Snacking can be a healthy part of your diabetic meal plan. Healthy snack choices can help you meet your daily vegetable quota and curb your appetite to prevent you from overeating at mealtimes, says the American Diabetes Association. Consult your doctor or dietitian to learn how you can add snacks to your diet.
Free Snack Foods
If snacks are not part of your everyday meal plan, choose low-calorie, low-carbohydrate snack foods to limit your calories and prevent rises in blood sugars. Pay attention to serving size. Low-calorie and low-carbohydrate snacks for diabetics include 1/2 cup of sugar-free gelatin, 1 cup of air-popped popcorn, a can of diet soda, a sugar-free ice pop, two saltine crackers, five baby carrots, 1 cup of cucumber slices, three celery sticks, tossed greens with balsamic vinegar or sugar-free candy or gum.
Snacks With 15g of Carbohydrate
If you enjoy snacking, make it part of your everyday meal plan. A 15g carbohydrate snack can be easily incorporated into your diet by adjusting the amount of carbohydrates you eat at mealtimes. Fifteen-gram carbohydrate diabetic snack ideas include 3 cups of air-popped popcorn, a small apple or orange, one slice of toast with 1 tsp. of peanut butter, six saltine crackers with 1 oz. of low-fat or nonfat cheese, 1 cup of broth-based soup such as chicken noodle, a 6-oz. container of nonfat, sugar-free yogurt, 1/2 cup of unsweetened whole-grain cereal with 1/2 cup of skim milk or half a sandwich made with one slice of whole wheat bread and 1 oz. of lean luncheon meat.
Bedtime Snacks For Insulin-Dependent Diabetics
If you take insulin, you may need a bedtime snack to prevent low blood sugar while sleeping. A 2003 study published in Diabetes Care set out to determine the best bedtime snack composition to prevent nighttime hypoglycemia for insulin-dependent diabetics. Investigators of the study determined that bedtime snacks were only necessary with evening blood sugar of 126 or less, and should consist of both carbohydrates and protein. Bedtime snack ideas for diabetics on insulin include a slice of bread with 1 tbsp. of peanut butter and 1 cup of skim milk, a 6-oz. container of nonfat sugar-free yogurt with 17 grapes, 4 tbsp. of raisins with 1/4 cup of mixed nuts, 1 oz. of low-fat cheese with six saltine crackers and 1 cup of skim milk, or a cheese sandwich with two slices of whole wheat bread and 1 slice of low-fat cheese.
References
- "Diabetes Care"; Impact of Bedtime Snack Composition on Prevention of Nocturnal Hypoglycemia in Adults With Type 1 Diabetes Undergoing Intensive Insulin Management Using Lispro Insulin Before Meals; M. Kalergis; 2003
- American Diabetes Association: Snacks
- MayoClinic.com: Late-night Snacking: OK If You Have Diabetes?
