Diet for diabetes

Diet for diabetes plays a significant role in controlling the diabetes. The diabetic diet may be used alone or else in combination with insulin doses or with oral hypoglycemic drugs. Main objectives of diabetic diet is to maintain ideal body weight; by providing adequate nutrition along with normal blood sugar levels in blood. The diet plan for a diabetic is based on height, weight, age, sex physical activity and nature of diabetes. Before planning or following any diet plan consult with your physician and take his advice seriously.

Diet for diabetes is actually a medical nutrition therapy for diabetes. There is no specific diabetic diet for all diabetic patients. The foundation for a healthy diabetic diet is about the same as recommendations for heart healthy and weight management which is choosing food wisely and eat the correct portion of each type of food. All carbohydrates, fat and protein take in should be balanced to maintain the blood sugar at normal level. A healthy diabetic eating should always be low in sugar, sodium and fat but high in fiber. Meals and snacks regularly with more whole grain food, fruits and vegetables but limit the alcohol in take.


Foods to avoid for diabetes patients:  
Saturated fats: High-fat dairy products and animal proteins such as beef, hot dogs, sausage and bacon are saturated fats. Get no more than 7 percent of your daily calories from saturated fat.

Trams fat: These types of fats are found in processed snacks, baked goods, shortening and stick margarines and should be avoided completely.

Cholesterol: Sources of cholesterol include high-fat dairy products and high-fat animal proteins, egg yolks, shill fish, liver and other organ meals. Aim for no more than 200mgs of cholesterol a day.

Sodium: Aim for less than 2000 mg or sodium a day.

Diabetes professionals suggest that diabetics should follow meal plans that are flexible and suit their lifestyle and daily physical activities. A diabetic meal plan is best if designed by a professional registered dietitian. A healthy daily meal plan should consist of different variety of food, each in the right amounts. Include starchy food or the sources of carbohydrates, protein such as meat, fish, poultry, dairy products and soy products, vegetables and fruits for vitamins, minerals, fiber and water and also some healthy fats. The actual amount of each food should depend on individual factors such as activity level, age and gender and body size.

Now we are giving you an exchange list. The exchange list is a tool to help you plan healthy meals and snacks. To add variety to your diet, you can substitute certain foods for other foods in the same group. Some examples are listed here.

Simple Exchange list

Food group	You can have....	Or exchange….
Fruit(each serving contains about 15 grams carbohydrates)	1 shall or medium piece of fruit	Half cup fruit juice or canned or chopped fruit.
Vegetable(each serving contains about 5 grams carbohydrates)	1 cup raw vegetables.	Half cup cooked vegetable or vegetable juice.
Starch(each serving contains about 15 grams carbohydrate)	1 slice or ounce bread.	Half cup pasta, cereal, and starchy vegetable.
Sugar, honey, molasses.	1 teaspoon.	4 grams carbohydrate.
Milk (does not include cream, yogurt or cheese.	1 cup milk.	12 grams carbohydrate & 8 grams protein.
Meat	1 ounce meat, fish, poultry, cheese or yogurt.	Half cup dried beans.
Fat (includes nuts, seeds and small amounts of bacon and peanuts butter)	1 teaspoon oil, butter or margarine.	5 grams fat.

So diet for diabetes is very important for every diabetic patient