Eating right with Diabetes
Diet is a crucial part of diabetes management. Diabetes, if not controlled properly, can lead to a wide array of complications affecting nearly all the systems of the body. Good food choices help you to reduce weight, improve mood and lower your risk of having diabetes complications.
So, does that mean you have to starve or go for strict diets? The answer is no. You can still enjoy all the tasty and healthy foods, and at times indulge in sweet treats as well.
Before knowing what to eat and what not to eat, let us learn some concepts involving food.
Diabetes and Glycemic Index
Glycemic index (GI) is a scale used to rank foods according to their potential to raise your blood sugar levels when compared to pure glucose. A food with a low GI causes increase in your blood sugar levels when compared to the foods with high GI. There are several factors that influence the GI of a food such as the type of sugar present, structure of the carbohydrate, ripeness, whether it is fresh or dried and cooking method.
The carbohydrates present in the low GI foods take longer time to metabolize. Therefore, the blood sugar levels is steady for a longer time. The blood sugar levels spike up immediately after intake of foods with high glycemic index. Eating high GI foods require more insulin to control high glucose levels, whereas eating low GI foods require less insulin. Therefore, diabetics should try taking low GI foods.
Ask your doctor for more meal plans which are suitable for diabetes.
Glycemic Index Of Some Common Foods
Fruits
Vegetables
Grains, pulses and breads
Dairy and Dairy Alternatives
Fruits
Vegetables
Dairy and Dairy Alternatives
Snacks & Sweets
Grains, pulses and breads
Grains, pulses and breads
Vegetables
Snacks & Sweets
Dairy and Dairy Alternatives
Fruits
Lower the glycemic index of your meal:
You need not strictly have only low GI foods all the time. Aim to reduce the overall GI of the food. This can be done by combining a low GI food with a high GI food. Talk to a dietician for some suitable combinations.
What to eat & What not to eat?
Firstly, your aim should be to eat more of natural foods and rely less on processed, packaged foods. Some tips for you:
- Eat lot of fresh, colourful fruits and vegetables. Whole fruits are preferable than fruit juices.
- Eat high protein foods such as eggs, pulses and beans, and low fat dairy. Avoid processed meat and red meat.
- Eat whole grain breads. Avoid white breads, refined rice or pastas.
- Eat less of deep-fried foods, packaged and fast food.
Choosing your carbs:
Choose brown rice/ wild rice over white rice
Use sweet potatoes or yam instead of regular white potatoes.
Choose whole wheat pasta over regular pasta
Choose whole grain breads over white bread
Use rolled oats/steel cut oats instead of instant oatmeal
Opt for low sugar bran flakes instead of corn flakes.
Portion size matters- Glycemic load vs Glycemic index:
Glycemic load is actually a better way of assessing how the particular food influences your sugar levels. It is calculated by taking into account the portion size and the glycemic index of the food.
For example: Watermelon has a glycemic index of 75. But in 1 serving of watermelon, the carb content is quite less, because it is mostly water. The glycemic load of 1 serving of watermelon is 5 (GL< 10 is low, GL> 20 is high). Thus, you can safely have watermelon in a small portion.
Moreover, always keep in mind the other good nutrients that the foods provide you. For example, potato chips have a lower glycemic index than green peas, however green peas is more nutritious than potato chips, anytime.
Alcohol and diabetes:
- Alcohol are high in calories and can make you fat in no time.
- Alcohol stimulates appetite. This causes you to overeat.
- Alcohol interferes with the activity of the antidiabetic drug.
- Alcohol increases the blood pressure.
- Alcohol may cause symptoms such as nausea, increased heart rate and flushing. One may confuse these symptoms for hypoglycaemia.
- Moderate amount of alcohol increases blood sugar levels whereas excess alcohol can cause a serious drop in blood sugar levels, especially in people with type 1 diabetes.
Don’t drink more than 2 drinks /day if you are a man and 1 drink per day if you are a woman.
Mix alcohol with soda or water
Avoid taking alcohol with sugary drinks.
Always drink alcohol with food.
Your Eating Schedule
A regular meal schedule helps you to lose weight and maintain a steady blood sugar level.
Eat your breakfast like a king:
Having a good breakfast keeps you charged up the entire day.
Take regular small meals, around 6 per day:
This will help you to maintain steady blood sugar levels. Moreover, when you eat more frequently, the tendency to overeat is less.
Keep a food diary
Research shows that people who keep a food diary are twice more likely to lose weight than people who don’t. Keeping a food diary helps you to know if you are eating all high carbs foods one after the other, which is not desirable if you are a diabetic.
Coping with sweet cravings:
Slowly lower the sugar intake
Give your taste buds time to adjust to diet changes. Gradually cut sugar in recipes by 1/3 or 1/4. If you love a dessert, reduce the portion size. For example, have half a cup of your favorite ice cream and half a cup of fruit instead of a full cup of ice cream.
Choose healthy alternatives
Instead of store-bought ice-cream, you could blend a nice fruit smoothie and then freeze it and have it as an icecream. Ice popsicles are another great option, especially for summers. You just need to make some fruit juice and freeze it up.
Eat sweet with your meals
When eaten alone, sweets cause your blood sugar levels to spike up immediately. When you eat with other foods, your blood sugar rise would be slower.
Subtract the carbs and add the sweet
When you take a sweet in your meals, it adds extra carbs to your diet, so it is better to avoid other high carb foods in the same meal.
Add healthy fats to your sweets
Fats slow down the digestive process of your food. If you want to eat some sweet, mix them along with healthy fats such as nuts, peanut butter, yogurt etc.
Use your own sugar to sweeten foods
Processed desserts, such as flavoured yogurt, have high sugar content. Instead you could buy unsweetened yogurt and add some sugar yourself.
Try to get rid of packaged processed foods
Opt for home made foods instead of packaged foods. You never know the amount of hidden sugar that these processed foods actually have.
Eating healthy food in moderate amounts and sticking to regular mealtimes helps you to control blood sugar levels. Talk to your doctor and dietician to create a diet plan that works for you. If you stray from your prescribed diet, the risk of fluctuating blood sugar levels and other complications increases.