What happens when food—once a source of joy and connection—becomes a battleground of numbers, fears, and restrictions after a diabetes diagnosis? In this powerful episode, we're joined by Kara Roberts, a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator with over 25 years of experience helping people navigate the complex terrain of type 2 diabetes management.
Kara Roberts brings warmth and practical wisdom to a conversation that goes far beyond carb counting and medication options. She shares why the overwhelming information online often leads to burnout and how simple changes—not perfect ones—create sustainable health. Through addressing a heartfelt question from a listener struggling with diabetes burnout, Kara demonstrates how to break free from the all-or-nothing cycle that leaves so many exhausted and discouraged.
We tackle the buzzing conversation around medications like Ozempic and Mounjaro head-on, exploring both their benefits and concerning side effects like muscle loss that often go undiscussed. But this episode shines brightest when discussing the emotional relationship with food—how to reclaim cooking joy, use spices to transform "healthy" foods into delicious meals, and develop patterns instead of restrictive plans.
Whether you're newly diagnosed, supporting someone with diabetes, or simply seeking a more balanced approach to nutrition, this conversation offers a refreshing perspective on health that honors both physical needs and quality of life. Hear why Kara believes "it's going to be okay" isn't just empty reassurance but a promise backed by practical strategies that work in real kitchens and busy lives.
Subscribe to The Q&A Files for part two of this essential conversation, where we'll continue exploring sustainable diabetes management and answering your most pressing health questions.
Questions? Email us at trishajamisoncoaching@gmail.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Trisha Jamison (00:08):
Hello and welcome to the Q&A Files, the
ultimate health and wellnessplayground.
I'm your host, Trisha Jamison,a board-certified functional
nutritionist and lifestylepractitioner, ready to lead you
through a world of healthdiscoveries.
Here we dive into a tapestry ofdisease prevention, to
nutrition, exercise, mentalhealth and building strong
relationships, all spiced withdiverse perspectives.
(00:29):
It's not just a podcast, it's acelebration of health, packed
with insights and a twist of fun.
Welcome aboard the Q&A Files,where your questions ignite our
vibrant discussions and lead toa brighter you.
Welcome, wellness warriors, toanother episode of the Q&A Files
.
I'm your host, Trisha Jamison,a functional nutritionist and
lifestyle practitioner and alife coach, and, as always, I'm
(00:52):
joined by my fabulous co-host,Dr Jeff Jamison, a
board-certified family physician.
Jeff Jamison (00:56):
Hello, how's it going?
Trisha Jamison (00:58):
Hello, sweetheart.
So today's episode tackles atopic that's not only deeply
important, but one that so manyof you have reached out about.
We're diving into one of themost misunderstood and
emotionally layered diagnosisout there, called type 2
diabetes.
Whether you've just receivedthe diagnosis, left someone
who's managing it, or feelcompletely lost in the whirlwind
(01:21):
of nutrition advice and bloodsugar fears, this conversation
is for you, and we couldn't bemore excited to welcome a guest
who brings not only decades ofexperience but incredible warmth
and clarity to thisconversation.
Today we are so honored towelcome Kara.
Kara K Roberts is a registereddietitian, certified diabetes
(01:42):
educator and certified diabetestechnology clinician with over
25 years of experience helpingpeople navigate complex
conditions like type 2 diabetes,pcos, cardiovascular disease
and weight management.
But what really sets Kara apartis her ability to turn science
into something you can actuallylive in your kitchen, in your
(02:05):
body and in your everydaydecisions.
She currently serves asclinical dietician in Spokane,
washington, where she works withpatients one-on-one and teaches
healthcare teams how tointegrate cutting-edge tools
like insulin pumps andcontinuous glucose monitors.
For the past five years, she'sbeen a specialist with Medtronic
(02:25):
, training both patients andprofessionals to use diabetes
technology with confidence.
Kara's influence extends beyondthe clinic.
She's been featured in regionalmedia, including Spokane Living
Magazine, cram 2 News and 92.9Dave FM, so she's definitely a
rock star, and she's lededucational seminars across the
(02:46):
Northwest on everything fromdebunking fat diets to
navigating obesity in a cultureobsessed with quick fixes.
And while her professionalaccomplishments are absolutely
incredible, kara is also a proudmom, an active volunteer and
someone who genuinely loveshelping people find freedom with
food, especially when it feelslike that freedom has been lost.
(03:08):
So, kara, welcome to the Q&EFiles.
We are so excited to have youhere.
Jeff Jamison (03:14):
Hey Kara.
Kara Roberts (03:16):
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.
I'm so honored to be on yourpodcast.
This is really special.
I'm excited to spend this timewith you both podcast.
Jeff Jamison (03:26):
This is really special and excited to spend
this time with you both.
We are really lucky to haveKara and I've been fortunate to
be able to have her take care ofpatients of mine and she's been
a great help to many peoplelearning how to take care of
their diabetes, eat properly,and she's just a great friend to
people who want to learn how todo things better.
Trisha Jamison (03:45):
Well, and I feel like we've just been kindred
spirits forever.
We just met really for thefirst time, but Jeff has talked
about both of us and so I feellike I already know Kara super
well and I'm just so delightedto have her now on our show, so
so excited.
Kara Roberts (04:00):
And I feel the same way, trish.
So this is really fighting tofinally all be together.
Yeah, that was so, so fun.
Trisha Jamison (04:08):
Before we get into today's topic, we always
begin with something positive.
We love to start withcelebrations.
So, jeff and Kara, what issomething that you're
celebrating today, whether it'sprofessionally or personally, in
your life?
Jeff Jamison (04:23):
Well, I'll go first, because I want to make
sure Kara has plenty of time tothink of what she wants to say.
Thank you, sure, but this lastweek at the office I have a new
physician assistant.
Her name is Lauren.
That has started and she'sgoing to be incredibly good, and
(04:43):
I'm very excited to be able tomentor her to be an excellent
physician assistant, so I'mreally grateful for her.
Trisha Jamison (04:51):
So welcome Lauren.
Glad to have you in the office.
Okay, Kara.
Kara Roberts (04:57):
Yes, so I have a couple of things I was thinking
of.
I was recently promoted in myposition in my profession now,
with being a pump trainer andworking Woohoo.
Jeff Jamison (05:11):
That's awesome.
Kara Roberts (05:12):
Yes, thank you, that's fantastic.
Jeff Jamison (05:15):
Did that come with a commensurate raise too?
Kara Roberts (05:18):
Well, yes.
Jeff Jamison (05:19):
Good.
Kara Roberts (05:20):
Yes, well deserved .
Yes, thank you, and it's beenreally great.
My kiddos have moved closer oneof them and so it's been great
celebrating getting together forholidays and birthdays and
everything, and so I'm justhappy to celebrate that as well
and same time, with family andeveryone being together.
Jeff Jamison (05:41):
How old are your kids?
Kara Roberts (05:43):
They are 28, 24, and 22.
Trisha Jamison (05:47):
Oh Okay.
Jeff Jamison (05:48):
Growing up.
Trisha Jamison (05:49):
Awesome.
Do you have any that live in?
Kara Roberts (05:52):
Spokane.
I have one that lives inSpokane.
Okay, my baby.
Trisha Jamison (05:57):
Your baby.
Well, I'm jealous because ourshave all moved away.
Oh, I'm sorry, so awesome.
Well, my celebration is oneweek from today.
We leave to go to Californiaand we're taking a lot of our
grandchildren and some of ourkids and they're going to meet
in Disneyland.
So we've got a week to spendwith them and I'm super excited
(06:21):
to see them.
So not everyone can come, butwe've got several of them that
will be there with us, so wehave sounds like a blast.
Jeff Jamison (06:29):
Yeah, it should be a good time.
Trisha Jamison (06:31):
You won't miss those that are unable to come,
but we will catch them the nexttime.
Thank you so much, both of you.
Now, kara, we want ourlisteners to get to know you a
little bit better, not just whatyou do, but who you are and how
you got to where you are.
So let's dive into a few funand meaningful questions about
(06:52):
you.
So you've been in the world ofnutrition and diabetes care for
over 25 years.
What first sparked yourinterest in this field, and was
there a personal connection or amoment that pulled you in?
Kara Roberts (07:05):
and was there a personal connection or a moment
that pulled you in?
That is a really good question,trish.
And so one of the things thatstarted was when I graduated
from high school and was readyto go to college.
I had no idea what I was goingto do, and back then nutrition
wasn't really looked upon likeit is today.
It was kind of like, oh, youwork in the cafeteria, like oh
(07:28):
goodness.
And so it was my mom she was theone that actually inspired me.
She goes, you should get intonutrition.
She said it doesn't matter whatyou graduate with, as long as
you have a piece of paper thatsays that you graduated from
college.
And so I didn't really have anyaspirations or any focus at the
time.
And so that's what I did andended up.
(07:50):
Now, looking back, I'm so gladI went into the field that I'm
in now, like I cannot be anymore grateful because it is such
a hot topic now and it justcontinues to evolve.
So it's been a great journey,but that's how I ended up being
where I am today.
Trisha Jamison (08:10):
I love that and I totally agree with you that,
because when I was in college Iwas super interested in
nutrition and it was not a thing.
Kara Roberts (08:18):
Then People just oh gosh, no, no, it was so
frowned upon Like why would youdo that?
Trisha Jamison (08:25):
Exactly, exactly .
Jeff Jamison (08:27):
Well, and sometimes, especially hospital
food is so bad and that's kindof where a lot of dieticians end
up is in the hospital.
It's like, okay, we're going togo in the hospital and you're
going to give Jell-O to people.
Kara Roberts (08:43):
I mean, come on hospital and you're going to
give jello to people.
I mean, come on, exactly, and Iwas so like that too.
It's like, oh my gosh, and Ifeel like it's evolved so much
from even when I graduated.
It's a whole new world in termsof the changes and it's so much
more progressive and it'samazing.
I think of the dietitians thathave graduated recently and they
(09:05):
have such a different outlookand options on everything, and
so, yeah, it's Is it for?
Jeff Jamison (09:12):
is it for the better, do you think?
Kara Roberts (09:14):
Oh, absolutely, absolutely, Definitely for the
better.
Jeff Jamison (09:18):
Oh good.
Trisha Jamison (09:19):
Awesome, yeah, fantastic.
Well, thank you.
So you've worked on both sidesof healthcare indirect patient
care with major pharmaceuticalcompanies.
What's one lesson you'velearned working two different
worlds, right, so you have thecorporate world.
Kara Roberts (09:32):
And then you have the clinical experience that I
have had, working in clinics forover 20 years, and I think the
(09:55):
lesson is keep to your corewhich is helping your patients.
That comes number one and it'slike I'll never lose that.
And I figured if this evertakes me where I am not caring
about my patients, it's time tomove on and find another career.
But that's what has drawn me,because I'm in the clinical side
(10:18):
of things.
There's more of a sales side,but keeping the clinical side
and taking care of my patientsis my passion and I love that,
because these patients that areso out of control with their
diabetes and having thistechnology available really is
life-changing for them and theyfeel better and they're, you
(10:39):
know, instead of taking five orsix injections of insulin a day,
they're on a pump that'srunning 24-7 keeping them in
control and it's a huge gamechanger for them that they
didn't even know was availableuntil they saw their provider.
Jeff Jamison (10:57):
Are patients fearful of the pump or do you
feel like that?
They grab onto it and areenjoying it pretty quickly?
Kara Roberts (11:05):
It depends on the patient.
There are some that are soexcited they can't get scheduled
soon enough to be trained andlearn how to use it, and others
are super scared and feelintimidated.
But the thing is, is thatthey're not going to be trained
and like, okay, you're on yourown?
I mean, they have follow-up,they have resources, they have
(11:28):
their providers or they have me,or they have a 24-hour helpline
, and so there's a lot ofsupport that I don't think they
realize they have once they meetin person.
Is the pump painful, what?
Trisha Jamison (11:40):
is it that they're afraid of?
Is the pump painful?
What is it that they're afraidof?
Kara Roberts (11:45):
I think they're afraid of possibly the lack of
control, like some of them areso used to giving themselves so
many injections a day thathaving something take over of
what they're doing is reallyscary for them, and some of them
(12:05):
because of some of theautomation of the pump.
Now, that is, you have somepatients that are really wanting
to micromanage the pump whenthey don't need to.
Trisha Jamison (12:17):
Okay, so they're just having faith in the pump.
That it will continue to workright is kind of what they're
afraid of.
Jeff Jamison (12:24):
And, I think, running the pump, just making
sure that they have it set upproperly to begin with, I think
they're just like that's theiryuca man.
Kara Roberts (12:34):
Exactly, and a lot of them.
I mean they don't realize thatthe first couple of weeks you're
adjusting the pump anyway, andso, and taking that
consideration is like whenyou're taking these calculations
.
This is a starting point and Ialways tell them I said we're
going to be ingesting this overthe next week or two, so be
(12:54):
patient, give it some time.
Trisha Jamison (12:56):
And is it?
Where does it usually go Ontheir arm?
Kara Roberts (13:00):
Good question.
Okay, so usually the infusionsite goes in the abdomen or
upper buttocks, or it can go inthe legs or the back of the arm,
and typically the sensors nowgo on the back of the arms.
But you do have some patients.
They don't want it on the backof their arms, so they can put
it on their abdomen.
It depends on the patient andwhat they're willing to do, but
(13:23):
usually most sensors go on theback of the arm.
Trisha Jamison (13:25):
Now, okay, Wow, look how far we've come.
That's amazing.
Kara Roberts (13:30):
Oh, it's so amazing.
Jeff Jamison (13:32):
The continuous glucose monitoring system, even
without the pump, is a gamechanger for diabetics in my
opinion, so it's really cool tosee them go.
Oh, I had no idea I was doingthis or my sugars were doing
that.
Sometimes the pump or, excuseme, the sensor, can be a little
daunting to try and figure outat first as well.
How do you handle thosequestions?
Kara Roberts (13:55):
That's a really good question, and so I always
tell them because they're likewell, why am I wearing a sensor?
How's this different thantesting my blood sugars?
And I love this analogy and I'mstealing it from another
coworker, but it's great.
It's like okay, if you'retesting your blood sugars four
to six times a day with a fingerstick, right, so you're testing
(14:17):
your finger and getting a bloodsugar.
That's like taking six to sevenpictures.
But what if you had a glucosemonitor that's playing a movie
Every five minutes, it's testingyour blood sugars and updating.
So you're having 288 bloodsugars in a day.
What would you prefer?
Would you like the movieversion or would you like the
picture version?
