If left uncontrolled, both high blood sugar and high blood potassium levels can lead to serious medical conditions. Uncontrolled blood sugars can cause kidney disease and heart disease, and high blood levels of potassium can lead to heart palpitations and even death. You can manage both your diabetes and high potassium levels by following a healthy diet that includes a variety of foods in controlled amounts, while limiting your intake of foods high in potassium.
Carbohydrates and Blood Sugar Control
To manage your diabetes, you need to control the amount of carbohydrates you eat at each meal. Carbohydrates include foods such as bread, grains, starches, starchy vegetables, milk and yogurt. How much you need depends on your calorie needs and blood sugar goals. Your doctor or dietitian can help you determine how much carbohydrate to eat at each meal, but most people can start with 45 to 60 g, according to the dietitian website Health Castle. In general, one serving of a carbohydrate food contains 15 g of carbohydrate. For example, one slice of bread, 1 cup of milk and a small piece of fruit all have about 15 g of carbohydrates. Use food labels and the diabetic exchange guide to help you count and track your carbohydrate intake.
Limiting Your Potassium Intake
Fruits and vegetables are your primary source of potassium in the diet. Decrease your intake of potassium by choosing more low-potassium fruits and vegetables and limiting your intake to three servings of fruit and two servings of vegetables each day. Low potassium fruit choices include apples, applesauce, fruit cocktail, grapes, pears, canned pears, canned peaches and watermelon. Low potassium vegetables include alfalfa sprouts, canned beets, carrots, cauliflower, green beans, lettuce, mushrooms, cucumber, endive and eggplant.
Breakfast
A low-potassium, carbohydrate-controlled breakfast meal may include 3/4-cup serving of ready-to-eat cereal with 1 cup of nonfat milk, an egg scrambled in 1 tsp. of margarine, one slice of whole wheat toast with 1 tsp. of margarine and a small fresh apple. This meal contains 485 calories and 60 g of carbohydrates. Dairy products, including milk and yogurt, also contain potassium, and you should limit your intake to 1 cup per day.
Lunch
For lunch on your diabetic low-potassium diet, you can have a turkey sandwich on two slices of whole wheat bread with 3 oz. of lean deli turkey meat, lettuce and 1 tsp. of mayonnaise, served with 1/2 cup of unsweetened canned pears, six unsalted crackers and 1 cup of a garden salad with lettuce, cucumbers, carrots and 1 tbsp. of salad dressing. This lunch meal contains 550 calories and 60 g of carbohydrates.
Dinner
For dinner, you can have 3 oz. of broiled salmon with 1 cup of cooked brown rice, 1/2 cup of green beans sauteed in 1 tsp. of olive oil and 1/2 cup of fresh grapes. This dinner meal contains 535 calories and 60 g of carbohydrates.
