Sunday 26 February 2012

GESTATIONAL DIABETES


Gestational Diabetes is the name given to diabetes which can occur during pregnancy. It occurs when the level of glucose in the blood becomes too high. During pregnancy extra hormones can increase the demand for insulin, the hormone that controls the glucose levels in the blood. Sometimes there is not enough insulin to control the blood glucose level and this can lead to gestational diabetes.

Regular monitoring by your midwife at your antenatal appointments should mean that regular blood samples are taken, which are screened for glucose. If these come back high you will be asked to take a glucose load test. In this test you will have to fast overnight and drink a glucose solution in the morning prior to another blood test being taken exactly 2 hours after drinking it. A diagnosis is made when the blood glucose level is 7.8 mmol/l or above two hours after the test.

You are more at risk from suffering from gestational diabetes if you:
  • Have a family history of type 2 diabetes
  • Had an unexplained still birth or neonatal death in previous pregnancy.
  • Have a BMI (body mass index) above 30kg/m2
  • Had a very large infant (9lb or more) in a previous pregnancy
  • Are South Asian, Black Caribbean and middle Eastern
However one in five pregnant women will be diagnosed with gestational diabetes, especially in the last trimester of their pregnancy. But you can control your glucose levels and manage your diabetes by following an eating plan.

Diet

It is important to follow a balanced diet when you are pregnant to ensure you and your baby get all the nutrients you require. You do not need to eat for two as you do not require much more food than you would normally require (approx 200 extra calories a day). However, you should not aim to lose weight during your pregnancy either. It is important to keep your weight stable and to eat the right kinds of food.

Food that cause your blood glucose levels to rise are carbohydrates as these are broken down into sugar in the body (glucose). You need a regular supply of carbohydrate to fuel your body and insulin that you produce helps you to use this glucose for energy. The amount of glucose produced depends on the amount of carbohydrate eaten. It is therefore important to spread carbohydrate foods evenly over the day and avoid large portions.

Foods containing carbohydrates include:
  • All types of bread and bread products
  • Fruit and fruit juices
  • Snacks like biscuits, cakes, crisps, cereals
  • Pies and pasties
  • Sugar (glucose, fructose)
  • Confectionery
  • Potatoes
  • Milk, yogurt and ice cream
  • Pulses (peas, beans and lentils)
  • Grains (pasta, rice, couscous)
  • Cereal based products
You should try to avoid too much weight gain and avoid large portions of carbohydrates. Eat regular meals. Try to distribute your carbohydrate intake evenly at each meal.

Blood glucose monitoring

Blood glucose monitoring will help you to understand how different carbohydrate foods and portions affect your blood glucose levels. You may be issued a blood glucose monitoring system to take your own measurements. A simple finger prick blood sample is taken and measured prior to meals and one hour after eating.

A diary can be keep of the measured glucose levels to help build up a picture of which foods are more likely to cause spikes in your glucose levels. You are aiming for a measurement of less than 7.8 mmol/l. It can be difficult to keep below this figure, especially breakfast, and you will need to modify your eating habits. You may find it beneficial to have two smaller portions spaced over several hours rather than one portion.

Glycaemia index

Starchy foods with a low Glycaemia index (GI) release glucose very slowly into the blood, helping you to control your blood glucose level. Avoid foods with a high glycaemia index.

Low GI foods:
  • Wholegrain or mixed grain breads (granary, rye, linseed)
  • Pasta, buckwheat and bulgar wheat
  • Most vegetables
  • Low fat milk, diet yogurt
  • Apples, apricots, citrus, cherries, grapes, mangos, pear, plums, prunes, kiwi, strawberries
  • Sweet potato
  • Porridge
  • Oatmeal biscuits
  • Dark chocolate, peanuts, cashew nuts

Medium GI foods:
  • Pitta, muffins, crumpets
  • Basmati rice, couscous, quinola
  • Beans and pulses; ice cream, low fat custard
  • Apricot, banana, pineapple, fruit juice, mixed dried fruit, dried figs, sultana and raisins
  • New potatoes, boiled potatoes
  • Shredded wheat
  • Rich tea, digestives, shortbread
  • Honey, reduced sugar jams

High GI foods:
  • White breads, wholemeal bread, baguettes, bagels; brown rice, white rice, rice cakes, crackers
  • Beetroot and broad beans
  • Soya milk, rice milk
  • Dried dates, melon, jam and marmalade
  • Chips, instant potato, roast potato, mashed potato
  • Rice krispies, cornflakes, sugary cereals, sultana bran
  • Crackers, custard creams, bourbon biscuits
  • Sugar, glucose tablets, soft drinks, sweets. 