Jeff Jamison (14:38):
Oh, that's cool.
Kara Roberts (14:39):
And that blows them away.
Trisha Jamison (14:42):
Wow, well, I've even heard of people that don't
have diabetes, have something on, and I don't know if it's one
of these monitors, but it justkeeps track of the sugars as
well.
Is that what they're mostlikely using or not using,
because?
Is this specifically just fordiabetic patients?
It?
Kara Roberts (15:01):
actually I have been listening to some nutrition
podcasts where they are reallyinto the glucose monitoring and
insulin resistance and thereactions of blood sugars.
In fact it inspired me to weara sensor for a while, and this
was just last week.
I was so shocked because, youknow, you're supposed to keep
(15:21):
your blood sugars around 100, nohigher than 140 or so, and I
was.
I think I had a stir fry and Iate some rice with it or
something, and my rice.
After I ate the rice it spikedup to like 160 or so and I'm
like I don't like golf and I'mnever eating rice again.
But maybe that was just thedietician overreacting.
Jeff Jamison (15:45):
See and that's.
But that's also what I findwith people that are using the
sensor or the continuous glucosemonitor is they find out things
they had no idea about becausethey thought, oh you know,
apples are probably fine, butthen an apple shoots up their
blood sugar, but yet if theyhave a peach, all of a sudden,
everything's fine.
So there are things that youwould expect to raise your blood
sugars that don't, and thenthere's things that do raise
(16:08):
your blood sugar that you didn'texpect would, and so you know,
like the rice, you know.
And so they learn a lot.
Patients learn a lot about whatthey can eat and what their
body tolerates.
I have a glucose mis-sensor.
Trisha Jamison (16:22):
I love that and I think that that's why it's so
imperative to also learn how toeat your food right.
I mean, it's like you want tohave, like an apple with a
handful of nuts or pairing itwith, you know, a healthy fat or
protein that will help bringthat sugar load down as well.
Kara Roberts (16:36):
A hundred percent and I've always told people that
it's like if you're going tohave something, always try to
pair it with a protein, Like ifyou're going to eat a carb, add
a protein with it, have somenuts or, you know, have some
chicken with it or you know,trying to always balance that
out.
Trisha Jamison (16:52):
I call that the PFCs the protein, fats and
carbohydrates.
Yes.
Kara Roberts (16:57):
Yes, awesome, awesome.
I know we still have this joke.
My dietician was like oh, youcan call it the plate method,
which has been out forever.
You could call it the what theplate method.
Like, half of your plate shouldbe non-starchy vegetables, a
quarter of it protein and aquarter of it some kind of
carbohydrate or starchyvegetable, exactly.
Trisha Jamison (17:19):
And I think people really appreciate those
visuals because I think thatthey can use those and make them
work for them.
Definitely Excellent.
So, oh, go ahead.
Kara Roberts (17:31):
Oh, I was just going to say I think it's so
complicated with food toobecause there's so many
different levels of peopleunderstanding what's healthy and
what's not.
And I mean I'm so grateful forour profession because there is
so much education where a lot ofpeople they have no idea.
(17:52):
And then I just think it's sopreventative if they can see a
registered dietitian or adiabetes educator that it can
really change their lives andhave them feel better and just
make a huge impact on theirlives.
Trisha Jamison (18:10):
Absolutely Well.
We just did an episode onpreservatives and seed oils and
just all the really unhealthythings that are in our food, and
I think that that was quite aneye opener for a lot of people.
They have mentioned that.
It's like, wow, I had no idea.
So I think it's just educatingyourself, and there's a lot of
information out there.
(18:30):
There's a lot of misinformationout there, and so that's what
we're going to try to getthrough today.
So you've spoken all over theNorthwest.
If you had to choose onemessage you hope people would
remember long after your talkswhat would it be?
Jeff Jamison (18:47):
That is such a great question yeah you've got
to watch out for her because shecomes up with these questions
that just are killer and youhave to.
It takes a minute to think itthrough, so yeah, go ahead and
think it through.
It's all good, thank you.
Kara Roberts (19:02):
I'm going to steal this.
I heard it from somewhere, I'mnot sure where, but really try
to do your best in choosing oneingredient foods.
Going back to what you said,according to what you mentioned
a little bit ago about howprocessed our foods are, so many
(19:27):
times where you'll grab apackage of something because it
looks healthy and then you getit home and you look at the
label I mean, I've done this somany times and I have two
degrees of nutrition I still doit once in a while and I'll look
at them like I cannot believe Iput that in my grocery cart
what Well, they're so sneaky too.
They are snow oil.
And I'll look at him like Icannot believe I put that in my
grocery cart what?
Trisha Jamison (19:46):
well, they're so sneaky too they are something
that will say no trans fat onthe front of the package.
All you have to do is look inthe back.
Is it has anything that ispartially hydrogenated or
hydrogenated vegetable?
Any kind of oil is your transfat.
So they're just.
It's so hard because you thinkthat these, the food and drug
administration is for you.
(20:08):
They, they want to help you,they want to protect you.
And sorry, it's all about money.
It's not about that at all.
I agree a hundred percent.
Kara Roberts (20:15):
Yeah and you think about, even when you hear how,
like in europe, they don't evenallow half the things I know.
Trisha Jamison (20:23):
That's probably cool.
I mean, so many things arebanned.
It's just a lot of these dyes,just so many of these
ingredients that are so harmfulto our body and should be in
cars and not bodies.
I just don't understand it atall.
It's so frustrating.
Jeff Jamison (20:39):
I'm very it is well, trisha and I are planning
on going to Italy this fall, andthe thing I'm looking forward
to the most is the food.
I mean of course I want to lookat all the history and I'm
looking forward to all the coolthings that there are in these
countries that we'll be going to.
But the food, oh my gosh.
I get to hear nothing but howwonderful the food is.
Trisha Jamison (21:01):
And it makes you feel good.
Kara Roberts (21:03):
It does.
You never feel bad eating it.
Have you been in Europe?
Have you been to?
Trisha Jamison (21:07):
Europe I have.
Oh, good for you.
Okay, so you've had firsthandexperience of how delightful it
is.
Kara Roberts (21:16):
I love it.
Yes, so good.
Trisha Jamison (21:19):
Super Good.
Okay, so you just kind oftalked about this a little bit,
but so we're going to talk aboutfood for a second.
Kara Roberts (21:25):
So what's one thing in your kitchen, then,
that you're loving right now,and what's one food myth that
really frustrates me as adietitian is carbs People talk
(21:47):
about how bad carbs are and likeyou need carbs or you need all
this protein, all this protein,and so I would say that carbs
are not bad and people thinkcarbs are.
If you're staying with wholegrains and the whole food and
not purchasing and buying a lotof processed foods that have the
(22:10):
fiber taking out of it, you'redoing fine, and so I think that
is one of the, I think, annoyingthings that I hear, just like
with my friends and everythingtalking.
I just keep my mouth shut.
Trisha Jamison (22:25):
Well, and I think that people don't
understand the differencebetween simple carbs and complex
carbs, because simple carbsimmediately turn into sugar.
Your complex carbs take moretime to digest in your body and
they're full of more nutrients,and so I think that everything
is under the same umbrella as acarb, and all carbs are bad.
So I agree with you, right, yes, yes, yes, very, very good.
Jeff Jamison (22:50):
My problem is I've never met a carb.
I didn't, like you know, and sothat I think that's something
that we all have to concentrateon is, yes, not all carbs are
bad but too much of a good thingis bad, so we have to be
careful, even on quantity.
Trisha Jamison (23:09):
Yeah, exactly, there's something to be said
about that, for sure.
Kara Roberts (23:11):
Just like they say , everything in moderation.
Right yeah, Right the 80-20rule.
Trisha Jamison (23:17):
Yes, the problem is that we're eating 80% bad
and 20% good instead of theother way around 80% bad and 20%
good instead of the other wayaround.
So we want to still be able toindulge and enjoy our food, but
we've got to flip things arounda little bit.
Jeff Jamison (23:34):
Kara, do you have any kind of quick tips for
people on how to judge how muchof certain carbs they should eat
at a meal?
There are people who they sayoh you know, I have to have this
many grams of that or this manygrams of this, and I just
wondered if you have quick waysfor people to make judgments on
quantity.
Kara Roberts (23:52):
They usually recommend a serene like say
they'll do, like the visuals,like a fistful is a serving, or
like the palm of your hand wouldbe a serving of protein, which
is about three ounces, and yourthumbs for fat?
Yeah, exactly.
I mean that would be a quick way, or I always told people too
(24:15):
that it would come in.
As patients, I would always saywe're creatures of habit.
If you measure something onetime, you're going to have an
eyeball, You're going to knowexactly what a serving is, even
if you measure, like, say, onetime, Just to get an idea of
what a serving is.
Because most people don't knowwhat a serving is or they don't
pay attention to it.
(24:35):
But it's a lot of people thatare on insulin.
They do know how to count theircarbs when they're pretty
proficient at it.
But the ones that say arestarting out and they're so
overwhelmed like I've hadpatients come in and they're
going on insulin pumps and theydon't even know what foods have
carbohydrates in them.
So you're starting out fromground zero and working on quick
(24:58):
and easy resources where you'relooking for visuals, Like in
fact I have a friend that's adietician and she created her
own sheet where one sheet of itis like okay, these are the
foods that have carbs, and thenthe flip side of it, these are
the foods that don't have carbsLike, just keep it simple.
And I think that's the messagethat people need to do is just
(25:20):
try to keep it simple.
Trisha Jamison (25:22):
Yeah, and I think that that is the challenge
, because it doesn't feel simple.
It feels so complex andcomplicated and I think people
really get confused becausethere's just so much stuff out
there.
So we'll get into that soon.
Sorry, go ahead.
Kara Roberts (25:37):
I was just going to say another way to keep it
simple, and I always ask mypatients that would come in.
I said do you you start witheating?
Think about eating five to nineservings of fruits and
vegetables a day and just startthere.
most people do not do that oh,for sure right and just start
there, just focus on your plantsand go from there and kind of
(26:00):
build around those, because Ifeel like in our culture we are
so focused on oh, let's eat thatbig steak or you know that's
huge quantity of protein andwork around that when it should
be more as a condiment, and soflipping that mindset is a
really good way to look at it aswell, and keeping it simple and
(26:22):
just starting now, right.
Trisha Jamison (26:24):
Right, so good, excellent, excellent.
Okay, so you've been featuredin everything from local radio
to TV.
What's one of your mostmemorable media moments that
you've had?
Memorable media moments.
Kara Roberts (26:37):
That would be on a TV.
Okay, it was on the news and Iwas really nervous and I was
trying to operate a bloodglucose meter and teaching
nutrition at the same time, likein a like two or five minute
(26:58):
segment.
And that just sticks outbecause it was all last minute,
it wasn't preplanned andeverything kind of took me off
guard, but it all worked out.
I don't know if you but that'swhat you're asking, but that was
most memorable okay, yeah, itcould have been anything, so
that works perfectly, yeah itwas a television spot.
(27:22):
It was a television spot and Ididn't have a lot.
I mean, they, they will pullpeople for dietitian spots and
no one ever wants to do them,and I think I was at the time
volunteering for the greaterspokane dietetic association and
so they were just looking forsomeone.
No one was gonna do it.
I'm like okay I'll do it but itwas all very impromptu.
Trisha Jamison (27:43):
But that's probably the most memorable one
okay, and sometimes those arethe best because they're so
organic.
Kara Roberts (27:51):
Yes.
Trisha Jamison (27:51):
Yes, you don't think they are, but they are I
love it, yes, makes you feellike a real person.
Okay, so you've raised a familywhile building your career and
volunteering.
So what keeps you grounded andhas kept you grounded through
(28:12):
all of that?
Through your career, throughvolunteering and raising your
family.
Kara Roberts (28:16):
Preach I try to exercise every day, whether it's
going to walk the dog.
I try to eat healthy every day.
(28:37):
I mean, I like junk food justas much as anybody else, but not
all the time.
I try to have it in moderation,like once in a while, and drink
lots of water and really keepconnected with my friends and my
family, which is reallyimportant.
And just having being groundedspiritually.
(29:01):
I think all those are extremelyimportant in having that
network and having thatcommunity.
Trisha Jamison (29:09):
Those are excellent and I think a lot of
times those other pieces getoverlooked and they're so
grounding, you know, theconnection with family and just
your faith.
I think that those are reallyimportant as well, so thank you
for sharing that.
Jeff Jamison (29:24):
I also think that it's really cool that you stay
grounded with your friendcommunity.
I mean, that is reallyimportant to have friends that
you can trust and you know,because life is tough and messy,
so it's nice to have people youcan share it with, that you can
trust.
Kara Roberts (29:40):
Absolutely, absolutely.
You don't know what to dowithout them.
Trisha Jamison (29:44):
Right Super.
Now for someone newly diagnosedand overwhelmed with their
being diagnosed with type 2diabetes, what's one word of
encouragement you'd like them tohear today?
Kara Roberts (29:58):
I would say one word of encouragement is that
it's okay, it's going to be okay.
There's so many resources outthere, there's so many people
out there that can help you.
And to ask your healthcareprovider it's like where can I
go to have that help?
Because there is help.
(30:18):
It's not a death sentence byany means.
There's so many things that youcan do to help yourself,
whether it's getting out for awalk after dinner, or it's
preparing a healthy meal, orit's going to see a registered
dietitian or a diabetes educator, or talking to your health
(30:39):
provider.
There's so many things outthere and the websites out there
, as we all know, it's endless,and so, beginning on the right
websites as well, you can't haveeverything you read also, but
talking to those professionalsare going to really keep it
simple for you.
Trisha Jamison (30:59):
I think that's so good, that's so important.
Jeff Jamison (31:02):
I love also that when a person gets newly
diagnosed with type 2 diabetes,I like to have the discussion
with them about what insulinresistance actually means and
what it means on the cellularlevel and when they can see that
, and I draw pictures and stufflike that.
It's about a five-minuteconversation, it doesn't take
(31:23):
very long, but it's somethingwhen you can draw it out and
then I usually sign whatever Idrew and hand it to them so they
can take it home.
But having some basicunderstanding.
And then a lot of people wantto have this is what I can eat
and this is what I can't eat andthese lists of foods to yes or
(31:44):
no's on, and I don't like to dothat.
I don't like to give them a biglist Because first of all, they
will do it for a little while,but then they will go right back
to their normal habits whenthey get tired of it.
So I want them to be able tomake small changes that reap big
results by keeping it simple.
Trisha Jamison (32:03):
So I love what you're saying about simple.
