Controlling Diabetes

Steps to control your diabetes with a balanced and healthy diet

While diabetes can be a serious health concern, you should be able to continue enjoying a wide variety of foods as part of a healthy diet.

Diabetes UK recommends that everyone with diabetes should see a registered dietitian at the time of diagnosis, and then have regular reviews. If this hasn't been arranged for you, ask your GP to refer you to a registered dietitian. The recommended 10 steps to eating well for people suffering from diabetes fall well within the parameters of our plan. Those steps are: Eat three meals a day Avoid skipping meals and space your breakfast, lunch and evening meal out over the day. This will not only help control your appetite but will also help control your blood glucose levels. At each meal include starchy carbohydrate foods The amount and type of carbohydrate you eat is important to control your blood glucose levels. Aim for those that are more slowly absorbed (i.e. have a lower glycaemic index) as these won't affect your blood glucose levels as much. Better choices include: wholemeal pasta, basmati or easy cook rice, grainy breads such as granary, pumpernickel and rye, new potatoes, sweet potato and yam, porridge oats, All-Bran and natural muesli. The high fibre varieties of starchy foods will also help to maintain the health of your digestive system and prevent problems such as constipation. Cut down on the amount of fat you eat, particularly saturated fats A low-fat diet has plenty of benefits for your health. Choose unsaturated fats or oils, especially monounsaturated fat (eg olive oil and rapeseed oil) as these types of fats are better for your heart. As fat is the greatest source of calories, eating less will help you to lose weight if you need to. To cut down on the fat you eat here are some tips: ·         Use less saturated fat by having less butter, margarine and cheese. ·         Choose lean meat and fish as low fat alternatives to fatty meats. ·         Choose lower fat dairy foods such as skimmed or semi-skimmed milk, low fat or diet yogurts, reduced fat cheese and lower fat spreads. ·         Grill, steam or oven bake instead of frying or cooking with oil or other fats. ·         Watch out for creamy sauces; swap these for tomato-based sauces instead. Eat more fruit and vegetables Aim for at least five portions a day to provide you with vitamins, minerals and fibre to help you to balance your overall diet. One portion is, for example, a banana or an apple, a handful of grapes, a tablespoon of dried fruit, a small glass of fruit juice or fruit smoothie, three heaped tablespoons of vegetables or a cereal bowl of salad. Include more beans and lentils Examples include kidney beans, butter beans, chickpeas or red and green lentils. They are less likely to spike your blood glucose levels and may help to control the amount of fat in your blood. Try adding them to stews, casseroles and soups, or to a salad. Aim for at least two portions of oily fish a week Great choices are mackerel, sardines, salmon and pilchards. Oily fish contains a type of polyunsaturated fat called omega 3, which helps protect against heart disease. Limit sugar and sugary foods This does not mean you need to eat a sugar-free diet. Sugar can be used in foods and in baking as part of a healthy diet. Have sugar-free, no-added-sugar or diet fizzy drinks/squashes, instead of sugary versions as an easy way to reduce the sugar in your diet. Reduce salt in your diet to 6g or less a day More than this can raise your blood pressure, which could lead to stroke or heart disease. Limit the amount of processed foods you eat (as these are usually high in salt) and try flavouring foods with herbs and spices instead. Drink alcohol in moderation only That's a maximum of two units of alcohol per day for a woman and three units per day for a man. For example, a single pub measure (25ml) of spirit is about one unit and a half pint of lager, ale, bitter or cider has 1-1.5 units. Over the years the alcohol content of most drinks has increased. A drink can now contain more units than you think - a small glass of wine (175ml) could contain as much as two units. Remember alcohol contains empty calories so think about cutting back if you are trying to lose weight. Never drink on an empty stomach, as alcohol can make hypoglycaemia (low blood glucose levels) more likely when taking certain diabetes medication. Don't use diabetic foods or drinks They offer no benefit to people with diabetes. They will still affect your blood glucose levels, contain just as much fat and calories as the ordinary versions, can have a laxative effect, and are expensive.