Living with diabetes can be challenging, especially when it comes to making dietary choices. we’ll explore various aspects of eating as a diabetic, from understanding the basics of a diabetic-friendly diet to discovering specific food options that can help you manage your blood sugar levels effectively.
Diabetes :
Generally speaking, the normal value of fasting blood glucose is 3.9-6.1mmol/L, and the normal value of blood glucose 2 hours after meal is ≤7.8mmol/L. The fasting blood glucose reference value for diabetic patients is:
Mild diabetes: 7.0～8.4mmol/L;
Moderate diabetes: 8.4～10.1mmol/L;
Severe diabetes: ≥10.11mmol/L.
Diabetes diet：
As the name suggests, a diabetic diet is a diet suitable for diabetics.
According to the disease characteristics and types of diabetes, this guideline gives the principles and suggestions of diet and nutrition, describes in detail the food choices and diet recipes for adult diabetic patients, the recommended food and drug quality for different syndrome types, and recipes for different regions and seasons Examples and tools such as charts of common food exchanges. Among them, at least 3 days of recipes are listed for each region and each season.
Diet for Diabetes: Eight Principles and Recommendations
(1) Eat a variety of foods, develop and establish reasonable eating habits
Dietary management and treatment are the core of blood sugar control for diabetic patients. The principle of balanced diet should be followed to achieve a variety of foods, quantitative staple foods, rich vegetables, fruits, milk and beans, less oil, less salt, and less sugar. While controlling blood sugar, ensure daily Adequate energy and nutrient intake.
A variety of foods is the basis for achieving a reasonable diet with balanced nutrition. A varied diet should consist of five food groups:
- Cereals and potatoes, including cereals (including whole grains), potatoes and beans;
- vegetables and fruits;
- Animal food, including livestock, poultry, fish, eggs, milk;
- soybeans and nuts;
- cooking oil and salt.
Diabetics should also maintain a variety of food, a rich and colorful diet, ensure comprehensive and sufficient nutrient intake, and limit sugar and alcohol with less oil and salt.
A reasonable diet refers to adjusting and optimizing food types and weights on the basis of a balanced diet with the goal of controlling blood sugar to meet one’s own health needs.
Diet Tips for Diabetics:
- The staple food should be rationed, the main source of carbohydrates is preferably whole grains, various beans, vegetables, etc., and the fruits should be limited.
- Every meal should have vegetables, 500g per day, of which dark vegetables account for more than half
- Have milk and soybeans every day, often eat fish, poultry, moderate eggs and livestock meat
- Reduce fat intake and eat less smoked, baked, pickled and other processed meat products
- Control the amount of salt, sugar and oil used
(2) Appropriate energy, controlling overweight and obesity and preventing emaciation
Dietary energy is the core of weight management and blood sugar control. Energy requirements are related to age, gender, body weight, and physical activity, and can be estimated based on body weight. For example, a 60kg adult female with light physical activity has a daily energy requirement of 1500-1800 kcal.
It is recommended that the ratio of macronutrients to total energy in dietary energy for diabetic patients is: protein 15%-20%, carbohydrate 45%-60%, and fat 20%-35%.
(3) Quantitative staple food, preferably whole grains and low glycemic index foods
Glycemic index (GI) is a relative index to measure the impact of food on blood sugar. Choosing low GI foods is conducive to postprandial blood sugar control. When choosing staple foods or grain foods, you can refer to the glycemic index table of common foods in my country.
Foods with low GI stay in the gastrointestinal tract for a long time, have a low absorption rate, and release glucose slowly. After glucose enters the blood, the peak value is low and the rate of decline is also slow. Simply put, it causes relatively small postprandial blood sugar fluctuations, which is helpful for blood sugar control.
Suggestions for staple food:
The energy provided by carbohydrates accounts for 45% to 60% of the total energy in diabetic patients
Taking an adult (1800-2000kcal) as an example, it is equivalent to 200-300g of carbohydrates per day.
For cereals, fruits, nuts, etc. in snacks, you should also check the carbohydrate content in the nutrition facts table and include it in your daily intake.
Adjusting the order of meals is beneficial to control blood sugar, and develop the habit of eating vegetables first and staple food last.
It is recommended to record meals, exercise and blood sugar levels to improve blood sugar control
Elderly diabetic patients with weak gastrointestinal function should pay attention to cooking methods and dosage when choosing whole grains rich in dietary fiber to reduce the burden on the digestive tract.
(4) Active exercise to improve physical fitness and insulin sensitivity
Exercise can consume energy, resistance exercise helps to increase muscle mass, exercise can also increase the number of glucose transporter (GLUT-4) on the membrane of skeletal muscle cells, increase the uptake of glucose by skeletal muscle cells, and improve the insulin sensitivity of skeletal muscle cells Sex, stabilize blood sugar.
At present, there is sufficient evidence that insufficient physical activity can lead to excessive weight gain, and more physical activity is not only conducive to maintaining a healthy weight and regulating mood, but also reduces the incidence of diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers risk and risk of all-cause mortality.