Kara Roberts (32:07):
I agree, because there's so much information out
there and everyone has anopinion about everything right,
and they're going to know,whether you want to hear it or
not, and it is.
It's really not making thoselists and making it work for
them, and I mean some of thelike.
I even noticed some of thethings I get caught up in doing
(32:29):
and I was like, oh my, I was, Idon't know.
This is like really silly, butI was putting coconut sugar in
my drink in the morning and I'mlike what am I doing?
I'd have my little oatmeal andmy little coffee drink with it
and I was like, okay, I don'teven need this.
And it's just little things.
You kind of get in bad habits.
(32:49):
You only realize you're doingthem and I stopped doing it.
But it's somebody.
Even if you talk to somebodyabout it, it's like, oh well,
what are some of the littletricks and tips that you could
learn from an educator as wellthat could point out some things
that you wouldn't even thinkthat you were doing wrong?
Not having that background,that could really be super
(33:12):
helpful for you and make animpact on your blood sugars and
your weight and what you'refocusing on.
Trisha Jamison (33:20):
Absolutely, absolutely so good, okay.
So before we get into ourlistener question today, we want
to pause and zoom out for amoment, because this
conversation isn't just aboutour personal experiences.
It's global.
So we want to buckle up,because diabetes is a global
titan and it's hitting our kidshard too.
(33:42):
So, as of 2025, 589 millionadults one in nine worldwide are
living with diabetes, with morethan 40% completely unaware
that they're even at risk forlife-altering complications like
heart attacks, kidney failureand blindness.
In the US, 38.4 million peopleare affected, including nearly 9
(34:05):
million who haven't beendiagnosed yet, and we're
spending $513 billion a year inhealthcare costs and lost
productivity.
Global diabetes is a $1 trillionburden, up 338% in just 17
years, and it's now claiming 3.4million lives annually.
That's one in every six seconds.
(34:27):
And our children?
They're not spared either.
The type 1 diabetes is strikingthousands of our kids,
requiring lifelong insulin,while type 2 is raising fast in
youth as well, with more than5,000 new cases each year alone
in the US, and it's largelylinked to lifestyle and obesity.
So let's start here, kara, forour listeners who might not know
(34:49):
the difference, can you brieflyexplain how type 1 and type 2
diabetes differ, both in howthey develop and how they're
managed.
Kara Roberts (34:57):
Yes, so type 1 diabetes is an immune reaction
where the pancreas does notproduce insulin any longer and
so they end up having to takeinsulin and inject it to open
the cell so the energy can getinside the cell.
Where, with type 2 diabetes,there's more of an insulin
(35:22):
resistance, where the cell isnot going to open up for the
energy and I'm sure, jeff, youcould probably explain it a
little better than I with yourbackground, but that would be my
explanation of that and withtype 2 diabetes it can be more
controlled with diet andexercise in terms of decreasing
(35:44):
the complications of the type 2diabetes, with medications and
lifestyle behavioral changes.
Jeff Jamison (35:52):
I think you did a great job.
Trisha Jamison (35:54):
Oh, thank you yeah.
Jeff Jamison (35:55):
So you know, and insulin resistance is such a
difficult concept to reallyunderstand without kind of
visual aids, I think, because ifyou were to draw a picture of a
glucose molecule that'sfloating around in your
bloodstream, which is the energypackage that our body needs
(36:18):
inside the cells, and if youcould connect that to insulin,
so if you've got a cellularconnection or a chemical
connection to the glucose withinsulin, there's like a little
package that swims around in thebloodstream that is ready to be
put into a cell, and thatlittle package with insulin and
(36:42):
glucose has to physically bumpinto a thing called a receptor
that is on the outside of a cell, sniffing the bloodstream for
insulin.
And so when the insulin touchesthat receptor then you get a
thing called active transport,which actually pulls the glucose
molecule inside the cell.
(37:03):
And if you didn't have thatthing happen then it would not
happen at all.
So this is one of the reasonswhy type 1 diabetics, if they
don't produce insulin and theydon't get any outside insulin
source, they die because theirbody cannot take in the cellular
(37:24):
energy from glucose.
But people that have insulinresistance don't have enough
insulin receptors on the cellsto be able to accept those
little packages of energy andpull them into the cell.
So how does that sound?
It's hard to do withoutpictures, but here we are.
Trisha Jamison (37:43):
I was going to say Jeff does so well with
pictures.
Where are your pictures, honey?
But, yeah, no, he does a nicejob drawing things to explain
what he's talking about.
I think that that was perfect.
You did a great job.
And for listeners who might benewly diagnosed or unsure why is
type 2 diabetes so dangerous ifleft unmanaged?
Jeff Jamison (38:04):
Go ahead Kara.
Kara Roberts (38:05):
Okay, because what it can do it's almost like this
sounds really extreme, but it'salmost like a slow death in
terms of you don't feel it.
Some people don't have symptomsand they continue living as
they're living and they go tothe doctor and they have some
(38:29):
lab work done, or maybe they'rerunning to the restroom all the
time.
They can't figure out why, orpossibly they can't figure out
why their feet are tingling andgoing numb, and so it's scary,
because it's not thatsymptomatic for people that are
(38:49):
newly diagnosed.
Jeff Jamison (38:51):
Until it is.
Kara Roberts (38:52):
Exactly, exactly, and so that's one of the scary
parts about it is that a lot ofpeople don't even know they have
it.
Trisha Jamison (39:03):
And I like what you said.
It really is a slow death.
You know there's all thesesymptoms going on, but they
don't happen all at once.
And so these symptoms thathappen gradually, they don't
happen all at once and so thesesymptoms that happen gradually,
they don't pick up on some ofthese things that they need to
be picking up on.
So that was great.
Jeff Jamison (39:18):
It's like a bomb with a mile long fuse.
Yeah, you know it's somethingthat you don't know, that that
thing is lit and coming towardsyou until all of a sudden it
hits.
Kara Roberts (39:29):
It's a tough one.
Jeff Jamison (39:32):
A lot of people think that the big problem is
elevated blood sugar.
And it is a big problem, but itis not something that people
feel.
You don't feel, until it'sreally high.
You don't feel it.
You might have some increasedthirst, you might just feel a
little more sluggish, you can'tlose weight.
(39:52):
These are the little thingsthat you might not even
understand that are happeninguntil you get a blood test that
says, oh, your spot check bloodsugar was 210.
And your A1c, which tells meabout the last 90 days of blood
sugar, which should be under six, is now 11.2.
(40:15):
And these are things that itcatches people off guard,
because when we're trying tomanage blood sugar and diabetes,
we want that A1c as close tosix or below as we can, and if
you're at 11, that's a long wayto go Right, exactly, well, okay
(40:38):
, so that's a great lead-in totoday's listener question, and
this is pretty lengthy.
Trisha Jamison (40:46):
We'll see how this goes because there's a lot
here.
Her name is Lisa.
She really poured out her heart.
She says Hi, trisha and Dr.
And she, her name is Lisa.
She really poured out her heart.
She says hi, trisha and Dr.
Jamison.
My name is Lisa, I'm 47, a momof two teenagers, and I was
diagnosed with type 2 diabeteseight months ago.
When my doctor first told me, Ifelt like my world tilted.
I went into a spiral of fear,immediately thinking about
(41:08):
complications, insulin shots andworst case scenarios.
Since then, I've been trying tofigure it all out on my own
Cutting out sugar, experimentingwith keto, tracking every carb
and reading every article I canfind online.
But honestly, I'm exhausted.
There are days I really doreally well Meal prepping,
checking my blood sugar, beingactive but then there are weeks
(41:30):
I completely fall off.
I get overwhelmed, burned outand just eat whatever.
Then I feel guilty and scaredall over again.
I've lost some weight and myA1C has improved a little, but I
feel like I've lost the joy offood and in life.
I used to love cooking with mykids.
Now I'm just reading labels anddoing math on every ingredient.
(41:51):
Lately I keep hearing peopletalk about Ozempic and Monjaro
Some people have diabetes andsome who don't and I find myself
wondering am I supposed to beon one of those drugs?
Would it make things easier orjust add more stress?
I honestly don't even know whatto ask about that.
I've been told a dieticiancould help, but part of me is
(42:11):
afraid it will just be morerules that I can't follow.
I need help finding a way tolive with this diagnosis without
constantly feeling like I'mfailing or broken.
I want to make peace with foodagain.
Is it really possible to managediabetes in a way that's
sustainable and doesn't feellike punishment?
And what does a realpartnership with a dietitian
(42:33):
even look like?
So we have a lot of movingpieces here, but I have to say I
think that this is a fantasticquestion, because there's a lot
of people that this really feelsfamiliar to Kara.
Where would you even begin withsomeone like her?
What are some of the thingsthat you would first address?
Kara Roberts (42:56):
I would first address what are you eating now.
Ask those questions.
It's like well, what's yourbreakfast look like?
Are you eating two meals a day?
One meal a day?
Are you eating five times a dayand then taking that and
meeting where the patient's atlike, maybe she's doing really
well and doesn't even know she'sdoing well and maybe she really
(43:19):
doesn't need to make a lot ofchanges.
Maybe she just needs to make atweak.
Maybe there's something whereshe might need to like.
Maybe she's only eating carbsat a meal but she's not
balancing it out with a littlebit of protein, and so if she
could maybe adjust that.
I always try to do more babysteps than you know, going all
(43:42):
out and trying to changeeverything what they're doing,
because we're all adults, we'reall gonna make the changes that
we want to change.
But if you're not willing tomake too many drastic changes
which hopefully she doesn't itsounds like she does have some
education that would be helpful,and if she did go see a
(44:02):
dietician, they're going to helpher with identifying those
things that she may or may notneed to change.
And having someone ask thosequestions of what she's doing
now help her read food labels,how to look at those
macronutrients, how to break itdown so that it's on her level
and not overwhelming.
(44:23):
And again it's going back tokeeping it simple Because I
think if you overcomplicate itit's overwhelming for the
patient.
Trisha Jamison (44:32):
Yeah, absolutely .
And I love what you just saidabout slowing down and keeping
things simple, because, as weknow, healing doesn't just come
from a place of pressure orpanic.
When we start to feel thatpressure, where do we go?
That's when we start eating thewrong foods anyway.
And so when we are able to justkind of slow down, take a
(44:54):
moment, take a step back, thenwe kind of can think through
what am I eating?
I love that first question toowhat are you eating?
First of all, maybe she's doingbetter than she thinks and it's
focusing on the good thingsthat she's doing rather than all
the things that she's not doing.
Well, I think that that helpskeep them feel safe enough to
take that next step forward.
So I love that.
(45:14):
So she's clearly trying, butthis all or nothing pattern is
wearing her out.
How do you help someone breakfree from burnout cycle?
Kara Roberts (45:25):
That is really good in terms of what do you do
when they're burned out?
I always tell patients thatthey're having a challenge with
burnout Again.
Maybe they need to spend andnot everyone's going to do this
we're all guilty of not beingthis regimented but maybe it's
(45:45):
planning three meals a week.
But maybe it's planning threemeals a week, keeping it easy
and then maybe eating theleftovers on a couple of the
other days where it's being alittle more organized, so that,
(46:17):
like, if you're working fivedays a week and you're just
coming home and you're ravenousand you're just going to eat
whatever you see in therefrigerator or the pantry and
you're like, oh my gosh, youjust don't care.
But it's the other thing too,like I always tell people, like,
don't keep your trigger foodsin the house.
That that's another thing thatI've noticed with a lot, a lot
of people so like, oh, I love myice cream, I love this, and,
and that's fine, you got, youhave to have those things once
in a while.
You have to treat yourself oncein a while.
You have to I mean, we're allhuman, right, but try not to
(46:37):
keep them in the house, the onesthat, or you just can't if
you're gonna like eat ice creamafter work every day.
Trisha Jamison (46:43):
Well, that's not a good idea, right, right and
so and there's so it's notremember the star trek days,
jeff oh, yeah, every night, abowl of ice cream, watching star
trek yeah, star trek the nextgeneration came out way, way far
back yeah, we used to sit andwatch that when it came out and
(47:04):
it was our ritual yeah, oh yeah,awesome.
Kara Roberts (47:06):
Yeah, and there's so many food apps I was just
gonna and there's so many foodapps.
I was just going to say there'sso many.
Like there's so many differentones that have meal planning
ideas or tracking ideas, andsometimes in some of them that
you can scan your meal, and it'slike we're so many tools out
there to keep it easy so thatyou're not overwhelmed.
(47:27):
And, like with this person thatasked this question, it's like
Lisa okay.
Well, maybe he just needs alittle food app or something to
like kind of help her keep ontrack too.
And there's so many out therethat are available now.
Like there's my fitness palthat's been out forever and
there's, I think there's anotherone, I can't think of the name,
(47:48):
but there's a lot.
Oh so much yes, and just keep itin perspective and, like I said
before, like hey, are youeating five to nine servings of
vegetables a day?
Start there and work aroundthat.
Trisha Jamison (48:05):
Perfect, and one of the things that I like to
share with my clients is thatthey don't need a new plan.
They need new patterns, andit's these patterns that are
built on consistency, not onperfection.
Kara Roberts (48:18):
I love that.
That's perfect yes.
Trisha Jamison (48:20):
Yeah, thank you, but I think sometimes we just
we get so overwhelmed with somany things that we need to do
and it's just like let's justtake one thing at a time.
So Lisa also mentioned thatshe's been reading everything
she can find online and we knowthat includes a lot of a buzz
around medications like Ozempicor Manjara.
So, kara and you know, I think,even like a year ago, it was
(48:46):
like the wonder drug.
Everybody wanted to get on it.
They wanted to be part of thisnew trend.
But I think that there's areally dark side of this
medication.
So, before we dive into Lisa'sfood and lifestyle struggles,
can we take a moment to addressthis part?
What are these medications?
Who are they really meant forand what are the benefits and
(49:07):
risks of using them, especiallyfor someone newly diagnosed with
type 2 diabetes like Lisa, oreven those considering them for
weight loss alone?
Kara Roberts (49:15):
So I want to hear what Jeff wants to say, first
about what he thinks as ahealthcare professional, and
then I'm going to give my twocents worth if that's okay.
Jeff Jamison (49:28):
Oh, you're handing off.
Okay, gotcha.
Kara Roberts (49:32):
Yes, all right yes .
Jeff Jamison (49:34):
Okay, so back at the first part of our podcast
history, we did a thing where wetalked about Ozempic and other
injectable diabetic drugs andthe information that we have
about them now is much bigger.
