Food And Nutrition For Diabetes
Diabetes Food And Nutrition
It would be nice if diabetes was more like a food allergy and you could simply avoid one type of food, take your meds, and you’d be all set. Instead, diabetes means a 24-hour-a-day balancing act between blood sugar levels and an entire category of foods (carbohydrates).
Not surprisingly, one of the first questions newly diagnosed patients ask is: “What is this diabetic diet I have to follow?” Fortunately, they quickly find out that eating with diabetes is not a life sentence to some rigid, deprivation-oriented menu plan.
Diabetes Healthy Eating Plan
If you’re already eating good-for-you foods, you may not need to make many changes to keep your blood sugar (glucose) under control. It may simply be a matter of adjusting your portion sizes.One serving in a group is called an “exchange.” An exchange has about the same amount of carbohydrates, protein, or fat and calories — and the same effect on your blood sugar — as a serving of every other food in the same group. So you can exchange.
Soluble fibers are found mainly in fruits, vegetables and some seeds, and are especially good for people with diabetes because they help to slow down or reduce the absorption of glucose from the intestines. Legumes, such as cooked kidney beans, are among the highest soluble fiber foods. Reaching and maintaining a healthy weight is important for everyone with diabetes. Weight control is extremely important in treating type 2 diabetes because extra body fat makes it difficult for people with type 2 diabetes to make and use their own insulin.
Special Meal Plan For The Diabetes
There isn’t one “diabetes diet.” Your doctor will probably suggest that you work with a registered dietitian to design a meal plan. A meal plan is a guide that tells you what kinds of food you can choose at meals and snack time and how much to have.Butter, margarine, lard and oils add fat to food. Fat is also in many dairy and meat products. Try to avoid fried foods, mayonnaise-based dishes (unless they are made with fat-free mayo), egg yolks, bacon and high-fat dairy products.
Effect Of cholesterol In A Diabetes Diet
Diabetics are at an increased risk for heart disease as compared to the general population, so it’s important to control cholesterol levels. Since the body can manufacture all the cholesterol it needs, a healthy diabetes diet includes foods low in cholesterol—specifically LDL levels, which have been identified as the main cholesterol-induced risk factor.
