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Importance of Nutrition for Diabetics
Everything You Need To Know About Diabetes
Diabetes Support Site
Website
http://diabetessupportsite.com
Nutrition is crucial in managing blood sugar levels.Nutrition is a critical part of
diabetes care.Balancing the
right amount of carbohydrates,
fat, protein along with fibre,
vitamins and minerals helps us
to maintain a healthy diet and a
healthy lifestyle.
Getting the balance right can
help the body to stay in prime
condition, but what is the right
balance of nutrients? People
have been arguing over the
ideal mix for generations and
the discussion still rages today.
For people with diabetes, there
is at least one extra
consideration for our nutritional
needs and that is the question
of how our blood sugar levels
will respond to different diets.
Do I have to follow a special diet?There isn’t one specific
“diabetes diet.” Your doctor
will probably suggest that you
work with a registered
dietitian to design a meal
plan. A meal plan is a guide
that tells you what kinds of
food to eat at meals and for
snacks. The plan also tells
you how much food to have.
For most people who have
diabetes (and those without,
too), a healthy diet consists of
40% to 60% of calories from
carbohydrates, 20% from
protein and 30% or less from
fat. It should be low in
cholesterol, low in salt and
low in added sugar.
What kinds of foods can I eat?In general, at each meal you may have 2
to 5 choices (or up to 60 grams) ofcarbohydrates, 1 choice of protein and acertain amount of fat. Talk to your doctor
or dietitian for specific advice.
Carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are foundin fruits, vegetables, beans, dairy foodsand starchy foods such as breads, pastaand rice. Try to have fresh fruits ratherthan canned fruits, fruit juices or driedfruit. You may eat fresh vegetables andfrozen or canned vegetables. Condimentssuch as nonfat mayonnaise, ketchup and
mustard are also carbohydrates.
Protein. Protein is found in meat, poultry,fish, dairy products, beans and somevegetables. Try to eat poultry and fishmore often than red meat. Don’t eatpoultry skin, and trim extra fat from allmeat. Choose nonfat or reducedfatoptions when you eat dairy, such as
cheeses and yogurts.
Fat. Butter, margarine, lard and oils addfat to food. Fat is also in many dairy andmeat products. Try to avoid fried foods,mayonnaisebased dishes (unless theyare made with fatfree mayo), egg yolks,bacon and highfat dairy products. Yourdoctor or dietitian will tell you how manygrams of fat you may eat each day. Wheneating fatfree versions of foods (such asmayonnaise and butter), check the labelto see how many grams of carbohydratesthey contain. Keep in mind that theseproducts often have added sugar.
MacronutrientsThe macronutrients referred
to in human diets are the
three food groups that provide
us with energy, namely:
carbohydrates, fat and
protein. The three major
nutrients are more than
simply providers of fuel for our
bodies.
Fats and protein are both vital
for building cells and helping
the cells carry out their duties.
Each of the macronutrients
are versatile allowing the
body to break them down into
a number of uses.
Carbohydrate can be stored
as fat and fat and protein can
both be converted into
glucose for example.
Why Carbohydrates Are So Important in Diabetes
Choosing the rightkind of carbohydratesand spacing them outevenly throughout theday can keep bloodsugar from rising toohigh, too fast (90% ofthe carbohydratecalories you digest
end up as glucose, sothey have a muchbigger impact on
blood sugar than fator protein).
Some carbs are better than others The goal is tomaximize intake ofthe good stuff
—vitamins, minerals,and fiber—and
minimizecarbohydrates thatboost blood sugartoo much, offer fewnutritional benefits,or are packed with fat
and calories.
A dietitian or diabeteseducator will helpyou develop a mealplan to get a good
balance ofcarbohydrates,
protein, and fat, andan appropriate
amount of calories.
Carbohydrate-Counting for People with Diabetes
Step 1:Develop a meal plan
Develop a meal plan to get a goodbalance of carbohydrates, protein, and fat,and an appropriate amount of calories.
Step 2: Know your Carbohydrate
Most of the carbohydrates we eat comefrom three food groups: starch, fruit andmilk. Vegetables also contain some
carbohydrates, but foods in the meat andfat groups contain very little
carbohydrates. To make things easy,many people begin carbohydrate countingby rounding the carbohydrate values of
milk up to 15.
In other words, one serving of starch, fruitor milk all contain 15 grams of
carbohydrates or one carbohydrateserving.