The information that we haveabout them now is much bigger
and so we've had a lot morepeople that have used them and
(49:55):
I've prescribed them for peoplefor just weight loss at times,
and there are good parts to itand there are bad parts to them.
They do change the metabolismof your system so that your
system will digest and work withyour sugars better.
There is a significantreduction in blood sugar.
(50:16):
That happens with using Ozempic, manjaro and all of the others.
So those do work and it alsodoes have an appetite
suppression portion of theirability.
But the way that they do that is, it really slows down your
metabolism or how fast foodmoves through your digestive
(50:38):
system.
So that comes to where some ofthe side effects happen.
So side effects really commonare constipation, nausea,
vomiting and just feeling likethe word is malaise.
That just is really tired.
Don't like to do anythinganywhere, you just don't want to
get up and move.
(51:00):
And so these are things thathappen with that.
And then, more recently, one ofthe big problems we found with
them is they cause irreversiblemuscle loss, which is so
terrifying and so, yes, so Imean, the longer you use it, the
more it is.
So you feel malaise, but yetthe thing that would help you
(51:22):
not lose muscle is exercise, butyou don't feel like doing it.
So it's a and again, it'sirreversible.
You can't get those musclefibers back and older people
like myself, we're losing musclefibers as it is, and to
(51:42):
increase that rate ofdegradation of muscle is not a
good thing, and it alsodecreases your own metabolic
burn rate.
When you don't have enoughmuscle fibers burning fat and
burning glucose and doing thethings, you can't lose weight,
which is what you're trying todo with these things.
Right, okay, so another thingthat's happened recently is that
Manjaro and Ozempic and othershappened recently is that
(52:06):
Manjaro and Ozempic and othersmostly it's those two, manjaro
and Ozempic, because there was asignificant push on getting
those meds.
The manufacturers couldn'tproduce it as fast as they
needed to, so they ran out ofthese things way before they
really wanted to.
So they really had to step uptheir production, but in the
meantime compounding pharmaciesgot involved and they started
(52:29):
compounding this medication,which is kind of an emergency
way.
The FDA allows for a patenteddrug to be used generically, but
now the emergency is over.
So the companies, at leastlocally I don't know about
nationally, but locally, thecompanies that were compounding
(52:49):
Ozempic and Terzapatide, whichis Manjaro, they've stopped
doing a lot of that because theFDA said sorry, we don't have
that situation anymore.
So it significantly increasesthe cost to those who want to
use it outside of its labeling.
So there's the kind of state ofthe union for Ozempic and
(53:12):
Manjaro.
Trisha Jamison (53:13):
Okay, so Cara, what are your thoughts?
My thoughts.
Thank you, jeff.
Kara Roberts (53:19):
Yes, thank you, that was amazing.
Jeff Jamison (53:20):
It's a lot more than you wanted, I'm sure, but
that's it.
Kara Roberts (53:23):
No, so good, it was so good.
I love the way you articulatedit.
So thank you.
So what's going to happen 10years from now?
Like, what are the studiesgoing to come out?
I haven't read the packageinsert on these products, but
what's going to happen?
(53:43):
Remember the fen-fen phase, howthat was a thing?
What 20 years ago, 25 years ago?
Right, kind of push them overthe edge to get into those
(54:04):
healthy habits, or just a littlenudge to kind of get them on
the right track of like hey,like maybe boosting their
confidence, that to get them,they can do this.
They can do this, like they canlose a few pounds, they can get
this, but long term I alwaysfeel like there's repercussions
with these medications.
Like I know, they have goodintentions.
(54:25):
I know it's all about.
You know the almighty dollarand everything like that too,
but at the same time it's likeyou need to start out with the
basics and having a greatfoundation of eating healthy.
Trisha Jamison (54:41):
Well, and I think, too, that once you go off
this medication, you're goingto gain that weight back, and
you're not going to be able to.
You know, you're going to putit all on as fat.
So your muscle is gone, and sothat is going to be.
I think what we're going to beseeing over the next several
years is going to becatastrophic, actually, and I
think when we first aired this ayear ago, I mean it was, like I
(55:03):
said, the magic wonder drug.
You can take it whether youhave diabetes or if you just
want to lose some weight.
And now we've got so manypeople that have participated in
this that I just, like you,said, I think, oh my gosh,
long-term, even in the shortterm, I think we're going to
really be in for some pain andit's going to be really hard.
Jeff Jamison (55:27):
Well, not to mention the incredible cost of
the medicine itself.
Trisha Jamison (55:31):
Oh, it's ridiculous.
Jeff Jamison (55:32):
It is.
It's ridiculous.
I mean, and if you've gotinsurance that will cover it and
it's only covered if you havepoorly controlled diabetes,
you've used other oralmedications and it's still not
working and you're testing yourblood sugar frequently, then you
might be able to convince aninsurance company to pay for it.
But if not, the name brandOzempic, for instance, it's
(55:56):
about $1,600 a month.
That's four injections.
Trisha Jamison (56:01):
That is insane.
Jeff Jamison (56:02):
It is crazy expensive.
So there are a lot of peoplewho are going to be opting out,
for financial reasons, of course, and that may be a good thing,
so that people really only thepeople who should be getting it
are getting it.
Trisha Jamison (56:16):
Well, and then we even see on Facebook, on
social media, where, oh, you canmake manjaro from ingredients
in your kitchen and there'salways a catch, there's always
something.
I mean we just can't stopreaching for that magic pill.
We just want it so bad, butunfortunately, losing weight,
(56:39):
staying healthy, takes time andeffort and patience, and we
don't want to do that as humans.
Yeah, and the other part is butthe quick fix.
Jeff Jamison (56:49):
Yes, the quick fix is but we are so blessed here
in the United States to have somuch food available, of any kind
of food you want and anycountry that makes Mexican or
Indian food or whatever.
You have so many differenttypes of food that are available
just for the having.
(57:09):
We are so blessed to be able tohave these things, but we use
them inappropriately and justlike anything that we over.
You know I'm certainly guiltyof it myself.
I definitely love to eat andwill overdo it if given the
opportunity, and so we have tojust figure out how to do some
(57:31):
self-control, be able to say howmuch we should eat, and so on.
I think actually, people spendmore time trying to figure out
what they're going to wear inthe morning than how they are
going to use their food duringthe day.
Trisha Jamison (57:44):
Yeah, that's funny.
One of the things that I justwant to pull out, too, is a lot
of times our food, what's in ourfood, is addictive.
They put addictive substancesand ingredients in our food to
want us to eat more, and sosometimes you know, like chips,
those barbecue chips, you can'tjust have 10 on your plate.
(58:05):
You go have to have severalhandfuls and before you know it,
you've eaten the bags right,and so they do that on purpose.
And our drinks and our you know,lots of our snacks and those
kind of things, and so that'swhy it's so important to eat
just the, the fresh fruits andvegetables that cara was talking
about.
It's just going back to thesimple things that make our life
(58:29):
a lot easier.
Jeff Jamison (58:29):
You said Kara, single ingredient foods.
Kara Roberts (58:32):
Yes, yes, and it's so hard because we're such a
society of everything is quickQuick for food, a quick pill.
We want to be 20 pounds lightertomorrow and it's all about
consistency and planning aheadand, like you said, trisha, it
(58:55):
all takes time and beingdiligent and making it work and
making it part of your lifestyleis such an important thing.
I mean you think about, like, Ihave a little workout buddy and
she and I were always talkingabout it and it's like, okay,
most important, sleep, and thenyour nutrition and exercise.
(59:20):
I mean they're so key to thefoundation of feeling good every
day and I think a lot of usthink that we can get away with
not doing one of those threethings, and you can't, I mean,
and if you don't do it, youdon't feel great.
Trisha Jamison (59:38):
Right, exactly, thank you.
Thank you so much.
So Lisa said cooking used tobring her joy, but now it feels
like punishment.
How do you help someone likeher reconnect with food in a way
that feels good again?
Kara Roberts (59:52):
going back to cooking basic and having,
because there's so manyresources available.
I always ask somebody it's likewhat are, what are your two
favorite meals?
And go from there, what are youwilling to do?
Are you willing to cook twomeals a week, one meal a week?
(01:00:16):
Or maybe you cook three meals aweek and maybe you have one or
two that are already preparedbut healthy, so that it's not so
overwhelming, because I don'tknow a lot of people and some
people do.
Some people do cook every mealfrom scratch, every single nine
a week, but I mean for peoplethat are working full-time,
(01:00:36):
that's not sustainable.
There's, there's no way.
I mean even for myself now,like there's no, there's no way
and just and making time like ifit all works out and the stars
line up, like I always like tohave Sunday as a meal prep day
where I'll make a list of likethree things that I'm going to
make for the week and then go tothe grocery store, have them
(01:00:59):
made and then you can eat off ofthem for the week or add a
couple, you know, things thatare maybe I end up eating out
with a friend or something onenight that week and then that
way it's not so overwhelming.
And then I'm prepared so thatwhen you're busy or you're tired
and you come home, you're likeyou're just not grabbing
(01:01:19):
whatever.
You already have something thatyou can warm up or just stir
fry something really quick andit's not so overwhelming and
daunting because it can be.
But it's really taking thattime to, you know, make a
grocery list and have it out.
It's like, oh, I'm just, thissounds really good, I'm going to
(01:01:39):
make this and or do it on yourphone, like some people are
really good about making noteson their phones.
Or my daughter showed me how tocollaborate a list, like maybe.
Like, say, you and Jeff areplanning on making a meal, or
you know, try to meal planning,and you can have these little,
make a notes list andcollaborate.
(01:02:00):
Like, oh, can you add this?
I forgot to add this.
Like, before you go to thegrocery store, I mean those
types of things.
Can you add this?
I forgot to add this.
Before you go to the grocerystore, I mean those types of
things.
So I mean we just have so manytools out there to keep it from
being overwhelming.
Trisha Jamison (01:02:12):
Yeah, and one of the things that I like to share
with my clients is to removethe pressure to do it right.
And food is so emotional andit's all about memories and
family and love.
But when we can remove thepressure and just allow
ourselves to just focus on thesimplicity of it because we're
(01:02:36):
always trying to be perfect andalways try to make it do it the
right way, but that's where youcan start to bring back that joy
is to just remove that pressureto do it perfect.
Jeff Jamison (01:02:48):
I agree with that, and I also think that this is a
great place to insert spices.
Trisha Jamison (01:02:54):
Oh yes, Spices are an incredible way.
Jeff Jamison (01:02:58):
Yeah, it's a great way to take what you might feel
is a bland vegetable and spiceit into something that just
makes your taste buds dance.
Kara Roberts (01:03:13):
I think that it's so important.
Jeff Jamison (01:03:15):
I mean, I remember a client you had one time,
Trisha, that told you good luckgetting me to do anything
different because I just don'tlike vegetables and I'm not
eating them and I hate fish.
Trisha Jamison (01:03:29):
Anything good for her, just Diet Coke.
Jeff Jamison (01:03:31):
Why am I?
Trisha Jamison (01:03:31):
not losing weight.
Jeff Jamison (01:03:32):
Potato chips.
I think that was all she ate.
But the thing is is that thereare so much flavor out there if
you use flavor enhancingproducts and, like Trisha said,
spiceology, flavor enhancingproducts and, like Trisha said,
spiceology a little plug forSpiceology, seriously, they're a
local company here in Spokanethat are amazing on what they
produce Kara.
(01:03:53):
Have you used some of theirproducts?
Kara Roberts (01:04:03):
I have a couple of them and they are so good and I
love that you brought that up,because spices, I love spicy
food and not like hot spicy food, but just spices, like I love
Thai food or Indian food orMexican food or Italian, like
any of those that they're sogood.
Having the spices, like I was Idon't know how I was talking to
someone, but I feel likegrowing up, you know everything
was steamed or boiled.
I'm like who wants to eatboiled Brussels sprouts, like ew
(01:04:24):
, but like if you roast Brusselssprouts, they're everything was
steamed or boiled.
I'm like who wants to eatboiled brussels sprouts like ew,
but like if you roast brusselssprouts, right, they're amazing.
They're amazing with a littleolive oil or pink himalayan sea
salt or a little yes, a littlebit of salmon glaze and they're
delicious.
Trisha Jamison (01:04:40):
Well, it's funny because I used to.
When I started getting involvedin Spiceology and using that.
We got them first at a farmer'smarket by mead and we just had
the little tiny bottles and Iloved them so much and then I
started to for Christmas.
We give them out for Christmasgifts, especially to our kids,
(01:05:00):
and the first year they're likethank you, okay, this is kind of
a weird gift.
And now it's like mom, I'm outof greek freak, mom, I'm out of
black magic mom, can you please?
and we have a gallon of greekfreak now.
Seriously, we just got it forchristmas and we have filled
(01:05:24):
everybody's jars and they'rejust like if we're going to Utah
, do you have any more blackmagic?
Do you have any more?
You know these other tandoorior whatever it is, and so they
just love it now.
So, yes, spices are amazing,and if you can start learning
how to cook with spices, yourwhole world will change.
(01:05:45):
It's just so fun.
Jeff Jamison (01:05:47):
And you don't add calories with that.
It doesn't turn things aroundand make things worse because,
oh no, this tastes really good,so it must be bad for me.
That's kind of a lot of the waypeople think.
Trisha Jamison (01:05:58):
Exactly.
Jeff Jamison (01:05:59):
No, it can taste so good.
The other thing is that,especially if you're doing
vegetables and adding certainspices, if you put a little bit
of avocado oil on it or, afterit cools, put a little olive oil
, it just makes it taste butteryand wonderful.
Oh my gosh, I'm getting hungryjust talking about it.
Trisha Jamison (01:06:20):
You're so cute.
Wow, what a powerfulconversation we're having so far
.
We're going to pause here forpart one, but don't go far.
As you can tell, we have beenhaving such a meaningful and fun
time with Kara, can't you justfeel her warmth, her deep
compassion and her incredibleexpertise coming through.
And we're not done yet.
(01:06:42):
There's still more to unpack,including a few more of Lisa's
heartfelt questions how familydynamics influence our health
journey and what it really meansto make peace with food.
Again.
We'll also dive into somesimple, doable things Lisa and
anyone listening can start doingtoday to make a real impact on
their health, mindset and energy.
(01:07:03):
So please join us next week forpart two of this conversation,
as we continue exploring whatsustainable diabetes care truly
looks like with Kara Roberts,from medication choices to
family rhythms, mindset shiftsand food freedom.
So we'll see you next time onthe Q&A Files.
Goodbye everybody.
