language, completeness of subject matter, ample recipe and meal-planning sections and easy-to-read format. This book is well worth your investment and highly recommended.
Many of us who have lived through a diagnosis of diabetes probably remember that one of our first thoughts was "Well, there go my desserts!". For most diabetics, this is the hardest part of adjusting to a new way of eating. What better opportunity to slip in another good word for Sandra Woodruff's recipes than a recommendation for her recently revised and updated Diabetic Dream Desserts, ©1997, 2004.
Reviewed by: Marilyn Helton
