Type 1 diabetes is a condition where your body does not produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is used by your body to regulate blood sugar. Without proper insulin, your blood sugar levels can get too high and lead to serious health problems. A diabetes diet is a meal plan that ensures that your body gets the essential vitamins, minerals and nutrients you need to be healthy, while keeping your blood sugar level in a safe range.
Foods to Eat
A Type 1 diabetes diet includes foods that are rich in nutrients and foods that do not cause rapid increases in your blood sugar. Healthy food choices include natural plant foods, such as vegetables, nuts, legumes, fruits and whole grains. These foods add healthy fiber to your digestive system and can lower your risk of heart disease. They also supply healthy carbohydrates for energy without spiking your glucose level. In addition to eating these healthy plant foods, you should add heart-healthy fish, which is a source of healthy fats. Healthy fats are unsaturated fats from nuts, seeds and fish, such as salmon. MedlinePlus states that a Type 1 diabetes diet should include three to five servings of vegetables, two to four servings of fruit, two to three servings of dairy and two to three servings of lean meat or fish each day.
Foods to Avoid
A healthy diabetes diet should exclude foods that contribute to weight gain and rapid increases in blood sugar. You must avoid foods that contain high amounts of saturated and trans fat. These include most animal products and processed or fast foods. Some animal products are OK, but your diet should be high in plant foods and low in meat. You must also limit your intake of refined carbohydrates and foods high in sugar. These foods are usually processed foods, such as white bread, white rice and sugary drinks, such as soda or energy drinks. If you consume these foods, your blood sugar will spike and your body will not be able to regulate your sugar level without insulin.
Health Tips and Meal Planning
A diabetes diet should include small portions and your meals should be spread out throughout the day. To find a meal schedule that works for your body weight and level of fitness, you should work with a dietitian to help you plan a proper meal plan. The Harvard School of Public Health has five tips for preventing Type 2 diabetes that also help manage Type 1 diabetes. The tips include getting daily exercise, maintaining a healthy body weight, eating healthy forms of fat, focusing on plant foods and cutting back on refined carbohydrates. These tips follow the type 1 diabetes diet plan and they will help you decrease your risk of developing chronic illness, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart disease.
Considerations
Diabetes is a serious condition. Type 1 diabetes is generally diagnosed in children, but it can happen at any age. Diabetes symptoms include excessive thirst, frequent urination, feeling tired often, unexplained weight loss and blurred vision. If you are unsure if your glucose levels are healthy, talk with your doctor about getting a blood test. A healthy glucose test has a blood sugar level below 100 mg/dL.