Thanks for tuning in to the Q&AFiles, delighted to share
(01:07:25):
today's gems of wisdom with you.
Your questions light up ourshow, fueling the engaging
dialogues that make ourcommunity extra special.
Keep sending your que stions toTrisha JamisonCoaching@
gmailcom.
Your curiosity is our compass.
Please hit, subscribe, spreadthe word and let's grow the
circle of insight and communitytogether.
I'm Trisha Jamison signing off.
(01:07:46):
Stay curious, keep thriving andkeep smiling, and I'll catch
you on the next episode.
Hello and welcome to the Q&A Files, the
ultimate health and wellnessplayground.
I'm your host, Trisha Jamison,a board-certified functional
nutritionist and lifestylepractitioner, ready to lead you
through a world of healthdiscoveries.
Here we dive into a tapestry ofdisease prevention, to
nutrition, exercise, mentalhealth and building strong
relationships, all spiced withdiverse perspectives.
(00:29):
It's not just a podcast, it's acelebration of health, packed
with insights and a twist of fun.
Welcome aboard the Q&A Files,where your questions ignite our
vibrant discussions and lead toa brighter you.
Welcome, wellness warriors, toanother episode of the Q&A Files
.
I'm your host, Trisha Jamison,a functional nutritionist and
lifestyle practitioner and alife coach, and, as always, I'm
(00:52):
joined by my fabulous co-host,Dr Jeff Jamison, a
board-certified family physician.
Jeff Jamison (00:56):
Hello, how's it going?
Trisha Jamison (00:58):
Hello, sweetheart.
So today's episode tackles atopic that's not only deeply
important, but one that so manyof you have reached out about.
We're diving into one of themost misunderstood and
emotionally layered diagnosisout there, called type 2
diabetes.
Whether you've just receivedthe diagnosis, left someone
who's managing it, or feelcompletely lost in the whirlwind
(01:21):
of nutrition advice and bloodsugar fears, this conversation
is for you, and we couldn't bemore excited to welcome a guest
who brings not only decades ofexperience but incredible warmth
and clarity to thisconversation.
Today we are so honored towelcome Kara.
Kara K Roberts is a registereddietitian, certified diabetes
(01:42):
educator and certified diabetestechnology clinician with over
25 years of experience helpingpeople navigate complex
conditions like type 2 diabetes,pcos, cardiovascular disease
and weight management.
But what really sets Kara apartis her ability to turn science
into something you can actuallylive in your kitchen, in your
(02:05):
body and in your everydaydecisions.
She currently serves asclinical dietician in Spokane,
washington, where she works withpatients one-on-one and teaches
healthcare teams how tointegrate cutting-edge tools
like insulin pumps andcontinuous glucose monitors.
For the past five years, she'sbeen a specialist with Medtronic
(02:25):
, training both patients andprofessionals to use diabetes
technology with confidence.
Kara's influence extends beyondthe clinic.
She's been featured in regionalmedia, including Spokane Living
Magazine, cram 2 News and 92.9Dave FM, so she's definitely a
rock star, and she's lededucational seminars across the
(02:46):
Northwest on everything fromdebunking fat diets to
navigating obesity in a cultureobsessed with quick fixes.
And while her professionalaccomplishments are absolutely
incredible, kara is also a proudmom, an active volunteer and
someone who genuinely loveshelping people find freedom with
food, especially when it feelslike that freedom has been lost.
(03:08):
So, kara, welcome to the Q&EFiles.
We are so excited to have youhere.
Jeff Jamison (03:14):
Hey Kara.
Kara Roberts (03:16):
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.
I'm so honored to be on yourpodcast.
This is really special.
I'm excited to spend this timewith you both podcast.
Jeff Jamison (03:26):
This is really special and excited to spend
this time with you both.
We are really lucky to haveKara and I've been fortunate to
be able to have her take care ofpatients of mine and she's been
a great help to many peoplelearning how to take care of
their diabetes, eat properly,and she's just a great friend to
people who want to learn how todo things better.
Trisha Jamison (03:45):
Well, and I feel like we've just been kindred
spirits forever.
We just met really for thefirst time, but Jeff has talked
about both of us and so I feellike I already know Kara super
well and I'm just so delightedto have her now on our show, so
so excited.
Kara Roberts (04:00):
And I feel the same way, trish.
So this is really fighting tofinally all be together.
Yeah, that was so, so fun.
Trisha Jamison (04:08):
Before we get into today's topic, we always
begin with something positive.
We love to start withcelebrations.
So, jeff and Kara, what issomething that you're
celebrating today, whether it'sprofessionally or personally, in
your life?
Jeff Jamison (04:23):
Well, I'll go first, because I want to make
sure Kara has plenty of time tothink of what she wants to say.
Thank you, sure, but this lastweek at the office I have a new
physician assistant.
Her name is Lauren.
That has started and she'sgoing to be incredibly good, and
(04:43):
I'm very excited to be able tomentor her to be an excellent
physician assistant, so I'mreally grateful for her.
Trisha Jamison (04:51):
So welcome Lauren.
Glad to have you in the office.
Okay, Kara.
Kara Roberts (04:57):
Yes, so I have a couple of things I was thinking
of.
I was recently promoted in myposition in my profession now,
with being a pump trainer andworking Woohoo.
Jeff Jamison (05:11):
That's awesome.
Kara Roberts (05:12):
Yes, thank you, that's fantastic.
Jeff Jamison (05:15):
Did that come with a commensurate raise too?
Kara Roberts (05:18):
Well, yes.
Jeff Jamison (05:19):
Good.
Kara Roberts (05:20):
Yes, well deserved .
Yes, thank you, and it's beenreally great.
My kiddos have moved closer oneof them and so it's been great
celebrating getting together forholidays and birthdays and
everything, and so I'm justhappy to celebrate that as well
and same time, with family andeveryone being together.
Jeff Jamison (05:41):
How old are your kids?
Kara Roberts (05:43):
They are 28, 24, and 22.
Trisha Jamison (05:47):
Oh Okay.
Jeff Jamison (05:48):
Growing up.
Trisha Jamison (05:49):
Awesome.
Do you have any that live in?
Kara Roberts (05:52):
Spokane.
I have one that lives inSpokane.
Okay, my baby.
Trisha Jamison (05:57):
Your baby.
Well, I'm jealous because ourshave all moved away.
Oh, I'm sorry, so awesome.
Well, my celebration is oneweek from today.
We leave to go to Californiaand we're taking a lot of our
grandchildren and some of ourkids and they're going to meet
in Disneyland.
So we've got a week to spendwith them and I'm super excited
(06:21):
to see them.
So not everyone can come, butwe've got several of them that
will be there with us, so wehave sounds like a blast.
Jeff Jamison (06:29):
Yeah, it should be a good time.
Trisha Jamison (06:31):
You won't miss those that are unable to come,
but we will catch them the nexttime.
Thank you so much, both of you.
Now, kara, we want ourlisteners to get to know you a
little bit better, not just whatyou do, but who you are and how
you got to where you are.
So let's dive into a few funand meaningful questions about
(06:52):
you.
So you've been in the world ofnutrition and diabetes care for
over 25 years.
What first sparked yourinterest in this field, and was
there a personal connection or amoment that pulled you in?
Kara Roberts (07:05):
and was there a personal connection or a moment
that pulled you in?
That is a really good question,trish.
And so one of the things thatstarted was when I graduated
from high school and was readyto go to college.
I had no idea what I was goingto do, and back then nutrition
wasn't really looked upon likeit is today.
It was kind of like, oh, youwork in the cafeteria, like oh
(07:28):
goodness.
And so it was my mom she was theone that actually inspired me.
She goes, you should get intonutrition.
She said it doesn't matter whatyou graduate with, as long as
you have a piece of paper thatsays that you graduated from
college.
And so I didn't really have anyaspirations or any focus at the
time.
And so that's what I did andended up.
(07:50):
Now, looking back, I'm so gladI went into the field that I'm
in now, like I cannot be anymore grateful because it is such
a hot topic now and it justcontinues to evolve.
So it's been a great journey,but that's how I ended up being
where I am today.
Trisha Jamison (08:10):
I love that and I totally agree with you that,
because when I was in college Iwas super interested in
nutrition and it was not a thing.
Kara Roberts (08:18):
Then People just oh gosh, no, no, it was so
frowned upon Like why would youdo that?
Trisha Jamison (08:25):
Exactly, exactly .
Jeff Jamison (08:27):
Well, and sometimes, especially hospital
food is so bad and that's kindof where a lot of dieticians end
up is in the hospital.
It's like, okay, we're going togo in the hospital and you're
going to give Jell-O to people.
Kara Roberts (08:43):
I mean, come on hospital and you're going to
give jello to people.
I mean, come on, exactly, and Iwas so like that too.
It's like, oh my gosh, and Ifeel like it's evolved so much
from even when I graduated.
It's a whole new world in termsof the changes and it's so much
more progressive and it'samazing.
I think of the dietitians thathave graduated recently and they
(09:05):
have such a different outlookand options on everything, and
so, yeah, it's Is it for?
Jeff Jamison (09:12):
is it for the better, do you think?
Kara Roberts (09:14):
Oh, absolutely, absolutely, Definitely for the
better.
Jeff Jamison (09:18):
Oh good.
Trisha Jamison (09:19):
Awesome, yeah, fantastic.
Well, thank you.
So you've worked on both sidesof healthcare indirect patient
care with major pharmaceuticalcompanies.
What's one lesson you'velearned working two different
worlds, right, so you have thecorporate world.
Kara Roberts (09:32):
And then you have the clinical experience that I
have had, working in clinics forover 20 years, and I think the
(09:55):
lesson is keep to your corewhich is helping your patients.
That comes number one and it'slike I'll never lose that.
And I figured if this evertakes me where I am not caring
about my patients, it's time tomove on and find another career.
But that's what has drawn me,because I'm in the clinical side
(10:18):
of things.
There's more of a sales side,but keeping the clinical side
and taking care of my patientsis my passion and I love that,
because these patients that areso out of control with their
diabetes and having thistechnology available really is
life-changing for them and theyfeel better and they're, you
(10:39):
know, instead of taking five orsix injections of insulin a day,
they're on a pump that'srunning 24-7 keeping them in
control and it's a huge gamechanger for them that they
didn't even know was availableuntil they saw their provider.
Jeff Jamison (10:57):
Are patients fearful of the pump or do you
feel like that?
They grab onto it and areenjoying it pretty quickly?
Kara Roberts (11:05):
It depends on the patient.
There are some that are soexcited they can't get scheduled
soon enough to be trained andlearn how to use it, and others
are super scared and feelintimidated.
But the thing is, is thatthey're not going to be trained
and like, okay, you're on yourown?
I mean, they have follow-up,they have resources, they have
(11:28):
their providers or they have me,or they have a 24-hour helpline
, and so there's a lot ofsupport that I don't think they
realize they have once they meetin person.
Is the pump painful, what?
Trisha Jamison (11:40):
is it that they're afraid of?
Is the pump painful?
What is it that they're afraidof?
Kara Roberts (11:45):
I think they're afraid of possibly the lack of
control, like some of them areso used to giving themselves so
many injections a day thathaving something take over of
what they're doing is reallyscary for them, and some of them
(12:05):
because of some of theautomation of the pump.
Now, that is, you have somepatients that are really wanting
to micromanage the pump whenthey don't need to.
Trisha Jamison (12:17):
Okay, so they're just having faith in the pump.
That it will continue to workright is kind of what they're
afraid of.
Jeff Jamison (12:24):
And, I think, running the pump, just making
sure that they have it set upproperly to begin with, I think
they're just like that's theiryuca man.
Kara Roberts (12:34):
Exactly, and a lot of them.
I mean they don't realize thatthe first couple of weeks you're
adjusting the pump anyway, andso, and taking that
consideration is like whenyou're taking these calculations
.
This is a starting point and Ialways tell them I said we're
going to be ingesting this overthe next week or two, so be
(12:54):
patient, give it some time.
Trisha Jamison (12:56):
And is it?
Where does it usually go Ontheir arm?
Kara Roberts (13:00):
Good question.
Okay, so usually the infusionsite goes in the abdomen or
upper buttocks, or it can go inthe legs or the back of the arm,
and typically the sensors nowgo on the back of the arms.
But you do have some patients.
They don't want it on the backof their arms, so they can put
it on their abdomen.
It depends on the patient andwhat they're willing to do, but
(13:23):
usually most sensors go on theback of the arm.
Trisha Jamison (13:25):
Now, okay, Wow, look how far we've come.
That's amazing.
Kara Roberts (13:30):
Oh, it's so amazing.
Jeff Jamison (13:32):
The continuous glucose monitoring system, even
without the pump, is a gamechanger for diabetics in my
opinion, so it's really cool tosee them go.
Oh, I had no idea I was doingthis or my sugars were doing
that.
Sometimes the pump or, excuseme, the sensor, can be a little
daunting to try and figure outat first as well.
How do you handle thosequestions?
Kara Roberts (13:55):
That's a really good question, and so I always
tell them because they're likewell, why am I wearing a sensor?
How's this different thantesting my blood sugars?
And I love this analogy and I'mstealing it from another
coworker, but it's great.
It's like okay, if you'retesting your blood sugars four
to six times a day with a fingerstick, right, so you're testing
(14:17):
your finger and getting a bloodsugar.
That's like taking six to sevenpictures.
But what if you had a glucosemonitor that's playing a movie
Every five minutes, it's testingyour blood sugars and updating.
So you're having 288 bloodsugars in a day.
What would you prefer?
Would you like the movieversion or would you like the
picture version?
Jeff Jamison (14:38):
Oh, that's cool.
Kara Roberts (14:39):
And that blows them away.
Trisha Jamison (14:42):
Wow, well, I've even heard of people that don't
have diabetes, have something on, and I don't know if it's one
of these monitors, but it justkeeps track of the sugars as
well.
Is that what they're mostlikely using or not using,
because?
Is this specifically just fordiabetic patients?
It?
Kara Roberts (15:01):
actually I have been listening to some nutrition
podcasts where they are reallyinto the glucose monitoring and
insulin resistance and thereactions of blood sugars.
In fact it inspired me to weara sensor for a while, and this
was just last week.
I was so shocked because, youknow, you're supposed to keep
(15:21):
your blood sugars around 100, nohigher than 140 or so, and I
was.
I think I had a stir fry and Iate some rice with it or
something, and my rice.
After I ate the rice it spikedup to like 160 or so and I'm
like I don't like golf and I'mnever eating rice again.
But maybe that was just thedietician overreacting.
