Diabetes Diet

The Diabetes Diet for diabetics should be a balanced meal plan involving food and recipes that will stop their blood glucose levels from going too high. People with diabetes can eat and drink just like everyone else. However, they have to be careful about maintaining a good blood glucose level by monitoring blood glucose frequently. Develop a personal meal plan with your Dietician. The proper meal plan can be a solid foundation for a complete diabetes management and care program.

Diet plays a major role in controlling the diabetes. The main objective of diabetic diet is to maintain ideal body weight, by providing adequate nutrition along with normal blood sugar levels in blood. If people lose weight substantially, they will lose their diabetes.

Most people with diabetes can enjoy their favorite foods, including desserts, if they monitor the calories, carbohydrates and other dietary components and monitor their blood glucose levels regularly.

Very Low Calorie Diet May Cure or ReverseType 2 Diabetes

A very low calorie diet of 600 calories a day may be able to reverse type 2 diabetes, according to preliminary research by Newcastle University in England and presented at the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) in June 2011. The very low calorie diet reduces the amount of excess fat in the pancreas and liver, allowing insulin production to return to normal.

David M. Kendall, MD of the ADA says that substantial calorie reduction can be very effective in improving diabetic control, especially in obese people. More research is needed to determine whether the low-cal diet results in a permanent reversal of diabetes.

Consult your dietician who will recommend you the daily intake of calories, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, etc and the food sources good for you.

1. Type 2 diabetes can be dramatically kept under control by avoiding western food, that is by adapting a non-meat, non-dairy diet, says Dr Neal Barnard of National Institute of Health (15 Jan 2008).
2. Schedule regular meal times and maintain a consistent diet to monitor your blood glucose level effectively.
3. When buying food items, read the food nutrition labels for nutrient contents carefully, particularly their carbohydrate content.
4. Avoid too much of artificial sweeteners as it can cause gas and diarrhea, according to The American Diabetes Association. replace sugar with sugar substitutes.
5. Your whole family, with or without diabetes, should eat the same healthy meal plan.
6. Do not skip meals. Eat meals at regular times every day. Maintain your eating timings.
7. Limit alcohol.
8. Exercise daily: Exercise helps in lowering the blood glucose levels.

Food is one of the main factors that affects blood glucose levels, fortunately you can control it. Healthy eating with a healthy lifestyle is the basis of managing diabetes.

1. You can make a list of "safe foods" based on how they affect your blood sugar. Test your blood glucose level 1-2 hours after eating.
2. Include high fiber carbohydrate foods which lead to a slow and gradual rise in blood glucose levels. Choose a variety of foods including vegetables, fruit, breads, cereals, dairy products, etc.
   1. Breads like whole-grain, multi grain varieties.
   2. High fiber breakfast cereals especially oats, oatbran, and other bran cereals.
   3. Whole wheat pasta
   4. Rice and grains like basmati rice (rice recipes), barley, etc..
   5. Legumes and lentils such as baked beans, kidney beans, chick peas, mung dal, etc.
   6. Fruits - such as citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruits, apples and stone fruits.
   7. All vegetables.
   8. Starchy vegetables such as sweet potato, corn (corn recipes), potatoes, etc.
   9. Skim milk, skim yogurt. The archive of Internal Medicine, 2005 has reported the results of a research study showing that the risk of developing diabetes Type 2 fell as intake of low fat dairy products increase.
   10. A study (January 2004 issue of the Journal Diabetes Care) suggests that magnesium-rich foods can significantly lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, even in obese people. People should therefore get the recommended amount of magnesium by eating leafy green vegetables, nuts, and other magnesium-rich foods (magnesium rich foods). Supplemental magnesium can be harmful, especially for people with kidney disease, says Diabetes expert Jerry Nadler.
   11. 25 - 100 grams of methi dana (fenugreek seeds), (fenugreek in hindi) eaten daily can diminish reactive hyperglycemia in diabetic patients.
3. Limit intake of excess sugars in foods which are high in saturated fat like baked foods or low in nutritional value lollies and soft drink.
4. Consume moderate total fat and limit saturated fat

   For tips on how to reduce fat intake, go to Healthy cooking recipes

A good recipe for diabetic people should be tasty and easy to make. The recipes for diabetics should be low in fat and sugar. The ingredient in these recipes should include diabetes friendly foods such as wholegrains, green vegetables, fenugreek (methi, low GI foods, etc. as mentioned above.

There are an abundance of diabetic recipes on the Internet. All the recipes given on this web site are low fat so they can be a part of diabetes recipes. Some special recipes are given below. These recipes are good for non-diabetic people also.

1. Fenugreek Methi recipe: Methi chana sabji. Fenugreek chana recipe is a good diabetes recipe.
2. Whole grain recipes
3. Makkai ghat recipes
4. Recipes with low GI ingredients: Chana besan curry

1. Soak a few seeds (1/4 teaspoon) of methi in water overnight. First thing after you brush your teeth in the morning, swallow the methi along with the water.
2. Eat jambul fruit (Jamun) which is considered as an effective medicine for diabetes. Dry the seeds of jamun and make its powdere and take with water twice a day.
3. Gooseberry/amla juice too cuts the blood sugar levels.
4. Black coffee
   Black coffee without sugar cuts the risk of Type 2 diabetes. Use honey as a substitute for sugar in your coffee.