Healthy Eating For Diabetes
Diabetic diet always carries this notion of being sugar-free or boring food. Diabetic diet may seem like a life-sentence. However, it is not necessary that if you are suffering from diabetes, you need to follow a boring and restrictive lifestyle. A simple modification and small tweaks in your lifestyle can help you enjoy your life and also manage your sugar levels.
It is important to consider these factors if you are a diabetic:
- You need to watch what you eat
- How much you eat
- When you eat
When your sugar-levels show high in your body, then your doctor will ask you to pay close attention to your diet and modify your lifestyle a little. This doesn’t mean that you start depriving yourself of sweets and other tasty food. There is no specific diet prescribed for diabetics. However, here are some guidelines that you can follow and still make sure that the blood-sugar levels are maintained.
- It is possible that you may crave for sweets. In such cases, you can indulge in sweets once in a while. If you feel like having a dessert, share it among your friends and relatives so that you do not end up gulping the whole thing down. Eat small portions. This will not only satisfy your sweet tooth but also make sure that you do not end up with shooting sugar levels.
- Sweets add to the carbohydrates. So if you are eating a sweet, balance it by cutting down on other food items that are high in carbohydrates like bread, tortillas, crackers or rice.
- While eating a sweet, savor each bite so that you consume less. If you eat fast, you end up eating more than you are supposed to.
- Make healthy substitutions. For example instead of soda, go for sparkling water, instead of opting for an ice-cream, grab a bowl of frozen fruits or go for your favorite cheese instead of the cake, a piece of fruit instead of a pie.
- If you feel like having rice, choose brown rice instead of white rice.
- Go for steel-cut oats instead of processed cereals or instant oatmeal
- Balance your meals with all food groups and make sure that vegetables form the major part of the meal. Eating your carbohydrates with protein or little fat will help you control the sugar levels.
- Choose sweet potatoes instead of having white potatoes as they are low in carbohydrates
- Choose a bran muffin instead of eating a pastry or croissant.
- Instead of having red meat take more servings of fish
- If you are baking use canola oil or apple juice instead of butter or shortening.
- For making your soups creamy try other methods like adding a little cornstarch instead of loading it with cream.
By cheating your brain a little bit, you can satisfy your bodily needs and ensure that you are in perfect health. Besides the above, a mild and regular exercise regime on a daily basis will help you tackle this health hazard in a much effective way.
Read more about pre diabetic food and diet.
April 2nd, 2010 at 12:50 pm
i think it is a little crazy when people don’t take care of themselves after they find out they have diabetes.
April 3rd, 2010 at 3:25 am
A good article on diabetic diet! This one does not scare a diabetic. Rather it encourages one to adopt a preventive lifestyle and still savour the sweets. Good!
April 5th, 2010 at 12:46 am
I believe it’s important for a diabetic to know how frequently to indulge in sweets. Not many are aware of this. Besides, as mentioned in the post, a diabetic must know the nutrient content of foods and aspects like food substitutions.
April 5th, 2010 at 9:55 pm
The post mentions three parameters for controlling diabetes. ‘What to eat’, ‘How much to eat’ is understood. Can you throw light upon ‘when to eat’. How does frequency of eating help in this case? Eventually, what you say is correct, it’s all about cheating your brain.
April 8th, 2010 at 3:27 am
A diabetic friend of mine indulges in sugar-free sweets. In this way, he satisfies his sweet tooth and prevents his sugar levels from shooting up. Well, I’m sure a lot more tips could be added. I’ll consult my friend and add up.
April 8th, 2010 at 11:21 pm
To me, diabetes requires management. There isn’t any cure. For management of the condition, one cannot afford to be ignorant about the foods and other lifestyle related issues. Regular exercise is as important as restriction of sugar containing foods. There must be substitutions in diet so as not to make the food boring. Eventually, I agree with the last lines of this post. It’s all about cheating your brains.
April 12th, 2010 at 5:00 am
To fight a disease like diabetes one needs to show a lot of will power. If the person is determined to be healthy and control any sort of ailment then it is not very difficult to take care when diabetic. The person suffering from diabetes should be motivated in order to live a healthy lifestyle even if diabetic. Sugar free products are easily available these days but one should try to consume only if required as these products are still under research for any possible side effects.
April 12th, 2010 at 9:51 pm
After reading your post, I visited a couple of websites to read much more on brown rice. I wished to know the primary difference between white and brown rice. One of the websites mentions that brown rice can elevate the blood glucose level. The website says that the diabetics can often eat a small serving of brown rice but must check their blood glucose level after consumption. The information here contradicts to what is mentioned in the post.
April 13th, 2010 at 11:36 pm
For the diabetes sufferer, meals must be planned to keep blood glucose levels safely under control. Meal planning helps in balancing the required insulin levels of the body. It may seem like a novelty at first, but after a week or two, you can make changes to your diet plans and accomplish your healthy eating lifestyle more rapidly than you may have thought possible. Eat healthy, stay healthy.
May 23rd, 2010 at 2:06 am
Diabetes is a both hereditary and acquired disease which cause all ages. There 2 types of diabetes the first one was Insulin dependent diabetes and the second one is the non-insulin dependent. But of them is similar in diet need to be eaten by diabetic patients. Foods high in sugar, salt and fats are prohibited. Foods high in protein, vitamins and etc. are required for patients whom with diabetes. Proper meal planning must be observed which help proper regulation of insulin in the body. And accomplish this and comply with proper exercise and medication will help the person live more healthier and live more longer.June 3rd, 2010 at 4:47 am
I would suggest to try out the ‘diabetes food pyramid’. It can help you make wise food choices. It divides foods into groups, based on what they contain. Eat more from the groups at the bottom of the pyramid, and less from the groups at the top. Foods from the starches, fruits, vegetables, and milk groups are highest in carbohydrate. They affect your blood glucose levels the most. Search for it on google.