Food labels

Often it can be daunting to distinguish between a selection of products in the supermarket.  Use the food labels to identify which products are lower in sugar than others.  Products with a a sugar level of 15 g/ per 100g are high in sugar, whilst products containing sugar levels of less than 5 g / per 100g are low in sugar.


For related articles click onto:
Allergies
Cold symptoms
Differences between vegetables and fruit
Foods to avoid during pregnancy
Gestational diabetes
GI Diet - Falafal
GI Diet - Fruit and vegetables
GI Diet - Carrot and pineapple cake
GI Diet - Dairy foods
GI Diet - Food and Diet
GI Diet - Low GI Foods
GI Diet - Porridge with berries
GI Diet - Smoked salmon and cottage cheese sandwich
GI Diet - Vegetable pizza
Low GI foods
Salt
Superfoods
Weight
What is the best way to lose weight
What is the difference between a food intolerance and a food allergy?
What is the difference between a cold and the flu?
What is 5 A DAY?

Wednesday 22 February 2012

RECIPE FOR PANCAKES

I am such a big kid and every year I have to eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday.  They are so delicious that I look forward to them for weeks before pancake day. I always have lemon and sugar pancakes, which you can make by following this recipe below.
Makes 4 large pancakes

Ingredients
2 eggs
200 ml milk
110 g / 4 oz plain flour
Pinch of salt
Oil for pan
Lemon
Sugar

Method
Place the flour and salt into a bowl, creating a well in the centre.  Crack the eggs into it and mix  together until they form a paste.  Gradually add the milk until smooth. 

Whisk the mixture together until it has the consistency of cream and place in the fridge for a least 30 minutes.

Place some oil into a frying pan on a high heat as pancakes cook quickly and require a very hot pan. 

Add 1/4 (50 ml) of your pancake mixture to the pan and tilt the pan to ensure you evenly cover the bottom.  Move the pan around to ensure the pancake doesn't stick to the bottom, and after 2 minutes flip the pancake over and cook for a further 2 minutes.   If you are not confident about flipping pancakes you can cheat by placing a plate over the frying pan and turning it upside down before returning it to the pan.

Add lemon and sugar to the pancake and serve. Yummy.

For related articles click onto:
Banana loaf recipes
Black Forest cake
Cherry pie
Chocolate Cheesecake
Christmas cake
Christmas mince pies
Christmas puddings

Coffee and walnut cake
Gooseberry crumble
Loaf cakes
Raspberry pie
Recipe for apple crumble
Recipe for blackcurrant cheesecake
Recipe for cherry pie

Recipe for Chocolate Cheesecake
Recipe for Egg Custard 
Recipe for English Apple pie
Recipe for pancakes
Recipe for rhubarb crumble

Recipe for scones
Recipe for strawberry cheesecake
Recipe for strawberry jam
Recipe for victoria sponge
Sponge cake recipe 
Strudel recipe

When is pancake day?

Wednesday 15 February 2012

HOW TO GROW RUNNER BEANS FROM SEED

The runner bean is a very popular crop, grown almost everywhere during the summer. And no wonder, when you can get crops exceeding 60 lbs from a 3 metre double row.

Runner beans will grow successfully in most soils, with the exception of hungry, badly drained soil. Avoid growing beans in the same spot as the previous year. Choose a sheltered location that is reasonably sunny and sheltered from high winds. In the autumn dig over the bed to a medium tilth and add compost or well rotted farm yard manure, adding lime if the soil is acidic. Two weeks prior to sowing rake over the bed and apply a general purpose fertiliser such as Growmore.

