Carbohydrates can raise blood sugar, and counting carbohydrates is one method diabetics use to prevent large spikes in blood glucose. Before you can implement a carbohydrate counting meal plan, you will need to consult with a doctor or dietitian to determine the exact amount of carbohydrates you can eat for the entire day and how to divide these up throughout the day in order to maintain your blood glucose at a steady level. Most diabetics can consume 45 to 60 g of carbohydrates per meal and consume three meals and three snacks spread throughout the day.
Step 1
Read the nutrition label for any packaged food you are about to eat. Find the information listing how many carbohydrates are in one serving of the food. This information will be listed in grams.
Step 2
Read the amount of grams contained in a single serving, which is found at the top of the nutrition label. It is sometimes placed in parentheses after the volume listing for a single serving.
Step 3
Place the portion of food you want to eat on a gram measuring scale. For simplicity, you can match your serving size to a single serving size listed on the package, but you don't have to.
Step 4
Calculate the number of grams of carbohydrate in the portion of food you are eating. Multiply the amount of food you measured in grams by the grams of carbohydrates per serving listed on the package. Divide this number by the total grams of food contained in one serving, also listed on the package. This gives you the number of carbohydrates in the serving of food you have dished out. If your serving size is the same as a single serving listed on the package, no calculation is required.
Step 5
Consult a book or database of carbohydrate grams per serving for foods that do not come in a package, such as a piece of fruit. Use the same calculation to get the amount of carbohydrates in the particular piece of food you are going to eat.
Step 6
Consume only as many carbohydrates as you need in a particular meal. If a serving of food has fewer than your maximum carbohydrates for that meal, you can eat a few more carbohydrates during that meal. If a serving has more than your allotted amount of carbohydrates, you may need to have a smaller serving.
Step 7
Include protein and fat in every meal along with your allotted carbohydrates. Choose lean proteins, such as fish, poultry, tofu or beans, and healthy fats, such as olive oil, nuts, cheese or avocados.
Tips and Warnings
- If you have high blood pressure in addition to diabetes, you may also want to count sodium grams when choosing food. If you are trying to lose weight, you will need to count calories as well.
Things You'll Need
- gram scale
- measuring cups
- measuring spoon
- calculator
