So, I have a growing frustration about my diet that doesn't involve me. My husband was in the hospital recently for a pancreatitis attack. (He was having chest pains too, but nothing was found.) Anyway, I was already reading SBD. While we were in the emergency room my husband saw it and was asking me questions about it. He looked on the food list and was like that seems doable. He had nothing to lose by trying it. He is a 41 year old with high cholesterol, high blood pressure and high triglycerides. When talking to his DR he mentioned SBD and the DR thought it was a good idea.

Well, fast forward to now. He WON'T read the book. I printed out the list from this forum b/c he was driving me nuts with "Can I eat this? Can I eat that?" He wouldn't even read THAT. He gave it to one of our coworkers that fixes breakfast and sometimes lunch for us and will do grocery shopping for the workplace. He is really driving me insane. He really doesn't understand the SBD. He thinks he is on it, but he hasn't REALLY went through phase 1.

On top of that, what I do feed him that I eat is being scrutinized by his officemate who has lost a lot of weight on his own "customized" plan. Glenn, the officemate, keeps talking about the amount of cholesterol in things (b/c of Joey's cholesterol). It's not that I think everything that I serve DH is correct. But the feeling that I get off Glenn is that it is his way or no way. That no one's diet choices are as "good" as his. I don't know he is just getting on my nerves lately.

DH recently had a DR's appointment and the DR. told hubby to try to make sure and get more veggies. He told him that he should still reduce the meat even if it is Turkey, Chicken and fish. So, I plan on looking for some vegetarian dishes. (I have a vegetable problem anyways, so it can only help me.)

Dana,

It sounds to me that Glenn needs to be told (as politely as possible, of course) to butt out! Everyone's body chemistry is different, and what works for one person may not work for the next. The fact that your DH's DR endorses SBD is a weapon you can use.

You probably should have a serious talk with your DH, too! Let him know that you want him to be around a long time (I'm assuming you do! lol), and that knowledge is power. He needs to understand what the diet is about and how and why it works.

After reading the book, I was amazed at what I was doing to myself. I would not have been nearly as motivated to stick with it had I not read the book!

Good luck with DH and Glenn! I wish I had a magic wand that I could wave and all would be well. But then again, we wouldn't need SBD because we all would be thin! Then we wouldn't know each other either!

Good luck, Dana! I'm glad the doctor is supportive of South Beach. My DH doesn't really follow the plan when I'm not cooking but at least he doesn't have cholesterol issue (he is obese though).

I read an interesting article in the newspaper this morning that said that studies are showing that cinnamon is helpful at reducing cholesterol especially when served over oatmeal. Most mornings my breakfast is oatmeal with cinnamon, Splenda and fruit. If you are on phase 2 and your DH likes oatmeal, you might give it a try. It can't hurt.

Everything I have been reading seems to indicate that the amount of saturated and trans fats has more of an effect on a person's cholesterol level than the amount of cholesterol in the food. I do cook lots of vegetables with meals and that probably helps too.

Can you make oatmeal ahead of time & heat up?

You can make it overnight in a crockpot and heat it up but I use the Quacker Old Fashioned oatmeal (not the instant or quick) and put 1/2 cup of oatmeal in a LARGE bowl with 1 cup of water and then I microwave for 5 minutes on medium. It cooks while I'm getting my son his breakfast in the morning.

EXACTLY! Reading the book and understanding the reasoning behind it makes all the difference in the world to me. I had several Aha! moments. Why was I hungry ALL the time? Why did I have such intense cravings for the bad things? Why are my triglycerides high? Why do I have PCOS? It was just amazing to read.

Cinnamon also helps reduce the chance of developing Type II diabetes. I like it on yogurt with fruit and wheat germ.

Dana, it can be so frustrating when men don't listen. The truth is, you can only tell him so much and then it is up to him to decide what he's going to do. He can make the pancreatitis attack a warning sign for him to make changes, or he can go into denial and pretend that he doesn't need to do anything. But there is little you can do or say to influence that decision, though I think it's useful to try and let him know (once!) that you do want him around, that you're willing to help in any way you can, but that you need him to take charge of his health and seriously pick a plan and stick to it. He also needs to tell friend Glenn to take a hike. Barb is right...the amount of actual cholesterol is not as much an issue as the amount of trans or saturated fats; we eat reduced portions of these on SBD.

Then there's family history/genetics...you could be on the best diet in the world, but if your family has cholesterol issues, you'll still have it. When one of my cousins was four years old, he had a cholesterol level of over 300 (you want to be around 100)! It's a family problem...obviously, he couldn't have possibly eaten enough food to bring his cholesterol to that level at his age.

I hope that DH makes some positive changes in his life and soon!

Oy, men can be so stubborn, can't they? I don't suppose that the SBD book is in audio format, is it? Would he listen to it, in his car or something?

Basically, though, he's a grown man and there isn't much you can do to change how he is - he has to want to change before anything can happen.

Good luck! It sounds like you are having a hard enough time with your DH without the office busybody interfering! If you can get your DH educated about the SBD, he will have the knowledge to combat his coworker's "help."

Wow...had to derail....a child with a cholesterol level of 300??!! Is he on statins??? Wow!

Mediterranean?