If you have diabetes, you may need to make changes to your diet to help manage your blood glucose levels. Some foods affect your sugar levels more than others. With proper planning and portion control, you can make sweets such as fruit pie an occasional treat.
Sugar Myth
Persons with diabetes can -- contrary to common misconception -- eat sweets and desserts. The American Diabetes Association reports that blood glucose levels are affected more by the amount of carbohydrate you consume than by the type. This means that your body does little to distinguish between various kinds of carbohydrate -- such as bread, fruit, milk or simple sugar -- in terms of your blood glucose levels. So you may safely substitute small amounts of sugar for other foods that contain carbohydrates.
Substituting Carbohydrates
In general, most sweets and desserts, including fruit pies, contain a great deal of carbohydrates in a small serving size. For this reason, if you choose to eat fruit pie, limit your portion to a tiny sliver. If you choose to eat fruit pie with one of your meals, omit another carbohydrate-containing food that you would otherwise include in your meal. For example, if you would normally eat a turkey sandwich with two slices of bread, substitute a small slice of fruit pie for the bread. Instead, try wrapping your turkey sandwich in large leaves of romaine lettuce.
Fruit Pie Filling
To cut down on the carbohydrates, sugars and calories in fruit pie, try preparing it with fresh fruit as opposed to pre-packaged fruit filling. For example, 1 cup of canned blueberry pie filling contains 474 calories, 98.91 g of total sugar and 116.28 g of carbohydrate. One cup of fresh, raw blueberries contains only 84 calories, 14.74 g of total sugar and 21.45 g of carbohydrate. Though it requires more work, it proves healthier to prepare homemade fruit pies from scratch, using fresh fruit instead of fruit filling.
Recipe Ideas
Try the American Diabetes Association's recipe for a cherry and almond fruit pie. This recipe calls for 6 cups of pitted fresh sweet cherries. You also need 1/2 tsp. of almond extract, 1/2 cup of granular no-calorie sweetener and 1/4 cup of cornstarch to prepare the pie filling. Try adding raw, plain sliced almonds to the fruit filling. Another option is to prepare a frozen fruit pie. For the filling, use 1 cup of fresh, sliced strawberries, mangoes or peaches, or 1 cup of raspberries. Mix the fresh fruit with 3 cups of softened no-sugar-added, fat-free vanilla ice cream. Garnish the pie with additional fresh fruit.
References
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Diabetes Meal Plans and a Healthy Diet
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Sugar and Desserts
- American Diabetes Association: Food and Fitness -- Carbohydrates
- United States Department of Agriculture Nutrient Database
- American Diabetes Association: My Food Advisor -- Recipe Details: Cherry and Toasted Almond Pie
- American Diabetes Association: My Food Advisor -- Recipe Details: Frozen Strawberry Swirl Angel Pie
