We are Jane and Bill Smith,* empty nesters living in the Midwestern United States, with four grown children and five grandchildren. Wayne is retired and was diagnosed with diabetes around 2014.
In late 2018 Wayne suffered a “silent” heart attack, followed by extreme shortness of breath, sending him to the emergency room on December 10. About 10 days later, he had triple bypass surgery. We learned quickly that dietary changes would be required to protect Wayne’s health, but it seemed that most resources were directed at either diabetic needs or heart patient needs. There seemed to be few resources that integrated both.
Meanwhile, at the hospital where Bill was treated, heart patients were required to attend a “Discharge Class” to learn about the changes they would need to make to their lifestyle. One patient who had just survived his second heart attack said that after his first one:
“I didn’t know where to start, so I just went back to my old eating habits.” Others we talked to had similar stories: where to start? They were overwhelmed, so they just gave up.
These experiences inspired us to start this website: we want to help people learn strategies for how to do what their doctor says, with an integrated approach to diabetic and heart healthy eating.
Allison works full time in a profession that allows her to do research and writing, and she is also passionate about food. She has enjoyed cooking as a hobby all of her adult life, so now she uses her experience to create delicious food for Bill’s dietary needs. This works well for Wayne, who loves to eat and is willing to change.
We are not doctors, nurses or dietitians. We don’t intend for this site to provide medical advice. Your doctor and medical team will tell you what to do; we are here to provide ideas for how to do it, based on our experiences and research.
* Not our real names. We use pseudonyms to protect the privacy of Wayne’s medical information.