Adopting a healthy lifestyle including a sensible diet and exercise, and sometimes the help of medications or insulin, is important to manage your diabetes. Choosing the right foods in the right amounts can help you keep your blood sugars between 70 and 130 mg/dL before a meal and below 180 mg/dL two hours after eating to prevent the long-term complications associated with high blood sugars.
Carbohydrates and Blood Sugar Levels
The key nutrient to look at when establishing your diabetes meal plan is carbohydrates. Carbohydrate, compared to protein and fat, is the nutrient that has the most influence over your blood sugar levels. Carbohydrates, mainly sugar and starches, are broken down into sugar, or glucose, when digested. This glucose is then absorbed at the intestinal level into the bloodstream. This is why eating too much carbohydrates can result in blood sugar levels above your target.
Carbohydrate-Containing Foods
Many foods in the standard American diet contain carbohydrates, including grains, legumes, fruits, some dairy products and sweets. Carbohydrate-containing foods most often included at breakfast are cereals, oatmeal, toasts, bagels, jam, orange juice, fruits, milk, yogurt and sugar in your coffee. Lunch and dinner usually contain carbohydrates in potatoes, rice, pasta, bread and croutons. Carbohydrate sources at snack time include muffins, granola bars, dried fruits, fruits, yogurt, popcorn, pretzels, candies and chocolate bars.
Optimal Carbohydrate Intake
If you have diabetes, it is essential that you control your carbohydrate intake to maintain good blood sugar control. There are different recommendations on the subject and you will need to find out what works best for you. For example, the American Diabetes Association recommends including 45 g to 60 g of carbohydrates at each meal. The Metabolism Society -- a nonprofit health organization providing research, information and education in the application of fundamental science to nutrition -- suggests a low-carb approach, providing no more than 10 g to 20 g of carbs per meal, to stay healthy with diabetes. Monitor your blood sugar levels before a meal and two hours after eating to see how the carbohydrates in your meals affect your blood sugar levels, and adjust your meal plan accordingly. Your doctor will offer advice and monitor you as you make adjustments.
Designing Your Diabetic Meal Plan
No matter what the individual carbohydrate target you have established to manage your diabetes, your meal plan should be based on a foundation of nonstarchy vegetables, including cauliflower, spinach, leafy greens, zucchini, tomatoes, onions and mushrooms, which do not significantly influence your blood sugar levels, and help provide you with the nutrients you need to stay healthy. Include a source of protein at each meal, whether fish, meat, poultry, cheese or eggs. You can add small amounts of healthy fats, such as olive oil or other vegetable oil, avocado, olives, nuts, seeds and nut butter. Finally, complete your meal with the amount of carbohydrates you have determined is right for you, which can range between 10 g and 60 g per meal for most people with diabetes. For example, a small piece of fruit, 2/3 cup of sugar-free yogurt, 1/3 cup of rice or pasta, 1/4 of a large baked potato, a slice of bread, 1/4 of a bagel or 1 tbsp. of jam each provides approximately 15 g of carbohydrates.
