Your diabetic diet meal plan should be a simple and healthy one. Moreover, it must be helpful to control your blood sugar. This article will help you to create your own diabetic diet meal plan.
A diabetic diet is a collection of healthy foods in moderate amounts concerning both the nutrition and sugar facts for regular meals. Furthermore, a diabetic diet meal plan is a completely controlled and planned meal with full of nutrients and low in fat and calories. In fact, a diabetic diet is a collection of key elements such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
What is the purpose of creating a diabetic diet meal plan?
Think that you have diabetes or you are in a pre-diabetes status. I am sure that your doctor will say to make a diet plan by channeling an experienced dietitian. In fact, a dietitian is a person who is able to make a perfect diet plan for diabetes, obese, cholesterol controlling, high blood pressure or in any other circumstance.
If you eat more fat, sugar or carbs in such a case of obesity, you will become out of control of your weight. As such, if you have diabetes and you eat more sugar your diabetes status will become more hazardous. Therefore, you have to understand the importance of making a perfect diabetic diet meal plan with consulting a dietitian.
When you eat more extra calories and fat, your blood glucose level will increase. If you do not check the blood glucose level regularly, it will become more serious and can have long-term complications.
What are the facts a diabetic diet meal plan is based on?
A diabetic diet meal plan is concerning three meals per day at regular intervals. Our body makes insulin to help to absorb glucose to the cells via the cell membrane. The cause for type 2 diabetes is simply the lack of insulin or insulin resistance. Some people have to get insulin from outside as a medication. However, a perfect diabetic diet meal plan helps to use this insulin in a better way.
A perfect dietitian will make a meal plan for your taste and lifestyle to achieve the goal. Furthermore, he or she will advise you about your habits and lifestyle. The dietitian will also help you to choosing the perfect portion size according to your lifestyle, such as your activity level.
Recommending foods for diabetic diet meal plan
Make sure to reduce the calories in foods you intake. Suitable nutrients for diabetic diet are healthy carbohydrates, fiber-rich foods and good fat. Furthermore, add fish to your meals and reduce meat consumption as much as you can.
You can choose fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, peas, milk and cheese for your own diabetic diet meal plan. Stop taking added sugar, added sodium and added fats. Consume more fiber-rich foods such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans, peas and whole grains. Stop adding refined carbohydrates such as white bread and bakery products to your diabetic diet meal plan.
Fish contains omega-3 fatty acids. We recommend eating healthy fish at least twice a week. Fish like tuna, salmon, mackerel and sardine are healthy fish contains omega-3 fatty acids. In addition to that, fish are good for your heart health too.
Next thing is good fats. What are those good fats? Fats we intake are directly affecting to the blood cholesterol level. Therefore, we have to concern very much about taking healthy (“good”) fat such as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. In fact, avocado, nuts, canola, olive and peanut oil are some of the examples. However, make sure to take the fats in moderate amounts.
Foods to avoid in diabetic diet meal plan
As we mentioned in the previous section, we have to avoid taking some kind of foods to control diabetes. First, you have to understand what kind of foods you should avoid.
You must avoid saturated fats, trans-fats, cholesterol and sodium while making a diabetic diet meal plan. Saturated fats are fats in butter, beef, hot dogs, bacon and sausage like foods. Furthermore, you have to limit using coconut and palm kernel oils.
Processed snacks, baked foods, shortening and stick margarine are some of the examples for trans-fats. You must avoid trans-fats too. In addition to that, you have to avoid cholesterol intake. Foods such as high-fat dairy products, high-fat animal proteins, egg yolks, liver and other organ meats are the cholesterol sources. Make sure to limit cholesterol intake no more than 200 milligrams per day.
Finally, you have to concern about sodium intake while making a diabetic diet meal plan. If you can limit added sodium intake to less than 2.3 grams per day, it will helpful to control even high blood pressure too.
A sample diet plate
Keep all of the above details in mind. Here is a simple method to make a diabetic diet meal plan. Follow these simple steps to make your own plate.
- Half of the plate – non-starchy vegetables (spinach, carrots and tomatoes)
- Quarter of the plate – protein (tuna, lean pork, chicken)
- Quarter of the plate – whole grain (brown rice, peas)
- “Good” fats in moderate amounts
- Add fruits or dairy and water, unsweetened tea or coffee.