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Diabetes Diet Plan
(Diet and Weight Management)
Effective
diabetic-management requires a healthy regular lifestyle which should include a
regular balanced diet, regular exercise and sensible weight control.
Despite diabetes
being a condition of sugar regulation, specific restriction of sugars is not
necessary, except as part of ensuring a balanced diet overall.
How to Reduce
Complications of Diabetes
Glucose
Control
Research studies in the United States and abroad have found that improved
glycemic control benefits people with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes. In
general, for every 1 percent reduction in results of A1C blood tests, the risk
of developing microvascular diabetic complications (eye, kidney, and nerve
disease) is reduced by 40 percent. Choosing a healthy diet with the right
mixture of low and high glycemic index foods, and exercising regularly, is a
good way to maintain glucose control.
Control of
Blood Fats/Lipids - Lower Fat Diet
Improved control of cholesterol and lipids (for example, HDL, LDL, and
triglycerides) can reduce cardiovascular complications by 20 to 50 percent.
Choosing a lower fat, low-cholesterol diet, combined with regular exercise makes
fat control more effective.
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Diabetic Diet
Advice - Points to Remember
What, when, and
how much you eat all affect your blood glucose level. You can keep your blood
glucose at a healthy level if you:
- Eat about the
same amount of food each day.
- Eat at about
the same times each day.
- Take your
medicines at the same times each day.
- Exercise at
the same times each day.
- Every day,
choose foods from these food groups: starches, vegetables, fruit, meat and
meat substitutes, and milk and yogurt. How much of each depends on how many
calories you need a day.
- Limit the
amounts of fats and sweets you eat each day.
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Diabetic Diet
and Calories
- How Many
Calories Should I Eat Each Day?
- What Foods?
- How many Food Servings?
(1) Diabetic
Diet Plan With About 1200-1600 CALORIES
Have about 1,200
to 1,600 calories a day if you are:
- a small woman
who exercises
- a small or medium woman who wants to lose weight
- a medium woman who does not exercise much
Choose this many
servings from these food groups to have 1,200 to 1,600 calories a day:
6 starches
2 milk and yogurt
3 vegetables
2 meat or meat substitute
2 fruit
Up to 3 fats
Talk with your
diabetes teacher to make a meal plan that fits the way you usually eat, your
daily routine, and your diabetes medicines. Then make your own plan.
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(2) Diabetic
Diet Plan With About 1600-2000 CALORIES
Have about 1,600
to 2,000 calories a day if you are:
- a large woman
who wants to lose weight
- a small man at a healthy weight
- a medium man who does not exercise much
- a medium to large man who wants to lose weight
Choose this many
servings from these food groups to have 1,600 to 2,000 calories a day:
8 starches
2 milk and yogurt
4 vegetables
2 meat or meat substitute
3 fruit
Up to 4 fats
Talk with your
diabetes teacher to make a meal plan that fits the way you usually eat, your
daily routine, and your diabetes medicines. Then make your own plan.
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(3) Diabetic
Diet Plan With About 2000-2400 CALORIES
Have about 2,000
to 2,400 calories a day if you are
- a medium/large
man who does a lot of exercise or has a physically active job
- a large man at a healthy weight
- a large woman who exercises a lot or has a physically active job
Choose this many
servings from these food groups to have 2,000 to 2,400 calories a day:
11 starches
2 milk and yogurt
4 vegetables
2 meat or meat substitute
3 fruit
Up to 5 fats
Talk with your
diabetes teacher to make a meal plan that fits the way you usually eat, your
daily routine, and your diabetes medicines. Then make your own plan.
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How Food in Your
Diet Affects Your Blood Glucose
Whether you have
type 1 or type 2 diabetes, what, when, and how much you eat all affect your
blood glucose. Blood glucose is the main sugar found in the blood and the body's
main source of energy.
If you have
diabetes (or impaired glucose tolerance), your blood glucose can go too high if
you eat too much. If your blood glucose goes too high, you can get sick.
Your blood
glucose can also go too high or drop too low if you don't take the right amount
of diabetes medicine.
If your blood
glucose stays high too much of the time, you can get heart, eye, foot, kidney,
and other problems. You can also have problems if your blood glucose gets too
low (hypoglycemia).
Keeping your
blood glucose at a healthy level will prevent or slow down diabetes problems.
Ask your doctor or diabetes teacher what a healthy blood glucose level is for
you.
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Blood Glucose
Levels: What Should My Blood Glucose Levels Be?
For most people,
target blood glucose levels are:
Before meals - 90
to 130
1 to 2 hours after the start of a meal - less than 180
Ask your doctor how often you should check your blood glucose. The results from
your blood glucose checks will tell you if your diabetes care plan is working.
Also ask your doctor for an A1C test at least twice a year. Your A1C number
gives your average blood glucose for the past 3 months.
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How Can I Keep
My Blood Glucose at a Healthy Level?
- Eat about the
same amount of food each day.
- Eat your meals
and snacks at about the same times each day.
- Do not skip
meals or snacks.
- Take your
medicines at the same times each day.
- Exercise at
about the same times each day.
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Why Should I Eat
About the Same Amount at the Same Times Each Day?
Your blood
glucose goes up after you eat. If you eat a big lunch one day and a small lunch
the next day, your blood glucose levels will change too much.
Keep your blood
glucose at a healthy level by eating about the same amount of carbohydrate foods
at about the same times each day. Carbohydrate foods, also called carbs, provide
glucose for energy. Starches, fruits, milk, starchy vegetables such as corn, and
sweets are all carbohydrate foods.
Talk with your
doctor or diabetes teacher about how many meals and snacks to eat each day.
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Diabetes and
Diabetic Diet - How to Find More Help
To find a
diabetes teacher near you, call the American Association of Diabetes Educators
toll-free at 1-800-TEAMUP4 (1-800-832-6874) or see www.diabeteseducator.org and
click on "Find a Diabetes Educator."
For UK Diabetic
Help, see the British Diabetic Association website:
www.diabetes.org.uk/home.htm
Recognized
Diabetes Education Programs
Teaching programs approved by the American Diabetes Association
To find a program
near you, call toll-free 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or see www.diabetes.org
and click on "Diabetes Info."
(From www.annecollins.com)
See also
Diabetes Diet
Note:
This diabetes
health education project is supported
by Chong's Health Care at http://www.cljhealth.com, one of the leading companies in the discovery of
alternative
medicines for diabetes.
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