diabetic-diet-foods.com

1.   Watch your Fat intake, esp. Saturated Fat

If you have diabetes the chances are you need to lose wight.  Too much saturated and trans fat will also worsen insulin resistance - something you want to avoid if you want good blood glucose control.

The ideal American diabetic diet will control both the amount and types of fat you eat.

2.  Eat Regular meals Based on Wholegrain and Low-GI Carbohydrate Foods

Your diabetes will be easier to manage if you eat regular meals throughout the day.  This may mean three eals, or even four to five smaller meals and snacks.  Whatever the number of meals, avoid large amounts of carbohydrate-containing food at any one time of the day - this makes it harder for your body to keep your blood glucose level in the normal range.

3.   Watch Sugar and Sugary foods

Too much sugar does not cause diabetes.  Sugar actually has a medium GI and has only a moderate effect on blood glucose (lower than some starchy foods like white or wholemeal bread).  However, it is still important to take care with added sugars as they are a source of extra calories in an American diabetic diet.

4. Include Lean Protein Foods

There’s a lot of hype around high-protein, low-carb diets - but these diets may harm your diabetes - use with care.  This is especially so when you need insulin or tablets to manage your blood glucose.  Problems with high-protein, low-carb American diabetic diets include:

• increased risk of hypoglycemia (low blood glucose)
• increased risk saturated fat intake - this means greater risk of high blood cholesterol levels and heart problems
• more protein may harm your kidneys, especcially if they are already damaged

6.    Keep Salt Down

Too much salt can raise your blood pressure, increasing your risk of heart and kidney problems.  Around 75 percent of the salt comes from processed foods, so look for reduced-salt or no-added-salt versions of foods.

5.    Eat more Vegetables and Legumes

Eat at least five serves of vegetables daily.  There are several benefits:

• Feel full with fewer calories
• You will eat more fibre - this helps improve regularity and blood glucose and cholesterol levels
• It will help prtoect your eyes and blood vessels from the damage caused by high blood gluose levels - antioxidants and other protective phytochemicals have been shown to help protect our eyes.

Advertisement

Diabetes Guide.   A Comprehensive Guide To Beating Diabetes - Dramatically Improve Your Blood Sugar Control, Reduce And Eliminate Your Need For Insulin Shots.  Click here

 7.    Enjoy Alcohol in Moderation

Alcohol is high in calories and increases triglycerides (a type of blood fat) and blood pressure, and can cause your blood glucose to go dangerously low (a hypo) if you use insulin or tabliets to control your diabetes.  An American diabetic diet can cut back on drinks by tips such as:

• reducing your thirst with water or diet drinks before you drink alohol
• drinking low aloohol beer
• alternating alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks
• dilute aloholic drinks with soda or diet lemonade