Along with many health benefits and prevention of illnesses, a vegetarian diet helps to manage diabetes, according to the American Dietetic Association. Additionally, if you monitor your caloric intake, you can reduce your body weight easily by avoiding meats. The 2010 "Current Diabetes Reports" states you can prevent and treat Type 2 with a vegetarian diet.
Ovo-Vegetarian Meals
If you have an ovo-vegetarian diet, you do not eat meat, poultry, fish and dairy. This is recommended over the standard vegetarian diet, because it does not contain dairy. Dairy can be high in saturated fat, which is one of the causes of diabetes, as reported by the "Current Diabetes Reports." Eggs contain saturated fat and are high in cholesterol, so eat them in moderation. You can use milk made from almonds, soy, oat, hemp or rice as an alternative. Cheese alternatives are also available at health food stores.
For breakfast, or any meal of the day, eat low-fat, plain yogurt with nutritious toppings, such as blueberries and cherries, citrus fruits, and almonds or walnuts. Sweeten it with agave nectar or stevia. Sprinkle it with 2 tbsp. of ground flaxseed for additional iron, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids.
Vegan Meals
If you choose to do a vegan diet, you eat the same as an ovo-vegetarian, but remove the eggs. The Physician's Resource Group confirms that a vegan diet contains a minimal amount of fats to improve your diabetic condition. Health food stores sell non-animal sourced egg replacements. This is good to use when baking to emulsify breads, cakes, brownies and other cooked food that requires eggs.
For lunch, you can buy deli meat alternatives at grocery stores. Use whole-grain or sprouted bread. Spread hummus on your bread instead of mayonnaise and place the vegetarian meat substitute, almond-based cheese, collard greens, onion and tomato slices and sprouts in your sandwich. Serve it with a side of sauteed spinach and kale with garlic and lemon to flavor it.
Raw Food Meals
Raw food meals are basically a vegan diet, without cooked foods. If food is warmed, it must be below 118 degrees F to be considered raw. Highly processed foods are also excluded, which means you avoid the cheese and milk alternatives. This diet primarily consists of raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and sprouted grains and legumes.
For dinner, eat a large salad with mustard greens, red bell pepper, tomatoes, garlic, and top it with bean sprouts, hemp seed and cashews.
