A diabetic’s body does not produce enough insulin to manage the sugar levels within the body. Therefore, it is important that the diabetics strictly follow a charted plan of foods to lower blood sugar strict diet. A diet high in fiber, but low in fat is most often recommended for diabetics. Foods that are high in fiber can help in lowering the level of glucose in the body. Eating smaller meals and eating more frequently throughout the day will help maintain the delicate level of glucose.

Insulin is responsible for changing starches, sugars, and other food into energy inside the body. Decreasing one’s intake of alcohol, fats, and sweets will help regulate this. A diabetic diet should include 2-4 servings of fruit each day. However, since many fruits are high in sugar some of the fruits to add to your diet are banana, apple, mango, orange, raisins and grapes as good food for diabetes.

Fatty foods often contain a lot of butter, cheese, oil or mayonnaise. They are the ones on the menu that are preceded with “fried” or “creamed”. These should be avoided to be free from high blood sugar. Choose instead grilled, baked, roasted, or steamed food. If you must use oil at all in your cooking, replace cooking oil with olive oil or peanut oil, as these contain less fat. Sauces such as barbeque and teriyaki contain high amounts of sugar and therefore are not ideal for the diabetic diet. Try some of the fruits listed above if you’re craving something sweet. Be generous with seasonings (except for salt) to keep food from tasting too bland.

Diabetic diets need to include foods that have little saturated fats and cholesterol, such as fresh fruit, vegetables, and skinless poultry. Only 10-20% of your daily calories should be derived from proteins in foods, such as low-fat dairy products , lean meat, and fish. The remainder of a diabetic diet should be carbohydrates from beans, whole grains, beans, as well as fresh fruit and vegetables. A diabetic should have 3-5 servings of vegetables a day to lower blood sugar. However, some vegetables such as potatoes, corn and carrots are rich in carbohydrates, so partake of these sparingly. Eat fruit and vegetables gradually throughout the day so your blood sugar level won’t suddenly rise. Red meats, eggs, and whole milk dairy products should be avoided.

Since often an unhealthy, unbalanced diet is what caused the diabetes in the first place, these changes can be hard to implement. However, maintaining proper nutrition will help for healthy glucose levels with the prevention of heart and blood vessels disease, which in some cases has led to very serious consequences like blinding and even amputation of severely affected limbs. Keep in mind that it is not harmful long-term to treat yourself once in a great while. Just be sure to do so in moderation with an intake of foods to lower blood sugar. Eat well, to live well and be well.

By: Prakash Kannan

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