Tips On Diabetes Diets And Foods Good For Diabetics

Foods that are good for diabetes are generally foods that are healthy and wholesome for anyone, whether they have diabetes or not!

But a diabetic diet is important in keeping blood sugar levels stable and will therefore help prevent problems related to uncontrolled blood sugar levels.

For type 2 diabetes, a good diabetic diet together with appropriate exercise will help keep diabetes under control.

If you're taking medication for type 2 diabetes, then a healthy diet and exercise will work together with your medications to keep blood sugar levels stable.

Diabetes type 2 is a condition where you can affect it to a large extent by lifestyle, diet and exercise.

Sometimes you can come off medication if you control your diabetes well enough with diet and exercise alone..

If you can do this, you should still see your doctor on a regular basis to monitor your blood glucose control. This can include with blood tests to prove that your blood sugar control is good enough with just diet and exercise to manage it.

So what's a healthy diet for diabetics?

Diabetic Diet Tips

Let's go through the 3 main food groups and choose the best foods form each group:

Carbohydrates

Low GI (or low glycemic) carbohydrates are the healthier option, because they don't spike your blood sugars up as much as high GI carbs do.

Which means better blood glucose or sugar level control.

Low GI carb High GI carb
Green leafy vegetables Potatoes
Brown, sourdough, multigrain bread White bread
Basmati or Japanese short grain rice Other rice types

So when choosing foods, go for the low GI carb option.

The only exception to this is if you have are having a hypoglycemic episode (eg you're on insulin or medication and for some reason, eg you skipped a meal) and your blood glucose level is very low and you need to raise your blood glucose level up quickly.

In this case you want a high GI carb like sugar, glucose tablet, or honey.

Fats

Yes, there are two types of good fats. And there are also the bad fats. The idea is to have he good fats and not so much the bad ones.

The 2 good fats are:

1. Omega 3 fatty acids (fish oils)

The sources of these omega 3 oils include salmon, tuna, sardines, which means a fishy meal at least 2-3 times a week. The alternative is flax seed oil which is a plant source of omega 3.

2. Monounsaturated oil

These include extra virgin oilve oil or avocado.

The idea with oils is that you need some, but to not go overboard and have too much. For example, a teaspoon or 2 of olive oil may be what you need, depending on how active you are.

The fats to avoid? These are saturated fat and cholesterol (see below) and trans fats (found in repeatedly used oil such as in fried foods from take aways and even some restaurants, as well as some biscuits and cakes)

Proteins

The good sources of protein are the lean sources of protein. Thes include:

Fish, egg, natural yogurt, chicken (skin off), tofu

Have less of the sources of protein that are high in saturated fat or cholesterol, and these include:

Red meat, pork, dairy foods eg cheese, cream.

So there you have it.

These are some great tips to get you going on your road to getting a healthier diet that's suitable for diabetes.

So go for it and get healthy!

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