Food for Diabetics - Good and Bad Food for Diabetics

If you are diabetic, finding the right balance of food can be hard. This article will cover the different foods you should eat and avoid when you have diabetes.

Food to Avoid

Avoid food high in sugar, honey and artificial sweeteners. Use an alternative sweetener like stevia. Foods High in sugar include sweets and chocolate. If you need the occasional piece of chocolate (like most of us!) then try to eat Continental dark chocolate with at-least 75% cocoa solids.

You should also avoid certain types of vegetables including beans, parsnips, carrots and peas. All these are high in starch.
You should also avoid fruits including banana, grapes, strawberries and mangoes.

Avoid types of grains including pasta, rice, barley, corn, wheat and rye and foods that contain ingredients that end in ol or ose. These are mainly types of carbohydrates.

Foods to Eat

Foods you should eat should be high in fibre. A high fibre diet is very important for diabetics. This includes cereals, nuts, fruits, seeds and certain vegetables. Food with fibre in is good for diabetics as it reduces cholesterol and glucose levels.

You should also eat fruits that include grapefruit, peaches, lime and apples. Eat fruit and vegetables gradually throughout the day so your blood sugar level won't suddenly rise. You can also eat seafood of all types preferably boiled, steamed, baked or grilled - Not fried.

Eat white meats like chicken, fish and duck. Although you can eat lamb or beef once or twice a week. Eggs are fine for diabetics but try to avoid the yolk. Cheeses are also fine apart from cottage cheese.

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Glycemic Index And Diabetes - Is A GI Diet Good For Diabetics?

The Glycemic Index (GI) diet was all the rage a few years ago. It was promoted as a new diet plan that helped you to control your weight but was also good for you because it limited the amount of sugar entering the body. This was of interest to diabetics as they had to monitor their blood sugar levels at all times. People were interested in the glycemic index number for an apple, a piece of bread or a bowl of breakfast cereal and many other things. However it was not as simple as that as the GI number could vary depending on how ripe the fruit was, the type of bread or how the cereal had been cooked. This article will explain what is the glycemic index and how it works in relation to diabetes.

What is the Glycemic Index ?

The GI is a rating system for foods, mainly carbohydrates. It shows the effect that the food will have on the body's blood sugar levels. Consequently it is an indication of how quickly the carbohydrate food is broken down by the body. Foods with a low GI are broken down more slowly than those with a higher number. This also indicates the demand on insulin or the insulin response in the body or by other means if the person is a diabetic. For diabetics controlling the blood glucose level is paramount to controlling diabetes and minimizing the chances of complications in later life.

How Does the Glycemic Index Work?

The glycemic index is often not a straight forward measure of foods. Many factors influence the GI number of a food. The same applies to people too. Each person will have their own response to foods that are influenced by their age, level of physical activity and whether they are over weight. However the numbers are a general guideline that can help people make informed decisions on types of foods to eat. Foods are rated between 0-100 where zero is low and 100 is high. The general guidelines are as so :

Low is considered to be 55 or less,

Medium is considered to be 56 - 69,

High is considered to be 70 and above.

So the aim of a diabetic and anyone that wants to avoid having highs and lows in their blood sugar levels should be to try to include low and medium GI foods in their daily diet. Again at a very general level, simple carbohydrates like white bread and processed breakfast cereals will have higher numbers than say brown bread. You should change from simple carbohydrates to complex carbohydrates if you want to adopt a low GI diet. Fruit and Vegetables are also low and should be eaten. Adopting such a diet will give you more control over your diabetes. For people with type 2 diabetes this may mean not needing medication or insulin replacement therapy. For people with type 1 diabetes it should keep your blood sugar levels steady and within a normal range for longer periods. This may mean that less insulin is needed.

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10 Foods Diabetics Should Avoid

Most diabetics know to avoid sugar. It only makes sense: if your blood sugar is too high you shouldn't complicate the situation by ingesting more of the same.

But sugar in your diet is not the only food that will raise your blood glucose. Carbohydrates and alcohol raise your blood sugar (blood glucose level) about as quickly as eating sugar straight from the bowl. Proteins and fat are converted into energy for the body as well but don't raise the blood sugar nearly as much nor nearly as quickly.

Of course, sugar in the blood is not exactly the same as sugar in your food. The human body uses glucose as its energy source. Table sugar is sucrose, fruit sugar is fructose, and milk sugar is lactose. There are other sugars as well, but basically these sugars are converted to glucose in the human body.

Not everyone has a sweet tooth, but I certainly do. It goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) that diabetics should avoid eating anything made with sugar or high-fructose corn syrup including: candy, cake, cookies, ice cream, donuts, marshmallow cream, circus peanuts, soda pop, Kool-aid, sports drinks, sweet tea or fruit drinks, hot chocolate, caramel corn, candy corn, jello, pudding, Popsicles, sherbet, syrup, whipped cream, pie, Cracker Barrel chocolate cake, custard, jelly, Nutella, milkshakes, Captain Crunch, etc. If I missed your favorite, add it to the list.

The following 10 foods should be avoided as well.

1. White bread. The processed flour turns to glucose almost as quickly as sugar itself. In fact, white bread is rated the same as glucose on the glycemic index. The glycemic index is a ranking according to how quickly a particular food raises blood glucose levels. High is bad, low is good. Both glucose and white bread are rated 100. Stone-ground whole wheat bread and pumpernickel bread have a much lower glycemic index.

2. White bagels. They look a lot like white bread, don't they? The yummy bagels are much higher in calories than regular bread, too. Two slices of bread equals about 150 calories whereas a good-sized bagel is twice that. Not that you can't eat bagels, but get a whole-grain variety and remember that eating a big bagel is like eating 4 slices of toast.

3. Saltine crackers. If you were the baker, you'd notice that white bread, white bagels, and crackers all start off with white flour. The same is true of standard pretzels. Whole grain crackers and pretzels are better for diabetics and non-diabetics alike.

4. White potatoes. Strangely, sweet potatoes have a lower glyemic index and raise the blood sugar less than white potatoes do.

5. White rice. Are you noticing a pattern here? Some diabetic patients choose to avoid anything white.

6. Most breakfast cereal. Unless it's made with whole grains, breakfast cereal, too, will be processed like sugar. Even quick oatmeal raises blood sugar. Stone-cut oatmeal is much better for you and is now available in standard grocery stores, right next to the "regular" oatmeal. However, the stone-cut variety takes much longer to cook, easily half an hour or more to soften the grain to the consistency of regular oatmeal.

7. Instant pasta or macaroni mixes. Almost anything "instant" or processed breaks down into sugar more quickly than the natural forms.

8. Popcorn. Yes, another white item - however, amount is the key. A cup of popcorn (unbuttered) won't raise your blood sugar much whereas eating a large theater popcorn is like eating a few candy bars.

9. Sweet fruits. The especially sweet fruits like watermelon and pineapple contain more fruit-sugar than the less sweet fruits, but again, amount is the key. A few bites won't hurt you.

10. Alcohol. Not only does it elevate your blood sugar, but it may impair your judgment regarding your diabetes. Best to avoid this altogether.

Copyright 2010 Cynthia J. Koelker, M.D.

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