Sow your main crop directly outside when the risk of frost has passed, usually around May. A second sowing in June will provide beans up to the end of October. You can start your beans off earlier by planting seedlings sown in April indoors, but wait until the last frost has passed.

Your beans will require support to prevent them from toppling over so use bamboo canes or poles to create a structure upon which the beans can climb. A double line of inwardly sloping and crossed poles, secured with a horizontal bar, is successful. Position your poles at the same distance you will sow your seeds. Sow the seeds in drills 5 cm deep at 22 cm spacing's, allowing 45 cm between rows. Cover with soil and water gently.

Your runner beans will germinate within 7-14 days. Protect the seedlings from slugs and regularly remove competing weeds. Tie in the young seedlings to the poles until they support their selves. Mulch under the plants in June to conserve moisture. Ensure you water well after the first pods have formed and feed the plants with a liquid fertiliser during the cropping season.

You can harvest your runner beans when the pods snap easily when bent, at approximately 15 cm long. Pick regularly to avoid any pods maturing, every other day in summer, as leaving pods to mature will result in the flower-producing mechanism to switch off and reduce your crop.

You can keep your beans for up to a week by placing in a polythene bag in the fridge. Alternatively you can freeze the beans for up to 12 months if you wash and trim the beans, slice them into small chunks and blanch in boiling water for 2 minutes.

You can also dry the beans by leaving the pods on the plant until they are yellow, and then hang indoors to dry until brittle. Shell the beans and place to dry on a sheet of paper for several days prior to storing in an air tight container.

For related articles click onto:
Feeding plants
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Growing potatoes
Growing tomatoes
How to grow broccoli from seed
How to grow cauliflower from seed
How to build a cold frame
How to Grow Agave from Seed
How to grow artichokes from seed
How to Grow Asparagus from Seed
How to grow basil
How to grow beetroot from seed
How to grow cabbage from seed
How to grow carrots from seed
How to grow coriander
How to grow cucumbers from seed
How to grow french beans from seed
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How to Grow Pumpkins from Seed
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HOW TO GROW GIANT CELERY FROM SEED



As with any giant vegetable, it is essential to select the correct giant seed variety. Varieties such as Mammoth white celery are very successful.

Celery likes to grow in a compost rich, moisture retentive soil. Choose a plot that is partially shaded, receiving around 6 hours of sunshine a day. Dig over your celery bed on a dry day in late autumn or early winter. Make trenches 50 cm deep, breaking up the bottom of the trench with a fork. Incorporate a barrow of well rotted farm yard manure or compost., 70 g bone meal and 80 g sulphate of potash for every 4 square metres of soil. In April add a general fertiliser such as calcified seaweed into the soil surface and work well.

Celery has a long growing season so you will need to start sowing your seeds indoors in mid February, around 8-10 weeks before your last expected frosts. Fill 9 cm pots with John Innes 'seed and potting' compost. Sprinkle the celery seeds over the top of the compost and cover very lightly with a layer of soil. You may find it easier to distribute the small seeds if you mix them with some horticultural sand.

Place the pots in a pan of water and leave to soak until the compost is damp. Cover the pots with cling film, glass or propagator lid and place in a warm, bright position that is not in direct sunlight. Remove the covers when the seeds have germinated, usually 12-18 days, and water as required.

Prick out or thin the seedlings when they are large enough to transplant and place into individual pots. When soil temperatures reach 50 F and above your celery is ready to be planted outside. Plant your seedlings when they have 5 or 6 leaves showing, ensuring that you harden off your seedlings for several weeks prior to planting into your bed. Plant at 30 cm spacing's.

Celery is a thirsty and hungry crop that does not tolerate drought of any kind. Water regularly to keep the soil moist and feed the plants with a liquid fertiliser on a regularly basis during the summer months. Remove any competing weeds carefully to avoid damage to the plants.


You may wish to blanch your celery, artificially turning the green part of the plant white and elongating the stems. This can help to make the celery more tender and presentable at garden shows. This can be done either by removing any side shoots and covering the lower half of the celery with newspaper or cardboard several weeks before you harvest or by slowly mounding up soil around the growing plant during the growing season.

Your giant celery will be ready to harvest from September onwards
.

