Sunday, 19 June 2011

Healthy Eating For Diabetes

Diabetic diet always carries this notion of being sugar-free or boring food. Diabetic diet may seem like a life-sentence. However, it is not necessary that if you are suffering from diabetes, you need to follow a boring and restrictive lifestyle. A simple modification and small tweaks in your lifestyle can help you enjoy your life and also manage your sugar levels.

It is important to consider these factors if you are a diabetic:

You need to watch what you eat
How much you eat
When you eat

When your sugar-levels show high in your body, then your doctor will ask you to pay close attention to your diet and modify your lifestyle a little. This doesn’t mean that you start depriving yourself of sweets and other tasty food. There is no specific diet prescribed for diabetics.

However, here are some guidelines that you can follow and still make sure that the blood-sugar levels are maintained.

It is possible that you may crave for sweets. In such cases, you can indulge in sweets once in a while. If you feel like having a dessert, share it among your friends and relatives so that you do not end up gulping the whole thing down. Eat small portions. This will not only satisfy your sweet tooth but also make sure that you do not end up with shooting sugar levels.
Sweets add to the carbohydrates. So if you are eating a sweet, balance it by cutting down on other food items that are high in carbohydrates like bread, tortillas, crackers or rice.
While eating a sweet, savor each bite so that you consume less. If you eat fast, you end up eating more than you are supposed to.
Make healthy substitutions. For example instead of soda, go for sparkling water, instead of opting for an ice-cream, grab a bowl of frozen fruits or go for your favorite cheese instead of the cake, a piece of fruit instead of a pie.
If you feel like having rice, choose brown rice instead of white rice.
Go for steel-cut oats instead of processed cereals or instant oatmeal
Balance your meals with all food groups and make sure that vegetables form the major part of the meal. Eating your carbohydrates with protein or little fat will help you control the sugar levels.
Choose sweet potatoes instead of having white potatoes as they are low in carbohydrates
Choose a bran muffin instead of eating a pastry or croissant.
Instead of having red meat take more servings of fish
If you are baking use canola oil or apple juice instead of butter or shortening.
For making your soups creamy try other methods like adding a little cornstarch instead of loading it with cream.

By cheating your brain a little bit, you can satisfy your bodily needs and ensure that you are in perfect health. Besides the above, a mild and regular exercise regime on a daily basis will help you tackle this health hazard in a much effective way.

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