Female: Diet plays a key role in managing all types of diabetes. Let us look at the ways in which food choices can help keep you healthy.
Female 2: When you have diabetes, a smart diet starts with understanding how different foods can affect your blood sugar levels. Fortunately, there is a convenient tool to measure this. The Glycemic index. The Glycemic index or GI is a tool that distinguishes how different carbohydrates affect blood sugar. This system compares various foods to pure glucose which has a rating of a hundred. Foods with the Glycemic index reading below 55, such as an apple are digested slowly, keeping blood sugar stable. Foods with the GI reading greater than 55 like a doughnut are digested and absorbed quickly creating intense fluctuations in the body sugar and insulin levels. Because diabetics must regulate their blood sugar carefully, it is best to avoid foods that will cause sugar spikes.
Some examples of food with particularly high GI’s include white bread which has a GI of 71, watermelon which weighs in at 72 and pretzels which have a GI of 81. If you have diabetes, you will rarely go wrong with fresh vegetables because they have extremely low glycemic indexes. For example, broccoli and spinach both have a GI of 15. Once you begin to use the Glycemic index, there are some guidelines to follow. They can keep you in the path to good health. Start adding high fiber foods to your diet. Fiber will keep you full longer and reduce blood sugar surges. Enjoy a low GI fruit like apples and cherries. Lean meats like chicken and turkey and unrefined grains are great options for diabetics too. Well, every diabetic is different. A good rule of thumb is to try to consume 50% of your nutrients from carbohydrates, 20% from protein and a maximum of 30% from fats. Well, all of us should watch our intake of saturated fats, processed foods and simple sugars. It is even more important for diabetics to do so. That is because these foods can cause uncontrollable blood sugar surges in diabetics resulting in a coma or even death. Above all outs, a great healthy eating guideline I share with my clients is to read the ingredient listings on your food. If you do not recognize or cannot pronounce some of the ingredients, do not eat it.
A diagnosis of diabetes can be life altering. However, following a healthy diet that takes the Glycemic index in general good sense into account can help diabetics stay well and feel great. Because every diabetic is different, remember that you should always talk to your doctor before starting a new diet.
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