Friday 10 February 2012

HOW TO GROW GIANT PARSNIPS FROM SEED



Click here for the 'Seeds of Eaden' seed shop

Giant vegetables are always fun to grow, so why not try to grow some yourself. The world record for the longest giant parsnip is over 15 feet long, whilst the heaviest parsnip is over 17 lbs!

Position your parsnip bed in a sunny or partially sunny location. Parsnips like to grow in a deep, friable and stone free soil so dig over the bed deeply in late autumn or early winter. Remove any stones and debris to avoid the parsnips forking. Do not add any manure or compost to the soil. During April break down the clods and incorporate a general purpose fertiliser such as Growmore.

Choose a suitable giant parsnip seed variety such as Exhibition long parsnips. Giant parsnips should be sown earlier than normal parsnips, so start them off end January. This means that the seedlings will require the protection of a cloche or similar. Place 3 seedlings together into a row 2 cm deep at 30 cm spacing's, allowing 60 cm between rows. Cover gently with soil.

The parsnip seedlings will germinate in 2-4 weeks. Thins the seedlings when they are large enough to handle, leaving one plant at each station. Discard the unwanted seedlings as they will not successfully transplant.

For exhibition parsnips you may wish to plant long rooted varieties into a plastic drain pipe filled with friable, nutrient low soil. Mount the pipe on a fence at 45 degrees and place a sock at the end of the pipe. Alternatively, you can plant into a bottomless 45 gallon drum on a raised bed. If you wish to achieve a heavy parsnip you can transplant from pot grown as the this will encourage side shoots which add weight to the plant.

During the growing season carefully hoe the bed to remove competing weeds. Water regularly to ensure that the soil does not dry out. The giant parsnips are ready to harvest when the foliage begins to die down in autumn, but can remain in the ground until February. Waiting till after the first frost will improve the taste of your parsnips. Lift carefully using a fork to loosen the soil around the parsnips.

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Monday 6 February 2012

HOW TO GROW PARSNIPS FROM SEED



Click here for the 'Seeds of Eaden' seed shop

Parsnips are a relatively low maintenance crop that can be left in the ground during winter. Select either a long rooted variety if your soil is good, or for most gardens a shorter variety.

Position your parsnip bed in a sunny or partially sunny location. Parsnips like to grow in a deep, friable and stone free soil so dig over the bed deeply in late autumn or early winter. Remove any stones and debris to avoid the parsnips forking. Do not add any manure or compost to the soil. During April break down the clods and incorporate a general purpose fertiliser such as Growmore.

Parsnips can be sown directly into the soil from February onwards, although early sowing will require the protection of a cloche. Place 3 seedlings together into a row 2 cm deep at 18 cm spacing's, allowing 30 cm between rows. Cover gently with soil.

The parsnip seedlings will germinate in 2-4 weeks. Thins the seedlings when they are large enough to handle, leaving one plant at each station. Discard the unwanted seedlings as they will not successfully transplant.

During the growing season carefully hoe the bed to remove competing weeds. Water regularly in dry spells to ensure that the soil does not dry out.

The parsnips are ready to harvest when the foliage begins to die down in autumn, but can remain in the ground until February. Waiting till after the first frost will improve the taste of your parsnips. Lift carefully using a fork to loosen the soil around the parsnips.

Parsnips can be successfully stored until March. Harvest in October, rinsing to remove surface dirt and discard any damaged parsnips. Remove the leaves retaining a 2 cm crown and place in a  box between layers of sand (do not allow the parsnips to touch). Store in a dry shed.


For related articles click onto:
Feeding plants
Growing rhubarb
Growing potatoes
Growing tomatoes
How to grow broccoli from seed
How to grow cauliflower from seed
How to build a cold frame
How to Grow Agave from Seed
How to grow artichokes from seed
How to Grow Asparagus from Seed
How to grow basil
How to grow beetroot from seed
How to grow cabbage from seed
How to grow carrots from seed
How to grow coriander
How to grow cucumbers from seed
How to grow french beans from seed
How to grow leeks from seed
How to grow lettuce from seed
How to grow onions from onion sets
How to grow onions from seed
How to Grow Pumpkins from Seed
How to grow runner beans from seed
How to grow strawberries from seed