If you are diabetic, you probably follow a meal plan that was recommended by a member of your health care team, such as a registered dietitian. A diabetic diet is designed to provide your body with all the nutrients it needs while optimizing your diabetes control. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to follow a diet, especially in the case of a special occasion or if you are eating out. Going off your diet is likely to result in high blood sugar levels, which can lead to complications in the long term.
Blood Sugar Target
To stay healthy with diabetes, the best treatment plan consists in adopting a healthy lifestyle, including regular physical activity and a healthy diet, although you may need medications to achieve better control over your blood sugar levels. Your blood sugars should be between 70 and 130 mg/dL before a meal and should not go above 180 mg/dL two hours after the start of your meal, recommends the American Diabetes Association. Carbohydrate is the main nutrient contributing to your blood sugar fluctuations and a diabetes diet helps you control your carbohydrate intake and better manage your blood sugar levels.
Going Off Your Diet
If you go off your diabetes diet for one meal, whether you have a larger serving than usual, eat foods that are not part of your diet, such as french fries, soft drinks or dessert. If you indulge at one meal, it is likely your carbohydrate intake for that meal will be higher than usual, which is likely to result in high blood sugar levels in the period following your meal. For example, if your meal plan usually provides 45 g of carbohydrates per meal to keep your post-meal blood sugar levels below 180 mg/dL, going off your diet and eating 100 g of carbohydrates at one sitting could make your blood sugar levels raise above the recommended range.
Frequency
Going off your diabetes diet for one meal will probably results in high blood sugar levels, which may make you feel more thirsty and tired than usual. Some diabetics can also experience blurred vision and urinate more frequently when their blood sugar levels are elevated, although many do not feel any different. If you experience these symptoms after going off your diet, everything will go back to normal once your blood sugar levels decrease. However, if you regularly go off your diet and if your blood sugar levels go above the healthy range regularly, your high blood sugar levels can cause damage to your body and can ultimately lead to blindness, renal failure, cardiovascular disease, stroke and amputations. Avoid going off your diet too often to prevent these long-term complications associated with uncontrolled diabetes.
Getting Back on Track
If ever you go off your diet for one meal, the most important thing is to get back on track at the following meal to help you get your blood sugar levels back in the healthy range as quickly as possible. Going off your diet a few times is not the end of the world, as long as you immediately go back to your healthy habits. If ever you feel bad for having eaten more than you should have, you can try going for a walk to help your body better metabolize these extra carbohydrates.
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