Happy Mindful Monday! Today we’re offering a new perspective by showcasing dishes around the world. This comes from the New York Times after they interviewed 18 families around the world to see what their typical weeknight dinner is:

In Bangkok, Thailand:

Omelet with carrots, stir-fried minced pork and eggplant, and Thai sour curry with cauliflower is a common meal. Family members are expected to clean up after themselves and help cook at least one night a week.

In Gurgaon, India:

The Osan family eats around 9 p.m., normally with palak paneer (spinach with cheese), raita, kadai aloo (potatoes with onions and spices), cucumber salad and roasted chapatis.

In Rome, Italy:

The mother normally cooks for the rest of her family, and an easy weeknight meal includes saltimbocca (veal rolled with ham and sage), homemade pesto with trofie pasta, and baked tomatoes au gratin.

In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia:

The Khojandi family eats a mix of prepared and homemade foods during the weeknight. This includes smashed beans, shakshuka (eggs poached in a tomato and green pepper stew with onions and garlic), and masoob (a mix of banana, bread, dates, cream, and honey.

In Port-au-Prince, Haiti:

Many Haitian families take their main meal at midday. The Charles’ family prepares avocado, white rice, sos pwa nwa (black bean puree), beef and blue crabs marinated in orange and lime, and lalo (boiled jute leaves and chopped spinach).

In Rehovot, Israel:

The Levy family eats Yemeni soup, chicken schnitzel, chraime (white fish in tangy and spicy tomato sauce with smoked paprika and cilantro), with challah (bread) and rice.

In Paris, France:

In Paris, roasted chicken and couscous were part of an early dinner for the Devouges. Their meal ended with various cheeses (Petit Suisse, Comte, and Emmental).

In KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

Chakalaka (relish made with fried peppers, grated carrots, and baked beans) is a South African favorite. Ujeqe (steamed bread) and braised oxtail is a common weeknight meal.

In Western Australia:

The Opie family eats pan-fried nannygai (red snapper), broccolini, and sweet potato fries for dinnr. Their children get extra fruits and vegetables like strawberries, raspberries, snow peas, and carrots.

In Amsterdam, Netherlands:

The Henkets eat a dinner of salmon with basmati rice and broccoli and a dessert of homemade custard with fresh raspberries and berry jam.

In Lagos, Nigeria:

In Lagos, their meal revolves around the sauces. With plantain flatbreads and chicken suya, condiments include peanut butter sauce, papaya chutney, hibiscus green chile sauce, mint and spring onion oil, tamarind ginger sauc, and beet and carrot sauerkraut.

In Monterrey, Mexico:

Huevos revueltos (scrambled eggs with chorizo and onions, served with flour tortillas) is a staple, even for dinner.

In Moscow, Russia:

Liza prepares dinner for her husband and six children. While she cooks, the children and her husband are in charge of setting the table. Kotleti (beef patties with bread, egg, and onion), rice, green salad, and an eggplant, red pepper, basil salad make for a perfect weeknight meal.

In Tokyo, Japan:

Fish, rice, and miso soup are a classic Japanese meal. Yasuko cooks for her adult son a few nights a week, with mebaru (rockfish) being on the menu that night. Fresh fruit serves as dessert.

In Istanbul, Turkey:

Kofte (meatballs), lentil soup, bulgur pilaf with tomato and bell pepper, dolmas (stuffed grape leaves) and red beans in olive oil make up the Terzi family dinner. A rice pudding called sutlac with tahini and walnuts is for dessert.

In Sao Paulo, Brazil:

In Brazil, the mom cooks the meal of picadinho (beef, potato and carrot stew) with rice and salad, while the dad sets the table. The children are expected to clean up afterward.

Read full descriptions and see in-home photography from the New York Times report!

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A new study published in Nature Medicine shows just an extra kilogram of visceral fat can raise a woman’s risk of type 2 diabetes by more than seven times, compared to men, whose risk goes up by two times. This visceral fat also associated with more heart attacks, high blood pressure, and hyperlipidemia.

Research on 325,000 people in the UK Biobank cohort revealed more than 200 distinct genes influencing visceral fat, many of which are tied to how much or little a person eats or exercises.

Findings in this study were based on a simple method of estimating an individual’s amount of deep belly fat, which can be replicated in most clinics, rather than relying on the more advanced and costly diagnostic imaging techniques.

Although the gender implications of the study are interesting, a great accomplishment of the study is simplifying measurements of visceral fat to make it easier to identify people at higher risk of developing diabetes or cardiovascular disease. Read fully study results here.

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Happy Pharmacist Appreciation Day! Today is extra special since Coach Beverly fell in love with and married a Pharmacist, Kristapor Thomassian, PharmD, BCPS, over 20 years ago. He works as a critical care specialist in a local hospital and is also on the Board of Directors at Diabetes Education Services.

Pharmacists help reduce A1c 1% or greater.

We want to take today as a chance to highlight some fantastic findings from a study published in the Diabetes Spectrum on what happens when pharmacists are involved in the diabetes care and education process:

“Pharmacists are well positioned to provide comprehensive diabetes services, including basic education and counseling.”

