Patients who have been diagnosed with diabetes do not have to give up foods they enjoy. Because you have to manage your blood sugar and keep it within certain limits, you need to learn new ways of managing your food. Exchange lists group food into specific categories--fruits, starches, vegetables, meats, milk, sweets, fats and free foods, according to the Mayo Clinic. Using the exchange system allows you to exchange foods within a group because of their similarity to each other.
Fruits
One exchange serving of fruits has no fat, about 15 g of carbohydrates and approximately 60 calories, according to the Mayo Clinic. This includes the skin or rind, seeds and core, unless otherwise specified.
Fresh fruits exchanges include: 4 apricots, 1 small apple, 3/4 cup blueberries or blackberries, 1 cup cantaloupe, papaya or honeydew, cubed, 1/2 cup cubed mango, 1 large pear, 2 small plums, 3/4 cup cubed pineapple and 1 1/4 cup cubed watermelon.
Vegetables
Exchange vegetables have 25 calories and 5 g of carbohydrates. One vegetable serving is 1 cup salad greens or raw vegetables, 1/2 cup cooked vegetables--broccoli, zucchini or carrots--and 1/2 cup vegetable juice, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Starches
Look for your starch exchanges to have about 80 calories, up to 1 g of fat, 15 g of carbohydrates and 3 g of protein. Some examples of a starch exchange include 1 large 4-oz. bagel; 2 slices reduced-calorie bread; 1/2 English muffin; 1 pancake, 4 inches across; 1/2 pita, 6 inches across; and one flour or corn tortilla, 6 inches in diameter, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Milk
One milk exchange contains 90 calories in a serving, and can consist of 1 cup fat-free or 1 percent milk, 1 cup artificially sweetened yogurt and 3/4 cup plain nonfat or lowfat yogurt, says the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Meat
Meat--very lean protein--exchanges contain 25 calories and 1 g of fat in one serving, says the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. A single serving is the equivalent of 1 oz. of skinless chicken or turkey; 1 oz. canned tuna packed in water; 3/4 cup low-fat or nonfat cottage cheese; 1/4 cup egg substitute; 1/2 cup cooked black or kidney beans, lentils or chickpeas, which also count as 1 starch or bread and 1 very lean protein; 1 oz. of fish fillet--cod, flounder, scrod or sole. Other very lean proteins include shellfish; 2 egg whites; or 1 oz. fat-free cheese.
Medium-fat protein exchanges have 75 calories and 5 g fat per serving. These include: 1 oz. of beef; 1 whole medium egg; 1 oz. pork chop; 4 oz. tofu, which is a heart-healthy choice; 1 oz. mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup ricotta cheese. Eat whole eggs only infrequently, advises the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Fats
Fats on the exchange list contain 45 calories and consist of: 1 slice of bacon; 1 tsp. butter or vegetable oil; 2 tbsp. cream cheese; and 1/8 of an avocado, according to the Diabetes and Diabetic Diet website's diet foods and exchange list. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, one fat exchange contains 5 g.
Sweets
As a diabetic, you can enjoy sweets and desserts--you just have to eat them in moderation, substituting foods from the sweets exchange list for other carbohydrate foods such as fruit, starches or milk, writes the Mayo Clinic. Don't eat desserts, sweets or candy too frequently because they provide little nutrition and trigger quick rises in your blood sugar. When you do eat a sweet, eat it as part of your regular meal.
Free Foods
Foods in the free foods exchange list contain less than 20 calories and 5 g fat, advises the Mayo Clinic. Eat these foods as frequently as you wish, in moderate amounts. Foods in this exchange group include sugar-free diet soda, bouillon, coffee unsweetened or with sugar substitute, water, sugar-free tonic water, club soda, sugar-free drink mixes, tea sweetened with sugar substitute or unsweetened and flavored, and carbohydrate-free water.
Member Comments