Tips for exercise:
- Diabetics can exercise after meals, at least 5 days a week, 30-45 minutes each time, and moderate-intensity exercise should account for more than 50%.
- Moderate-intensity exercise includes brisk walking, cycling, table tennis, badminton, jogging, swimming, etc. If there are no contraindications, it is best to do resistance exercises twice a week, such as dumbbells, push-ups, equipment exercises, etc., to improve muscle strength and endurance.
- Integrate daily activities and exercise into your life plan.
- Blood sugar monitoring should be strengthened before and after exercise to avoid hypoglycemia.
(5) Eat a light diet, limit alcohol consumption, prevent and delay complications
To prevent and delay the occurrence of related complications, the emphasis is on intensifying lifestyle changes. First of all, we must control oil, salt, sugar, do not drink alcohol, and control blood sugar, blood lipids, and blood pressure at ideal levels.
All people, including prediabetics and all diabetics, should eat a bland diet with limited amounts of oil, salt, and sugar. Excessive intake of cooking oil or fatty meat will lead to high total dietary energy, resulting in overweight and obesity, which is not conducive to the control of metabolic indicators such as blood sugar, blood lipids, and blood pressure.
Studies have shown that excessive salt intake can increase the risk of high blood pressure, stroke and other diseases.
Alcohol consumption can disrupt normal meals and medications in people with diabetes, causing fluctuations in blood sugar, such as may increase the risk of hypoglycemia, especially when taking insulin or insulin secretagogues. In addition, patients often consume a large amount of food when drinking alcohol, resulting in excessive total energy intake, which causes elevated blood sugar.
Excessive alcohol intake can also damage the human pancreas and cause liver damage. It is also an important risk factor for gout, cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
(6) Eat regular meals, add meals reasonably, and promote blood sugar stability after meals
- Meals are regular, regular and quantitative, which is the basis for maintaining blood sugar stability.
- Regular eating means that the time of three meals a day and additional meals is relatively fixed, and regular and quantitative meals can avoid overeating caused by the slow response of the satiety center caused by excessive hunger.
- Don’t overeat, don’t eat snacks and drinks at will, but have more meals and reduce the number of meals.
- Whether eating at home or out, according to the individual’s physiological conditions and physical activity, the diet should be moderate and scientifically configured, with standardized and quantitative nutritional meals, reasonable planning of meal times and energy allocation to arrange meals throughout the day, and eating should be chewed slowly Pharynx, form good eating habits.
- Whether to add meals, when to add meals, and what kind of snacks to choose should be determined according to the characteristics of the patient’s specific blood sugar fluctuations.
- For patients with type 2 diabetes and type 1 diabetes who have a long course of disease, poor blood sugar control, and insulin injections, blood sugar monitoring should be carried out, and meals can be added appropriately according to the actual situation to prevent hypoglycemia.
- For thin diabetic patients and gestational diabetic patients, additional meals or snacks can also be arranged appropriately to prevent hypoglycemia, increase energy intake, and increase body weight.
(7) Self-management, regular nutrition consultation, and improvement of blood sugar control ability
- Effective management and stable control of blood sugar depends largely on the patient’s self-management ability. Diabetes management requires a comprehensive approach that is individualized and diverse, taking into account the patient’s disease course, condition, and behavioral change characteristics.
- Diabetic patients need to pay attention to and learn diabetes knowledge and self-management skills, including dietary conditioning, regular exercise, blood sugar monitoring, medication as prescribed by the doctor, insulin injection techniques, and hypoglycemia prevention and treatment.
- Diabetics should take nutritious meals, proper cooking, exercise management and blood glucose monitoring as basic skills. Understand the carbohydrate content and GI value in food, learn the use of food exchange portions, and integrate self-behavior management into daily life.
Diet recommendation:
Food Choices for Adults with Diabetes
Food glycemic index (GI) is a parameter that reflects the physiological effects of food. It is used to measure the change in blood sugar within 2 hours after the human body eats a certain amount of food rich in carbohydrates.
GI≤55, it is a low GI food;
55<GI≤70, it is a medium GI food;
GI>70 is a high GI food.
Low GI foods have little effect on blood sugar and are conducive to postprandial blood sugar control, so diabetics should choose more low GI foods. Taking the GI of 50g of glucose at one time as 100, after ingesting foods containing the same amount of carbohydrates, especially foods made from grains, potatoes, and beans as the main raw materials.
Be careful not to overeat all foods:
If you eat too much low GI food, it will also increase the burden of blood sugar after a meal;
High GI foods are not completely restricted. Eating less food properly and matching them reasonably can also help maintain blood sugar homeostasis.
Conclusion:
As a diabetic, making mindful dietary choices can significantly impact your health and well-being. By focusing on nutrient-rich foods, practicing portion control, and staying attuned to your body’s signals, you can enjoy a satisfying diet that supports your diabetes management journey.