Lisa T Meade, Rebecca C. Tart, and Hillary L. Buzby; Diabetes Spectrum 2018, Feb. 31 (1): 90-95.

With general practitioners’ limited appointment time, pharmacists are uniquely positioned to help improve diabetes education. Pharmacists’ combination of medication expertise and ability to monitor and evaluate lab results, allows them to make informed recommendations for therapies to treat hypertension, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, and microvascular complications – all often seen in advanced diabetes.

In a study reviewing rural clinics in Northern California, pharmacist intervention with diabetes education resulted in an A1c reduction of 1% or greater!

Pharmacists play a vital role in the inter-professional health care team, particularly with the increasing number and complexity of medications for diabetes. Read the full study published in Diabetes Spectrum here and thank the pharmacists on your team today!

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As lifestyle coaches and diabetes specialists, we all know how important regular activity is to improve well-being, glucose levels, and overall health. Yet, keeping engaged in an ongoing activity is one of the biggest challenges most people face.

Soul line dancing might just offer an unexpected solution.

Soul line dancing – like country line dancing – is really just choreographed dance moves that you do in a group, without a partner. “It’s a sneaky way to get exercise in”

Andrea powell – soul dancing devotee

This activity offers the benefit of connecting with friends, learning a sequence of moves (that is great for brain function) and having fun. It’s an efficient way to improve cardiovascular health and keep fit.

Soul line dancing is held in local churches, gyms, community recreation and senior centers. “There is such enjoyment and that is part of music and part of rhythm, and is almost innate in humans,” say Terri Lipman, a professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania. Lipman is collecting data on the impact of soul dancing programs and says that the data shows that soul line dancing counts as moderate exercise.

Since soul line dancing is an exercise that is both fun and social, it creates a habit that is more likely to last for the long run!

Read more here from NPR Story: Soul Line Dancing: Come For The Fitness. Stay For The Friendships

And, if you want to learn the World Diabetes Day Flash Mob, here are the steps and a video. Just in time for National Diabetes Month in November.

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Just in time for Diabetes Awareness Month: Make Learning about diabetes fun!

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. As part of your Diabetes Awareness activities, consider including our FREE Bingo game as a fun addition!

This educational tool is designed to increase participant’s knowledge of diabetes self-management terms and goals of care. It’s an invaluable resource for kinesthetic learners and makes learning upbeat and easy.

Players learn about diabetes management while having fun! DiaBingo is a must-have for support groups and in the classroom setting.

The questions are designed by our experts to help players become informed about diabetes and self-care in an upbeat and entertaining way. You are welcome to customize these questions as needed to make it relevant to your group.

Up to 30 Can play! Answers sheets and questions are available in English and Spanish. 

This free download includes:

• 2 DiaBingo Master Question and Answer Sheets
• 30 DiaBingo Answer Cards in English and Spanish

Simply print out the player cards and choose items to use as markers to get started.

This FREE DiaBingo has been reviewed for accuracy by Coach Beverly and is up to date for 2019! Please let us know if any corrections are needed!

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There are approximately 15 million people enrolled in Medicare who have diabetes or chronic kidney disease which is eligible for the benefit of personal nutritional counseling.

Medicare pays for the first three hours of dietary counseling during the first year the benefit is used, and two hours in subsequent years.

Only 5% of Medicare beneficiaries receive Medical NutritionTherapy Counseling. Yet, participants who receive counsel from Registered Dietitians have A1c drops of 1-2%.

Kaiser Health News gathered testimonials from people who took advantage of the nutritional counseling referral and people found it help to bring down their blood glucose readings and realize what and what not to eat and portion sizes. One man, Louis Rocco, didn’t realize until seeing a dietitian that eating a lot of bread could be dangerous for him. He said “I’m Italian, and I always eat a lot of bread,” but he could see the difference in his readings after two, hour-long consultations with a dietitian.

The problem may be that not enough physicians know about the Medicare benefit. Doctors have to refer patients to a dietitian. See Kaiser Health News for the full article.

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A post-analysis of the SAVOR-TIMI 53 trial and a review of 17 different observational studies showed metformin use is associated with decreased all-cause mortality in people with type 2 diabetes and a high risk of cardiovascular events.

In a previous systematic review of 17 observational studies published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in 2017, researchers concluded that metformin use is associated with decreased all-cause mortality in patients with CKD, congestive heart failure, or chronic liver disease with hepatic impairment.

Find out more details about the Harvard Medical School study here.

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A recent study, analyzing more than 2,600 German adults, showed an association between height and diabetes risk. Specifically, that tall people may have lower risk for developing Type 2, while shorter people may be at increased risk for developing Type 2.

The study showed that for every 10 cm of greater height, the risk for Type 2 was 41% lower for men and 33% lower for women.

Research found that the association between height and risk for type 2 diabetes was a stronger association in people with normal weight, rather than those experiencing overweight or an elevated BMI above 30.

For men and women with normal weight, every 10 cm of greater height lessened the risk of developing Type 2 by 86% in men and 67% in women.

The study suggested that this association between height and Type 2 diabetes risk may be based on healthier cardiometabolic profiles attributable to height.

For full study details, read more on Healio.

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