We are in the thick of summer, thank goodness. With one too many polar vortexes in my memory, it seems like the sunshine took longer to get to us this year. No doubt, with great temperatures, also comes awesome produce. A few of my favorites that are in peak season and on my plate include:

1. Arugula

As a woman, of any age, not only are we focused on keeping our diabetes in check, we are also focused on all the things that happen to a women’s body and how it changes our relationship with food.  Over the years, we go through puberty, college, stress, marriage, maybe a second or third marriage, many births, menopause, and many personal failures and triumphs that can affect the way we view our bodies and affect our food choices.

When you make a decision to open the refrigerator and stare longingly at the shelves filled with food…or possibly empty with only a few options to choose from, and not all of them healthy, do you think with your mind, your stomach, or your blood glucose meter?

Let’s pretend for a moment that the refrigerator has a giant pad lock on it. The key to unlock that deadbolt is insulin. When insulin (and enough of it) is present, the door becomes unlocked and food can be placed in the fridge to be used later for energy. Now if that insulin key is not available, or in not enough of a quantity, it becomes more and more difficult to fit the food in the fridge and the fridge becomes empty and in turn starts growling at you.

Anyone who has lived with diabetes for any length of time knows that every day is a teachable moment when inquisitive strangers, co-workers or family members ask questions (or make assumptions) about what we can and cannot eat.  A lot of the misunderstandings come from the fact that most people only know very little about diabetes from either the news media or from a friend/famil