Those of you who suffer with diabetes will know that diet plays a key role in managing your diabetes. Most diabetics take a controlled oral hypoglycemic drug or insulin; these will differ depending on sex, age, height, and weight. The most important thing for any person with diabetes is to ensure they eat the proper amounts of food and most important, the correct foods.
Many of you will already be aware of the importance of having regular check ups for high blood pressure and cholesterol levels. This can be done by your doctor or dietitian. Generally, good nutrition can help to keep your blood glucose level. If you can get into the habit of eating regularly and on time, it can help in avoiding low blood glucose.
It is best in your diet to try to limit your fat intake, foods that are high in saturated fats, check the labels on margarine and try to avoid eating too many take away or fast foods. The best oils for a diabetic are virgin olive oil and canola oil as these are mono unsaturated fat and are a lot healthier. Those of you who love a bag of chips would be a lot better to change them for some fresh fruit.
Try to incorporate in your diet plenty of foods that contain a high fiber content such as vegetables, fresh fruit or whole grains, switch from white bread to brown bread or a good whole grain loaf. Porridge oats could be chosen as your breakfast and will start you of for the day, as long as you choose milk with a low fat content and sprinkle some fresh fruit or nuts on instead of sugar.
The key to a good diet is to take care not to eat a diet of a high fat content, especially less saturated fat such as fatty meats, poultry skin, cheese, ice cream, whole milk, butter; these are just a few to be careful about. It is not to say you can never eat ice cream but a word with your dietitian or doctor can only enhance your knowledge as to how much as everybody's diabetes levels are different. Always choose lean pieces of meat and choose low fat or fat free dairy products.
Many of you will know that sticking to recommended daily calories is of great importance in maintaining your glucose levels. The normal calorie intake would be 1200 to 1800 consisting of 50% to 60% carbohydrates 12% to 20% protein and no more than 30% fats. As said before, everyone is different so check with your doctor or dietitian.
It has to be said for those who have just received confirmation that they have diabetes should not think they cannot have a healthy lifestyle; nothing can be further from the truth. Provided you follow all the guidelines regarding what not to eat and ensuring regular meals, you can do just about anything that anybody else does.
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