Food for Senior with Diabetes

Q. I am looking for tasty recipes to give an aid to cook for a 90 year old woman who needs a low salt diet plus she just found out that she is diabetic.

I need to review with her in an easy way what the lady is allowed or not. Like root vegetables are treated like starches and not as a vegetable.

I am concerned that a diet for a senior is not the same for someone younger.

A. A person with diabetes can eat the same foods as someone who doesn't have diabetes, but offer smaller quantities of carbohydrate sources, which shouldn't be a problem since appetite tends to decrease with age.

The most important things is to make sure her blood glucose values are in the appropriate range. There are great meal planning resources available from the Diabetes Association of Greater Cleveland (216-591-0800).

As for the sodium restriction - remember that sodium is in more than just salt. It is used as a preservative in packaged foods, it's in baked goods from the leavening agent and also occurs naturally in fruits and vegetables.

I'd recommend seeing a registered dietitian for a meal plan that accommodates both concerns (diabetes and low sodium).