Jeff Jamison (15:45):
See and that's.
But that's also what I findwith people that are using the
sensor or the continuous glucosemonitor is they find out things
they had no idea about becausethey thought, oh you know,
apples are probably fine, butthen an apple shoots up their
blood sugar, but yet if theyhave a peach, all of a sudden,
everything's fine.
So there are things that youwould expect to raise your blood
sugars that don't, and thenthere's things that do raise
(16:08):
your blood sugar that you didn'texpect would, and so you know,
like the rice, you know.
And so they learn a lot.
Patients learn a lot about whatthey can eat and what their
body tolerates.
I have a glucose mis-sensor.
Trisha Jamison (16:22):
I love that and I think that that's why it's so
imperative to also learn how toeat your food right.
I mean, it's like you want tohave, like an apple with a
handful of nuts or pairing itwith, you know, a healthy fat or
protein that will help bringthat sugar load down as well.
Kara Roberts (16:36):
A hundred percent and I've always told people that
it's like if you're going tohave something, always try to
pair it with a protein, Like ifyou're going to eat a carb, add
a protein with it, have somenuts or, you know, have some
chicken with it or you know,trying to always balance that
out.
Trisha Jamison (16:52):
I call that the PFCs the protein, fats and
carbohydrates.
Yes.
Kara Roberts (16:57):
Yes, awesome, awesome.
I know we still have this joke.
My dietician was like oh, youcan call it the plate method,
which has been out forever.
You could call it the what theplate method.
Like, half of your plate shouldbe non-starchy vegetables, a
quarter of it protein and aquarter of it some kind of
carbohydrate or starchyvegetable, exactly.
Trisha Jamison (17:19):
And I think people really appreciate those
visuals because I think thatthey can use those and make them
work for them.
Definitely Excellent.
So, oh, go ahead.
Kara Roberts (17:31):
Oh, I was just going to say I think it's so
complicated with food toobecause there's so many
different levels of peopleunderstanding what's healthy and
what's not.
And I mean I'm so grateful forour profession because there is
so much education where a lot ofpeople they have no idea.
(17:52):
And then I just think it's sopreventative if they can see a
registered dietitian or adiabetes educator that it can
really change their lives andhave them feel better and just
make a huge impact on theirlives.
Trisha Jamison (18:10):
Absolutely Well.
We just did an episode onpreservatives and seed oils and
just all the really unhealthythings that are in our food, and
I think that that was quite aneye opener for a lot of people.
They have mentioned that.
It's like, wow, I had no idea.
So I think it's just educatingyourself, and there's a lot of
information out there.
(18:30):
There's a lot of misinformationout there, and so that's what
we're going to try to getthrough today.
So you've spoken all over theNorthwest.
If you had to choose onemessage you hope people would
remember long after your talkswhat would it be?
Jeff Jamison (18:47):
That is such a great question yeah you've got
to watch out for her because shecomes up with these questions
that just are killer and youhave to.
It takes a minute to think itthrough, so yeah, go ahead and
think it through.
It's all good, thank you.
Kara Roberts (19:02):
I'm going to steal this.
I heard it from somewhere, I'mnot sure where, but really try
to do your best in choosing oneingredient foods.
Going back to what you said,according to what you mentioned
a little bit ago about howprocessed our foods are, so many
(19:27):
times where you'll grab apackage of something because it
looks healthy and then you getit home and you look at the
label I mean, I've done this somany times and I have two
degrees of nutrition I still doit once in a while and I'll look
at them like I cannot believe Iput that in my grocery cart
what Well, they're so sneaky too.
They are snow oil.
And I'll look at him like Icannot believe I put that in my
grocery cart what?
Trisha Jamison (19:46):
well, they're so sneaky too they are something
that will say no trans fat onthe front of the package.
All you have to do is look inthe back.
Is it has anything that ispartially hydrogenated or
hydrogenated vegetable?
Any kind of oil is your transfat.
So they're just.
It's so hard because you thinkthat these, the food and drug
administration is for you.
(20:08):
They, they want to help you,they want to protect you.
And sorry, it's all about money.
It's not about that at all.
I agree a hundred percent.
Kara Roberts (20:15):
Yeah and you think about, even when you hear how,
like in europe, they don't evenallow half the things I know.
Trisha Jamison (20:23):
That's probably cool.
I mean, so many things arebanned.
It's just a lot of these dyes,just so many of these
ingredients that are so harmfulto our body and should be in
cars and not bodies.
I just don't understand it atall.
It's so frustrating.
Jeff Jamison (20:39):
I'm very it is well, trisha and I are planning
on going to Italy this fall, andthe thing I'm looking forward
to the most is the food.
I mean of course I want to lookat all the history and I'm
looking forward to all the coolthings that there are in these
countries that we'll be going to.
But the food, oh my gosh.
I get to hear nothing but howwonderful the food is.
Trisha Jamison (21:01):
And it makes you feel good.
Kara Roberts (21:03):
It does.
You never feel bad eating it.
Have you been in Europe?
Have you been to?
Trisha Jamison (21:07):
Europe I have.
Oh, good for you.
Okay, so you've had firsthandexperience of how delightful it
is.
Kara Roberts (21:16):
I love it.
Yes, so good.
Trisha Jamison (21:19):
Super Good.
Okay, so you just kind oftalked about this a little bit,
but so we're going to talk aboutfood for a second.
Kara Roberts (21:25):
So what's one thing in your kitchen, then,
that you're loving right now,and what's one food myth that
really frustrates me as adietitian is carbs People talk
(21:47):
about how bad carbs are and likeyou need carbs or you need all
this protein, all this protein,and so I would say that carbs
are not bad and people thinkcarbs are.
If you're staying with wholegrains and the whole food and
not purchasing and buying a lotof processed foods that have the
(22:10):
fiber taking out of it, you'redoing fine, and so I think that
is one of the, I think, annoyingthings that I hear, just like
with my friends and everythingtalking.
I just keep my mouth shut.
Trisha Jamison (22:25):
Well, and I think that people don't
understand the differencebetween simple carbs and complex
carbs, because simple carbsimmediately turn into sugar.
Your complex carbs take moretime to digest in your body and
they're full of more nutrients,and so I think that everything
is under the same umbrella as acarb, and all carbs are bad.
So I agree with you, right, yes, yes, yes, very, very good.
Jeff Jamison (22:50):
My problem is I've never met a carb.
I didn't, like you know, and sothat I think that's something
that we all have to concentrateon is, yes, not all carbs are
bad but too much of a good thingis bad, so we have to be
careful, even on quantity.
Trisha Jamison (23:09):
Yeah, exactly, there's something to be said
about that, for sure.
Kara Roberts (23:11):
Just like they say , everything in moderation.
Right yeah, Right the 80-20rule.
Trisha Jamison (23:17):
Yes, the problem is that we're eating 80% bad
and 20% good instead of theother way around 80% bad and 20%
good instead of the other wayaround.
So we want to still be able toindulge and enjoy our food, but
we've got to flip things arounda little bit.
Jeff Jamison (23:34):
Kara, do you have any kind of quick tips for
people on how to judge how muchof certain carbs they should eat
at a meal?
There are people who they sayoh you know, I have to have this
many grams of that or this manygrams of this, and I just
wondered if you have quick waysfor people to make judgments on
quantity.
Kara Roberts (23:52):
They usually recommend a serene like say
they'll do, like the visuals,like a fistful is a serving, or
like the palm of your hand wouldbe a serving of protein, which
is about three ounces, and yourthumbs for fat?
Yeah, exactly.
I mean that would be a quick way, or I always told people too
(24:15):
that it would come in.
As patients, I would always saywe're creatures of habit.
If you measure something onetime, you're going to have an
eyeball, You're going to knowexactly what a serving is, even
if you measure, like, say, onetime, Just to get an idea of
what a serving is.
Because most people don't knowwhat a serving is or they don't
pay attention to it.
(24:35):
But it's a lot of people thatare on insulin.
They do know how to count theircarbs when they're pretty
proficient at it.
But the ones that say arestarting out and they're so
overwhelmed like I've hadpatients come in and they're
going on insulin pumps and theydon't even know what foods have
carbohydrates in them.
So you're starting out fromground zero and working on quick
(24:58):
and easy resources where you'relooking for visuals, Like in
fact I have a friend that's adietician and she created her
own sheet where one sheet of itis like okay, these are the
foods that have carbs, and thenthe flip side of it, these are
the foods that don't have carbsLike, just keep it simple.
And I think that's the messagethat people need to do is just
(25:20):
try to keep it simple.
Trisha Jamison (25:22):
Yeah, and I think that that is the challenge
, because it doesn't feel simple.
It feels so complex andcomplicated and I think people
really get confused becausethere's just so much stuff out
there.
So we'll get into that soon.
Sorry, go ahead.
Kara Roberts (25:37):
I was just going to say another way to keep it
simple, and I always ask mypatients that would come in.
I said do you you start witheating?
Think about eating five to nineservings of fruits and
vegetables a day and just startthere.
most people do not do that oh,for sure right and just start
there, just focus on your plantsand go from there and kind of
(26:00):
build around those, because Ifeel like in our culture we are
so focused on oh, let's eat thatbig steak or you know that's
huge quantity of protein andwork around that when it should
be more as a condiment, and soflipping that mindset is a
really good way to look at it aswell, and keeping it simple and
(26:22):
just starting now, right.
Trisha Jamison (26:24):
Right, so good, excellent, excellent.
Okay, so you've been featuredin everything from local radio
to TV.
What's one of your mostmemorable media moments that
you've had?
Memorable media moments.
Kara Roberts (26:37):
That would be on a TV.
Okay, it was on the news and Iwas really nervous and I was
trying to operate a bloodglucose meter and teaching
nutrition at the same time, likein a like two or five minute
(26:58):
segment.
And that just sticks outbecause it was all last minute,
it wasn't preplanned andeverything kind of took me off
guard, but it all worked out.
I don't know if you but that'swhat you're asking, but that was
most memorable okay, yeah, itcould have been anything, so
that works perfectly, yeah itwas a television spot.
(27:22):
It was a television spot and Ididn't have a lot.
I mean, they, they will pullpeople for dietitian spots and
no one ever wants to do them,and I think I was at the time
volunteering for the greaterspokane dietetic association and
so they were just looking forsomeone.
No one was gonna do it.
I'm like okay I'll do it but itwas all very impromptu.
Trisha Jamison (27:43):
But that's probably the most memorable one
okay, and sometimes those arethe best because they're so
organic.
Kara Roberts (27:51):
Yes.
Trisha Jamison (27:51):
Yes, you don't think they are, but they are I
love it, yes, makes you feellike a real person.
Okay, so you've raised a familywhile building your career and
volunteering.
So what keeps you grounded andhas kept you grounded through
(28:12):
all of that?
Through your career, throughvolunteering and raising your
family.
Kara Roberts (28:16):
Preach I try to exercise every day, whether it's
going to walk the dog.
I try to eat healthy every day.
(28:37):
I mean, I like junk food justas much as anybody else, but not
all the time.
I try to have it in moderation,like once in a while, and drink
lots of water and really keepconnected with my friends and my
family, which is reallyimportant.
And just having being groundedspiritually.
(29:01):
I think all those are extremelyimportant in having that
network and having thatcommunity.
Trisha Jamison (29:09):
Those are excellent and I think a lot of
times those other pieces getoverlooked and they're so
grounding, you know, theconnection with family and just
your faith.
I think that those are reallyimportant as well, so thank you
for sharing that.
Jeff Jamison (29:24):
I also think that it's really cool that you stay
grounded with your friendcommunity.
I mean, that is reallyimportant to have friends that
you can trust and you know,because life is tough and messy,
so it's nice to have people youcan share it with, that you can
trust.
Kara Roberts (29:40):
Absolutely, absolutely.
You don't know what to dowithout them.
Trisha Jamison (29:44):
Right Super.
Now for someone newly diagnosedand overwhelmed with their
being diagnosed with type 2diabetes, what's one word of
encouragement you'd like them tohear today?
Kara Roberts (29:58):
I would say one word of encouragement is that
it's okay, it's going to be okay.
There's so many resources outthere, there's so many people
out there that can help you.
And to ask your healthcareprovider it's like where can I
go to have that help?
Because there is help.
(30:18):
It's not a death sentence byany means.
There's so many things that youcan do to help yourself,
whether it's getting out for awalk after dinner, or it's
preparing a healthy meal, orit's going to see a registered
dietitian or a diabetes educator, or talking to your health
(30:39):
provider.
There's so many things outthere and the websites out there
, as we all know, it's endless,and so, beginning on the right
websites as well, you can't haveeverything you read also, but
talking to those professionalsare going to really keep it
simple for you.
Trisha Jamison (30:59):
I think that's so good, that's so important.
Jeff Jamison (31:02):
I love also that when a person gets newly
diagnosed with type 2 diabetes,I like to have the discussion
with them about what insulinresistance actually means and
what it means on the cellularlevel and when they can see that
, and I draw pictures and stufflike that.
It's about a five-minuteconversation, it doesn't take
(31:23):
very long, but it's somethingwhen you can draw it out and
then I usually sign whatever Idrew and hand it to them so they
can take it home.
But having some basicunderstanding.
And then a lot of people wantto have this is what I can eat
and this is what I can't eat andthese lists of foods to yes or
(31:44):
no's on, and I don't like to dothat.
I don't like to give them a biglist Because first of all, they
will do it for a little while,but then they will go right back
to their normal habits whenthey get tired of it.
So I want them to be able tomake small changes that reap big
results by keeping it simple.
Trisha Jamison (32:03):
So I love what you're saying about simple.
Kara Roberts (32:07):
I agree, because there's so much information out
there and everyone has anopinion about everything right,
and they're going to know,whether you want to hear it or
not, and it is.
It's really not making thoselists and making it work for
them, and I mean some of thelike.
I even noticed some of thethings I get caught up in doing
(32:29):
and I was like, oh my, I was, Idon't know.
This is like really silly, butI was putting coconut sugar in
my drink in the morning and I'mlike what am I doing?
I'd have my little oatmeal andmy little coffee drink with it
and I was like, okay, I don'teven need this.
And it's just little things.
You kind of get in bad habits.
(32:49):
You only realize you're doingthem and I stopped doing it.
But it's somebody.
Even if you talk to somebodyabout it, it's like, oh well,
what are some of the littletricks and tips that you could
learn from an educator as wellthat could point out some things
that you wouldn't even thinkthat you were doing wrong?
Not having that background,that could really be super
(33:12):
helpful for you and make animpact on your blood sugars and
your weight and what you'refocusing on.
