The last we spoke, at the end of September, Indian student Pradeep was busy working on her thesis about the effect of carbohydrates on glucose outcomes in people with type 1 diabetes. “I am writing a systematic review of it, which means that I am studying and analysing how convincing the evidence is,” she said at the time. How did that go?
“I observed that people with type 1 diabetes often feel good following a low glycaemic index diet, in which you eat food that contains carbohydrates but also lots of fibre. It prevents big swings in your glucose levels, which with diabetes, can cause problems.” Further research is still necessary, Pradeep concluded. “The evidence so far is limited, but I know people who have diabetes, such as my father, for whom it works. It’s easy to maintain and it only requires small changes, such as switching from white rice to brown rice.”
Getting back her energy
She also discovered she’s good at research. “When I was preparing to defend my thesis, my supervisor said, ‘You really know what you’re talking about’. And that’s how it felt, too, which made me proud.” It was a good time, thanks to the support of her family, friends, and partner, but she realised afterwards, also a very stressful one. “I’m still recovering from it, I have less energy than usual.”
So she’s taking a bit more time to cook, to bake, to be creative and to run. Although the latter is also related to a new challenge: taking part in a Hyrox event. It involves participants running for eight kilometres, interspersed with eight exercises, such as rowing, or running while carrying two heavy weights in their hands. “I’m doing it together with a friend, so we can take turns. There is rather a large difference in levels between us at the moment, she’s a personal trainer and I’ve only done irregular exercise over the past year. We have tickets for an event in September, but we’ll see how we feel nearer the time, otherwise we’ll try another time. What I do enjoy – apart from the fact it takes me out of my comfort zone – is that it isn’t about winning, it’s about finishing.”
Emotional rollercoaster
In the meantime, she is also thinking about the future. Before the end of April, she will have to decide which Master’s programme she wants to apply to. At the start of the academic year, Pradeep hadn’t decided yet, but now she is leaning strongly towards a two-year Master’s in Nutrition and Health at Wageningen. “I was a student for a day there recently, meaning you shadow someone currently studying there. I really liked all her modules, it’s exactly what I want. The teaching there is very different to here – you spend almost the whole day at the university, there are lots of lectures. I’m not sure yet whether that suits me, I like independent study, but if I don’t try, I’ll never know. And if it is harder than I thought, the university will offer assistance.”
It will mean that, like many of her fellow students, she will be leaving Maastricht, too. “The last few months have been an emotional rollercoaster, so many friends have left. And my partner Kristian, who used to live 5 minutes away, moved to Sittard. If I go to Wageningen, it’ll become a long-distance relationship. That’ll take some getting used to, but at the same time, we’ll both be living closer to our parents, mine live in Utrecht, who are also getting older. It’s nice to be able to be there for them. We’re still young, we still have enough time to spend together.”