Three servings of vegetable also contain15 grams. One or two servings of
vegetables do not need to be counted.
Each meal and snack will contain a totalnumber of grams of carbohydrates It is
more important to know your carbohydrateallowance for each meal and snack than it
is to know your total for the day. Theamount of carbohydrates eaten at eachmeal should remain consistent (unlessyou learn to adjust your insulin for a
change in the amount of carbohydrateseaten)
Glycemic Index Diet (GI Diet) and Diabetes
A low Glycemic index diet can
be particularly effective for
people with diabetes if portion
control is also applied to those
foods with higher
carbohydrate content.
This is the basis of working
out a food’s glycemic load.
Low GI diets are diets which
incorporate foods which are
more slowly converted into
energy by the body.
It is noted that low GI diets
can be a suitable option for
people with diabetes as they
can help to make blood
glucose levels more stable
than diets based around high
GI foods.
MicronutrientsMicro may mean small, butmicronutrients are far from
insignificant. Without a regularsupply of micronutrients, ourbodies would literally starve.
Micronutrients include allvitamins and minerals .
We take it in, often withoutrealising, and are an essential
part of a diabetic diet. As anexample, celery contains well
over a dozen differentmicronutrients including a
number of vitamins, potassium,calcium, iron and more.
Micronutrients such as niacin,magnesium, calcium, zinc,
carnitine, inositol, alpha-lipoicacid, as well as vitamins E, B6
and D all play an important rolein the prevention and
management of patients withdiabetes.
THE ROLE OF MICRONUTRIENTS IN DIABETIC HEALTHVitamin E – Confers protection againstdiabetes by protecting pancreatic Bcellsfrom oxidativestress induced damage;May prevent progression of type I
diabetes.
Vitamin D – Lowers risk of type I and 2diabetes; Suppresses inflammation ofpancreatic Bcells. Vitamin D receptor
gene linked to diabetes.
Vitamin B3 – Preserves Bcell function intype I diabetics; Part of GTF (glucosetolerance factor) which facilitates insulin
binding.
Vitamin B12 – Deficiency common indiabetics because metformin depletes
B12.
Chromium – Helps insulin attach to cell’sreceptors increasing glucose uptake into
cell; Deficiency can cause insulinresistance; Supplementation trials showdosedependent benefits for type II
diabetics.
Biotin – Stimulates glucoseinducedinsulin secretion in pancreatic Bcells;High dose biotin can improve glycemic
control in diabetics.
Magnesium – Deficiency reduces insulinsensitivity; Low magnesium exacerbates
foot ulcers in diabetics.
Zinc – Needed in the synthesis, storageand secretion of insulin; Protects
pancreatic Bcells from damage; Affectsthe expression of genes linked to
diabetes.
How to include more micro-nutrients in your diet
Vitamin A – Milk, cheese, eggs (yolk), orange and yellow fruits and vegetables
Vitamin B – Legumes, wholegrain cereals, nuts, seeds, green leafy vegetables
Vitamin C – Citrus fruits, broccoli, strawberry, parsley, cabbage
Vitamin D – Citrus fruits, broccoli, strawberry, parsley, cabbage
Vitamin E – Olives and olive oil, avocado, wholegrain cereals
Iron – Lean meat, green leafy vegetables, legumes
Calcium – Dairy products, almonds, tahini, green leafy vegetables
Magnesium – Nuts, seeds, wholegrains, legumes, green leafy vegetables
Zinc – Lean meat, chicken, fish, sunflower and pumpkin seeds
Selenium – Brazil nuts, wheatgerm, sunflower seeds, oats
Herbs and Spices for DiabetesYou can make your meals
even healthier (and tastier,
too!) while strengthening your
fight against the diabetes
inducing inflammation in your
body. How? You can look to
nature and whole plant foods.
All herbs and spices have anti
diabetic and/or anti
inflammatory properties and
can be sprinkled on any meal
to help reduce the chronic
inflammation in your body. So
when you’re cooking your next
meal, toss in some herbs and
spices . And don’t be afraid to
experiment in order to get it
just right: By trying new
combinations, you’ll learn
which herbs and spices offer
the best flavors for your dishes
and how much you prefer to
use.
Everything You Need To Know About Diabetes
Diabetes Support Site
Website
http://diabetessupportsite.com