Trisha Jamison (33:20):
Absolutely, absolutely so good, okay.
So before we get into ourlistener question today, we want
to pause and zoom out for amoment, because this
conversation isn't just aboutour personal experiences.
It's global.
So we want to buckle up,because diabetes is a global
titan and it's hitting our kidshard too.
(33:42):
So, as of 2025, 589 millionadults one in nine worldwide are
living with diabetes, with morethan 40% completely unaware
that they're even at risk forlife-altering complications like
heart attacks, kidney failureand blindness.
In the US, 38.4 million peopleare affected, including nearly 9
(34:05):
million who haven't beendiagnosed yet, and we're
spending $513 billion a year inhealthcare costs and lost
productivity.
Global diabetes is a $1 trillionburden, up 338% in just 17
years, and it's now claiming 3.4million lives annually.
That's one in every six seconds.
(34:27):
And our children?
They're not spared either.
The type 1 diabetes is strikingthousands of our kids,
requiring lifelong insulin,while type 2 is raising fast in
youth as well, with more than5,000 new cases each year alone
in the US, and it's largelylinked to lifestyle and obesity.
So let's start here, kara, forour listeners who might not know
(34:49):
the difference, can you brieflyexplain how type 1 and type 2
diabetes differ, both in howthey develop and how they're
managed.
Kara Roberts (34:57):
Yes, so type 1 diabetes is an immune reaction
where the pancreas does notproduce insulin any longer and
so they end up having to takeinsulin and inject it to open
the cell so the energy can getinside the cell.
Where, with type 2 diabetes,there's more of an insulin
(35:22):
resistance, where the cell isnot going to open up for the
energy and I'm sure, jeff, youcould probably explain it a
little better than I with yourbackground, but that would be my
explanation of that and withtype 2 diabetes it can be more
controlled with diet andexercise in terms of decreasing
(35:44):
the complications of the type 2diabetes, with medications and
lifestyle behavioral changes.
Jeff Jamison (35:52):
I think you did a great job.
Trisha Jamison (35:54):
Oh, thank you yeah.
Jeff Jamison (35:55):
So you know, and insulin resistance is such a
difficult concept to reallyunderstand without kind of
visual aids, I think, because ifyou were to draw a picture of a
glucose molecule that'sfloating around in your
bloodstream, which is the energypackage that our body needs
(36:18):
inside the cells, and if youcould connect that to insulin,
so if you've got a cellularconnection or a chemical
connection to the glucose withinsulin, there's like a little
package that swims around in thebloodstream that is ready to be
put into a cell, and thatlittle package with insulin and
(36:42):
glucose has to physically bumpinto a thing called a receptor
that is on the outside of a cell, sniffing the bloodstream for
insulin.
And so when the insulin touchesthat receptor then you get a
thing called active transport,which actually pulls the glucose
molecule inside the cell.
(37:03):
And if you didn't have thatthing happen then it would not
happen at all.
So this is one of the reasonswhy type 1 diabetics, if they
don't produce insulin and theydon't get any outside insulin
source, they die because theirbody cannot take in the cellular
(37:24):
energy from glucose.
But people that have insulinresistance don't have enough
insulin receptors on the cellsto be able to accept those
little packages of energy andpull them into the cell.
So how does that sound?
It's hard to do withoutpictures, but here we are.
Trisha Jamison (37:43):
I was going to say Jeff does so well with
pictures.
Where are your pictures, honey?
But, yeah, no, he does a nicejob drawing things to explain
what he's talking about.
I think that that was perfect.
You did a great job.
And for listeners who might benewly diagnosed or unsure why is
type 2 diabetes so dangerous ifleft unmanaged?
Jeff Jamison (38:04):
Go ahead Kara.
Kara Roberts (38:05):
Okay, because what it can do it's almost like this
sounds really extreme, but it'salmost like a slow death in
terms of you don't feel it.
Some people don't have symptomsand they continue living as
they're living and they go tothe doctor and they have some
(38:29):
lab work done, or maybe they'rerunning to the restroom all the
time.
They can't figure out why, orpossibly they can't figure out
why their feet are tingling andgoing numb, and so it's scary,
because it's not thatsymptomatic for people that are
(38:49):
newly diagnosed.
Jeff Jamison (38:51):
Until it is.
Kara Roberts (38:52):
Exactly, exactly, and so that's one of the scary
parts about it is that a lot ofpeople don't even know they have
it.
Trisha Jamison (39:03):
And I like what you said.
It really is a slow death.
You know there's all thesesymptoms going on, but they
don't happen all at once.
And so these symptoms thathappen gradually, they don't
happen all at once and so thesesymptoms that happen gradually,
they don't pick up on some ofthese things that they need to
be picking up on.
So that was great.
Jeff Jamison (39:18):
It's like a bomb with a mile long fuse.
Yeah, you know it's somethingthat you don't know, that that
thing is lit and coming towardsyou until all of a sudden it
hits.
Kara Roberts (39:29):
It's a tough one.
Jeff Jamison (39:32):
A lot of people think that the big problem is
elevated blood sugar.
And it is a big problem, but itis not something that people
feel.
You don't feel, until it'sreally high.
You don't feel it.
You might have some increasedthirst, you might just feel a
little more sluggish, you can'tlose weight.
(39:52):
These are the little thingsthat you might not even
understand that are happeninguntil you get a blood test that
says, oh, your spot check bloodsugar was 210.
And your A1c, which tells meabout the last 90 days of blood
sugar, which should be under six, is now 11.2.
(40:15):
And these are things that itcatches people off guard,
because when we're trying tomanage blood sugar and diabetes,
we want that A1c as close tosix or below as we can, and if
you're at 11, that's a long wayto go Right, exactly, well, okay
(40:38):
, so that's a great lead-in totoday's listener question, and
this is pretty lengthy.
Trisha Jamison (40:46):
We'll see how this goes because there's a lot
here.
Her name is Lisa.
She really poured out her heart.
She says Hi, trisha and Dr.
And she, her name is Lisa.
She really poured out her heart.
She says hi, trisha and Dr.
Jamison.
My name is Lisa, I'm 47, a momof two teenagers, and I was
diagnosed with type 2 diabeteseight months ago.
When my doctor first told me, Ifelt like my world tilted.
I went into a spiral of fear,immediately thinking about
(41:08):
complications, insulin shots andworst case scenarios.
Since then, I've been trying tofigure it all out on my own
Cutting out sugar, experimentingwith keto, tracking every carb
and reading every article I canfind online.
But honestly, I'm exhausted.
There are days I really doreally well Meal prepping,
checking my blood sugar, beingactive but then there are weeks
(41:30):
I completely fall off.
I get overwhelmed, burned outand just eat whatever.
Then I feel guilty and scaredall over again.
I've lost some weight and myA1C has improved a little, but I
feel like I've lost the joy offood and in life.
I used to love cooking with mykids.
Now I'm just reading labels anddoing math on every ingredient.
(41:51):
Lately I keep hearing peopletalk about Ozempic and Monjaro
Some people have diabetes andsome who don't and I find myself
wondering am I supposed to beon one of those drugs?
Would it make things easier orjust add more stress?
I honestly don't even know whatto ask about that.
I've been told a dieticiancould help, but part of me is
(42:11):
afraid it will just be morerules that I can't follow.
I need help finding a way tolive with this diagnosis without
constantly feeling like I'mfailing or broken.
I want to make peace with foodagain.
Is it really possible to managediabetes in a way that's
sustainable and doesn't feellike punishment?
And what does a realpartnership with a dietitian
(42:33):
even look like?
So we have a lot of movingpieces here, but I have to say I
think that this is a fantasticquestion, because there's a lot
of people that this really feelsfamiliar to Kara.
Where would you even begin withsomeone like her?
What are some of the thingsthat you would first address?
Kara Roberts (42:56):
I would first address what are you eating now.
Ask those questions.
It's like well, what's yourbreakfast look like?
Are you eating two meals a day?
One meal a day?
Are you eating five times a dayand then taking that and
meeting where the patient's atlike, maybe she's doing really
well and doesn't even know she'sdoing well and maybe she really
(43:19):
doesn't need to make a lot ofchanges.
Maybe she just needs to make atweak.
Maybe there's something whereshe might need to like.
Maybe she's only eating carbsat a meal but she's not
balancing it out with a littlebit of protein, and so if she
could maybe adjust that.
I always try to do more babysteps than you know, going all
(43:42):
out and trying to changeeverything what they're doing,
because we're all adults, we'reall gonna make the changes that
we want to change.
But if you're not willing tomake too many drastic changes
which hopefully she doesn't itsounds like she does have some
education that would be helpful,and if she did go see a
(44:02):
dietician, they're going to helpher with identifying those
things that she may or may notneed to change.
And having someone ask thosequestions of what she's doing
now help her read food labels,how to look at those
macronutrients, how to break itdown so that it's on her level
and not overwhelming.
(44:23):
And again it's going back tokeeping it simple Because I
think if you overcomplicate itit's overwhelming for the
patient.
Trisha Jamison (44:32):
Yeah, absolutely .
And I love what you just saidabout slowing down and keeping
things simple, because, as weknow, healing doesn't just come
from a place of pressure orpanic.
When we start to feel thatpressure, where do we go?
That's when we start eating thewrong foods anyway.
And so when we are able to justkind of slow down, take a
(44:54):
moment, take a step back, thenwe kind of can think through
what am I eating?
I love that first question toowhat are you eating?
First of all, maybe she's doingbetter than she thinks and it's
focusing on the good thingsthat she's doing rather than all
the things that she's not doing.
Well, I think that that helpskeep them feel safe enough to
take that next step forward.
So I love that.
(45:14):
So she's clearly trying, butthis all or nothing pattern is
wearing her out.
How do you help someone breakfree from burnout cycle?
Kara Roberts (45:25):
That is really good in terms of what do you do
when they're burned out?
I always tell patients thatthey're having a challenge with
burnout Again.
Maybe they need to spend andnot everyone's going to do this
we're all guilty of not beingthis regimented but maybe it's
(45:45):
planning three meals a week.
But maybe it's planning threemeals a week, keeping it easy
and then maybe eating theleftovers on a couple of the
other days where it's being alittle more organized, so that,
(46:17):
like, if you're working fivedays a week and you're just
coming home and you're ravenousand you're just going to eat
whatever you see in therefrigerator or the pantry and
you're like, oh my gosh, youjust don't care.
But it's the other thing too,like I always tell people, like,
don't keep your trigger foodsin the house.
That that's another thing thatI've noticed with a lot, a lot
of people so like, oh, I love myice cream, I love this, and,
and that's fine, you got, youhave to have those things once
in a while.
You have to treat yourself oncein a while.
You have to I mean, we're allhuman, right, but try not to
(46:37):
keep them in the house, the onesthat, or you just can't if
you're gonna like eat ice creamafter work every day.
Trisha Jamison (46:43):
Well, that's not a good idea, right, right and
so and there's so it's notremember the star trek days,
jeff oh, yeah, every night, abowl of ice cream, watching star
trek yeah, star trek the nextgeneration came out way, way far
back yeah, we used to sit andwatch that when it came out and
(47:04):
it was our ritual yeah, oh yeah,awesome.
Kara Roberts (47:06):
Yeah, and there's so many food apps I was just
gonna and there's so many foodapps.
I was just going to say there'sso many.
Like there's so many differentones that have meal planning
ideas or tracking ideas, andsometimes in some of them that
you can scan your meal, and it'slike we're so many tools out
there to keep it easy so thatyou're not overwhelmed.
(47:27):
And, like with this person thatasked this question, it's like
Lisa okay.
Well, maybe he just needs alittle food app or something to
like kind of help her keep ontrack too.
And there's so many out therethat are available now.
Like there's my fitness palthat's been out forever and
there's, I think there's anotherone, I can't think of the name,
(47:48):
but there's a lot.
Oh so much yes, and just keep itin perspective and, like I said
before, like hey, are youeating five to nine servings of
vegetables a day?
Start there and work aroundthat.
Trisha Jamison (48:05):
Perfect, and one of the things that I like to
share with my clients is thatthey don't need a new plan.
They need new patterns, andit's these patterns that are
built on consistency, not onperfection.
Kara Roberts (48:18):
I love that.
That's perfect yes.
Trisha Jamison (48:20):
Yeah, thank you, but I think sometimes we just
we get so overwhelmed with somany things that we need to do
and it's just like let's justtake one thing at a time.
So Lisa also mentioned thatshe's been reading everything
she can find online and we knowthat includes a lot of a buzz
around medications like Ozempicor Manjara.
So, kara and you know, I think,even like a year ago, it was
(48:46):
like the wonder drug.
Everybody wanted to get on it.
They wanted to be part of thisnew trend.
But I think that there's areally dark side of this
medication.
So, before we dive into Lisa'sfood and lifestyle struggles,
can we take a moment to addressthis part?
What are these medications?
Who are they really meant forand what are the benefits and
(49:07):
risks of using them, especiallyfor someone newly diagnosed with
type 2 diabetes like Lisa, oreven those considering them for
weight loss alone?
Kara Roberts (49:15):
So I want to hear what Jeff wants to say, first
about what he thinks as ahealthcare professional, and
then I'm going to give my twocents worth if that's okay.
Jeff Jamison (49:28):
Oh, you're handing off.
Okay, gotcha.
Kara Roberts (49:32):
Yes, all right yes .
Jeff Jamison (49:34):
Okay, so back at the first part of our podcast
history, we did a thing where wetalked about Ozempic and other
injectable diabetic drugs andthe information that we have
about them now is much bigger.
The information that we haveabout them now is much bigger
and so we've had a lot morepeople that have used them and
(49:55):
I've prescribed them for peoplefor just weight loss at times,
and there are good parts to itand there are bad parts to them.
They do change the metabolismof your system so that your
system will digest and work withyour sugars better.
There is a significantreduction in blood sugar.
(50:16):
That happens with using Ozempic, manjaro and all of the others.
So those do work and it alsodoes have an appetite
suppression portion of theirability.
But the way that they do that is, it really slows down your
metabolism or how fast foodmoves through your digestive
(50:38):
system.
So that comes to where some ofthe side effects happen.
So side effects really commonare constipation, nausea,
vomiting and just feeling likethe word is malaise.
That just is really tired.
Don't like to do anythinganywhere, you just don't want to
get up and move.
(51:00):
And so these are things thathappen with that.
And then, more recently, one ofthe big problems we found with
them is they cause irreversiblemuscle loss, which is so
terrifying and so, yes, so Imean, the longer you use it, the
more it is.
So you feel malaise, but yetthe thing that would help you
(51:22):
not lose muscle is exercise, butyou don't feel like doing it.
So it's a and again, it'sirreversible.
You can't get those musclefibers back and older people
like myself, we're losing musclefibers as it is, and to
(51:42):
increase that rate ofdegradation of muscle is not a
good thing, and it alsodecreases your own metabolic
burn rate.
When you don't have enoughmuscle fibers burning fat and
burning glucose and doing thethings, you can't lose weight,
which is what you're trying todo with these things.
Right, okay, so another thingthat's happened recently is that
Manjaro and Ozempic and othershappened recently is that
(52:06):
Manjaro and Ozempic and othersmostly it's those two, manjaro
and Ozempic, because there was asignificant push on getting
those meds.
The manufacturers couldn'tproduce it as fast as they
needed to, so they ran out ofthese things way before they
really wanted to.
So they really had to step uptheir production, but in the
meantime compounding pharmaciesgot involved and they started
(52:29):
compounding this medication,which is kind of an emergency
way.
The FDA allows for a patenteddrug to be used generically, but
now the emergency is over.
So the companies, at leastlocally I don't know about
nationally, but locally, thecompanies that were compounding
(52:49):
Ozempic and Terzapatide, whichis Manjaro, they've stopped
doing a lot of that because theFDA said sorry, we don't have
that situation anymore.
So it significantly increasesthe cost to those who want to
use it outside of its labeling.
So there's the kind of state ofthe union for Ozempic and
(53:12):
Manjaro.
Trisha Jamison (53:13):
Okay, so Cara, what are your thoughts?
My thoughts.
Thank you, jeff.
Kara Roberts (53:19):
Yes, thank you, that was amazing.
Jeff Jamison (53:20):
It's a lot more than you wanted, I'm sure, but
that's it.
Kara Roberts (53:23):
No, so good, it was so good.
I love the way you articulatedit.
So thank you.
So what's going to happen 10years from now?
Like, what are the studiesgoing to come out?
I haven't read the packageinsert on these products, but
what's going to happen?
(53:43):
Remember the fen-fen phase, howthat was a thing?
What 20 years ago, 25 years ago?
Right, kind of push them overthe edge to get into those
(54:04):
healthy habits, or just a littlenudge to kind of get them on
the right track of like hey,like maybe boosting their
confidence, that to get them,they can do this.
They can do this, like they canlose a few pounds, they can get
this, but long term I alwaysfeel like there's repercussions
with these medications.
Like I know, they have goodintentions.
(54:25):
I know it's all about.
You know the almighty dollarand everything like that too,
but at the same time it's likeyou need to start out with the
basics and having a greatfoundation of eating healthy.
Trisha Jamison (54:41):
Well, and I think, too, that once you go off
this medication, you're goingto gain that weight back, and
you're not going to be able to.
You know, you're going to putit all on as fat.
So your muscle is gone, and sothat is going to be.
I think what we're going to beseeing over the next several
years is going to becatastrophic, actually, and I
think when we first aired this ayear ago, I mean it was, like I
(55:03):
said, the magic wonder drug.
You can take it whether youhave diabetes or if you just
want to lose some weight.
And now we've got so manypeople that have participated in
this that I just, like you,said, I think, oh my gosh,
long-term, even in the shortterm, I think we're going to
really be in for some pain andit's going to be really hard.
Jeff Jamison (55:27):
Well, not to mention the incredible cost of
the medicine itself.
Trisha Jamison (55:31):
Oh, it's ridiculous.
Jeff Jamison (55:32):
It is.
It's ridiculous.
I mean, and if you've gotinsurance that will cover it and
it's only covered if you havepoorly controlled diabetes,
you've used other oralmedications and it's still not
working and you're testing yourblood sugar frequently, then you
might be able to convince aninsurance company to pay for it.
But if not, the name brandOzempic, for instance, it's
(55:56):
about $1,600 a month.
That's four injections.
Trisha Jamison (56:01):
That is insane.
Jeff Jamison (56:02):
It is crazy expensive.
So there are a lot of peoplewho are going to be opting out,
for financial reasons, of course, and that may be a good thing,
so that people really only thepeople who should be getting it
are getting it.
Trisha Jamison (56:16):
Well, and then we even see on Facebook, on
social media, where, oh, you canmake manjaro from ingredients
in your kitchen and there'salways a catch, there's always
something.
I mean we just can't stopreaching for that magic pill.
We just want it so bad, butunfortunately, losing weight,
(56:39):
staying healthy, takes time andeffort and patience, and we
don't want to do that as humans.
Yeah, and the other part is butthe quick fix.
Jeff Jamison (56:49):
Yes, the quick fix is but we are so blessed here
in the United States to have somuch food available, of any kind
of food you want and anycountry that makes Mexican or
Indian food or whatever.
You have so many differenttypes of food that are available
just for the having.
(57:09):
We are so blessed to be able tohave these things, but we use
them inappropriately and justlike anything that we over.
You know I'm certainly guiltyof it myself.
I definitely love to eat andwill overdo it if given the
opportunity, and so we have tojust figure out how to do some
(57:31):
self-control, be able to say howmuch we should eat, and so on.
I think actually, people spendmore time trying to figure out
what they're going to wear inthe morning than how they are
going to use their food duringthe day.
Trisha Jamison (57:44):
Yeah, that's funny.
One of the things that I justwant to pull out, too, is a lot
of times our food, what's in ourfood, is addictive.
They put addictive substancesand ingredients in our food to
want us to eat more, and sosometimes you know, like chips,
those barbecue chips, you can'tjust have 10 on your plate.
(58:05):
You go have to have severalhandfuls and before you know it,
you've eaten the bags right,and so they do that on purpose.
And our drinks and our you know,lots of our snacks and those
kind of things, and so that'swhy it's so important to eat
just the, the fresh fruits andvegetables that cara was talking
about.
It's just going back to thesimple things that make our life
(58:29):
a lot easier.
Jeff Jamison (58:29):
You said Kara, single ingredient foods.
Kara Roberts (58:32):
Yes, yes, and it's so hard because we're such a
society of everything is quickQuick for food, a quick pill.
We want to be 20 pounds lightertomorrow and it's all about
consistency and planning aheadand, like you said, trisha, it
(58:55):
all takes time and beingdiligent and making it work and
making it part of your lifestyleis such an important thing.
I mean you think about, like, Ihave a little workout buddy and
she and I were always talkingabout it and it's like, okay,
most important, sleep, and thenyour nutrition and exercise.
(59:20):
I mean they're so key to thefoundation of feeling good every
day and I think a lot of usthink that we can get away with
not doing one of those threethings, and you can't, I mean,
and if you don't do it, youdon't feel great.
Trisha Jamison (59:38):
Right, exactly, thank you.
Thank you so much.
So Lisa said cooking used tobring her joy, but now it feels
like punishment.
How do you help someone likeher reconnect with food in a way
that feels good again?
Kara Roberts (59:52):
going back to cooking basic and having,
because there's so manyresources available.
I always ask somebody it's likewhat are, what are your two
favorite meals?
And go from there, what are youwilling to do?
Are you willing to cook twomeals a week, one meal a week?
(01:00:16):
Or maybe you cook three meals aweek and maybe you have one or
two that are already preparedbut healthy, so that it's not so
overwhelming, because I don'tknow a lot of people and some
people do.
Some people do cook every mealfrom scratch, every single nine
a week, but I mean for peoplethat are working full-time,
(01:00:36):
that's not sustainable.
There's, there's no way.
I mean even for myself now,like there's no, there's no way
and just and making time like ifit all works out and the stars
line up, like I always like tohave Sunday as a meal prep day
where I'll make a list of likethree things that I'm going to
make for the week and then go tothe grocery store, have them
(01:00:59):
made and then you can eat off ofthem for the week or add a
couple, you know, things thatare maybe I end up eating out
with a friend or something onenight that week and then that
way it's not so overwhelming.
And then I'm prepared so thatwhen you're busy or you're tired
and you come home, you're likeyou're just not grabbing
(01:01:19):
whatever.
You already have something thatyou can warm up or just stir
fry something really quick andit's not so overwhelming and
daunting because it can be.
But it's really taking thattime to, you know, make a
grocery list and have it out.
It's like, oh, I'm just, thissounds really good, I'm going to
(01:01:39):
make this and or do it on yourphone, like some people are
really good about making noteson their phones.
Or my daughter showed me how tocollaborate a list, like maybe.
Like, say, you and Jeff areplanning on making a meal, or
you know, try to meal planning,and you can have these little,
make a notes list andcollaborate.
(01:02:00):
Like, oh, can you add this?
I forgot to add this.
Like, before you go to thegrocery store, I mean those
types of things.
Can you add this?
I forgot to add this.
Before you go to the grocerystore, I mean those types of
things.
So I mean we just have so manytools out there to keep it from
being overwhelming.
Trisha Jamison (01:02:12):
Yeah, and one of the things that I like to share
with my clients is to removethe pressure to do it right.
And food is so emotional andit's all about memories and
family and love.
But when we can remove thepressure and just allow
ourselves to just focus on thesimplicity of it because we're
(01:02:36):
always trying to be perfect andalways try to make it do it the
right way, but that's where youcan start to bring back that joy
is to just remove that pressureto do it perfect.
Jeff Jamison (01:02:48):
I agree with that, and I also think that this is a
great place to insert spices.
Trisha Jamison (01:02:54):
Oh yes, Spices are an incredible way.
Jeff Jamison (01:02:58):
Yeah, it's a great way to take what you might feel
is a bland vegetable and spiceit into something that just
makes your taste buds dance.
Kara Roberts (01:03:13):
I think that it's so important.
Jeff Jamison (01:03:15):
I mean, I remember a client you had one time,
Trisha, that told you good luckgetting me to do anything
different because I just don'tlike vegetables and I'm not
eating them and I hate fish.
Trisha Jamison (01:03:29):
Anything good for her, just Diet Coke.
Jeff Jamison (01:03:31):
Why am I?
Trisha Jamison (01:03:31):
not losing weight.
Jeff Jamison (01:03:32):
Potato chips.
I think that was all she ate.
But the thing is is that thereare so much flavor out there if
you use flavor enhancingproducts and, like Trisha said,
spiceology, flavor enhancingproducts and, like Trisha said,
spiceology a little plug forSpiceology, seriously, they're a
local company here in Spokanethat are amazing on what they
produce Kara.
(01:03:53):
Have you used some of theirproducts?
Kara Roberts (01:04:03):
I have a couple of them and they are so good and I
love that you brought that up,because spices, I love spicy
food and not like hot spicy food, but just spices, like I love
Thai food or Indian food orMexican food or Italian, like
any of those that they're sogood.
Having the spices, like I was Idon't know how I was talking to
someone, but I feel likegrowing up, you know everything
was steamed or boiled.
I'm like who wants to eatboiled Brussels sprouts, like ew
(01:04:24):
, but like if you roast Brusselssprouts, they're everything was
steamed or boiled.
I'm like who wants to eatboiled brussels sprouts like ew,
but like if you roast brusselssprouts, right, they're amazing.
They're amazing with a littleolive oil or pink himalayan sea
salt or a little yes, a littlebit of salmon glaze and they're
delicious.
Trisha Jamison (01:04:40):
Well, it's funny because I used to.
When I started getting involvedin Spiceology and using that.
We got them first at a farmer'smarket by mead and we just had
the little tiny bottles and Iloved them so much and then I
started to for Christmas.
We give them out for Christmasgifts, especially to our kids,
(01:05:00):
and the first year they're likethank you, okay, this is kind of
a weird gift.
And now it's like mom, I'm outof greek freak, mom, I'm out of
black magic mom, can you please?
and we have a gallon of greekfreak now.
Seriously, we just got it forchristmas and we have filled
(01:05:24):
everybody's jars and they'rejust like if we're going to Utah
, do you have any more blackmagic?
Do you have any more?
You know these other tandoorior whatever it is, and so they
just love it now.
So, yes, spices are amazing,and if you can start learning
how to cook with spices, yourwhole world will change.
(01:05:45):
It's just so fun.
Jeff Jamison (01:05:47):
And you don't add calories with that.
It doesn't turn things aroundand make things worse because,
oh no, this tastes really good,so it must be bad for me.
That's kind of a lot of the waypeople think.
Trisha Jamison (01:05:58):
Exactly.
Jeff Jamison (01:05:59):
No, it can taste so good.
The other thing is that,especially if you're doing
vegetables and adding certainspices, if you put a little bit
of avocado oil on it or, afterit cools, put a little olive oil
, it just makes it taste butteryand wonderful.
Oh my gosh, I'm getting hungryjust talking about it.
Trisha Jamison (01:06:20):
You're so cute.
Wow, what a powerfulconversation we're having so far
.
We're going to pause here forpart one, but don't go far.
As you can tell, we have beenhaving such a meaningful and fun
time with Kara, can't you justfeel her warmth, her deep
compassion and her incredibleexpertise coming through.
And we're not done yet.
(01:06:42):
There's still more to unpack,including a few more of Lisa's
heartfelt questions how familydynamics influence our health
journey and what it really meansto make peace with food.
Again.
We'll also dive into somesimple, doable things Lisa and
anyone listening can start doingtoday to make a real impact on
their health, mindset and energy.
(01:07:03):
So please join us next week forpart two of this conversation,
as we continue exploring whatsustainable diabetes care truly
looks like with Kara Roberts,from medication choices to
family rhythms, mindset shiftsand food freedom.
So we'll see you next time onthe Q&A Files.
Goodbye everybody.
Thanks for tuning in to the Q&AFiles, delighted to share
(01:07:25):
today's gems of wisdom with you.
Your questions light up ourshow, fueling the engaging
dialogues that make ourcommunity extra special.
Keep sending your que stions toTrisha JamisonCoaching@
gmailcom.
Your curiosity is our compass.
Please hit, subscribe, spreadthe word and let's grow the
circle of insight and communitytogether.
I'm Trisha Jamison signing off.
(01:07:46):
Stay curious, keep thriving andkeep smiling, and I'll catch
you on the next episode.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Cold Case Files: Miami
Joyce Sapp, 76; Bryan Herrera, 16; and Laurance Webb, 32—three Miami residents whose lives were stolen in brutal, unsolved homicides. Cold Case Files: Miami follows award‑winning radio host and City of Miami Police reserve officer Enrique Santos as he partners with the department’s Cold Case Homicide Unit, determined family members, and the advocates who spend their lives fighting for justice for the victims who can no longer fight for themselves.