Having diabetes doesn’t mean that you have to start eating special foods or follow a complicated diabetes diet plan. For most people, a diabetes diet simply translates into eating a variety of low cal but nutrient dense foods in moderate amounts and adhering to regular mealtimes.

The Right Food Plan

The right diabetes meal plan should fit into your schedule while helping you improve your blood glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol numbers and help keep your weight on track. People with diabetes have to take extra care to make sure that their food is balanced with insulin and oral medications, and exercise to help manage their blood glucose levels.
People with diabetes can eat the same food the family enjoys. However, it may take some planning to fit your favorite food into your meal plan and still manage your blood glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. There is no one perfect food so including a variety of different foods and watching portion sizes is key to a healthy diabetic diet. Healthy eating includes eating a wide variety of foods including the following:

• Vegetables
• Whole grains
• Fruits
• Non-fat dairy products
• Beans
• Lean meats
• Poultry
• Fish

What you should eat- What you shouldn’t!

Glucose is a sugar released from carbohydrate. Thus, if we want to control blood sugar we have to limit the consumption of simple carbohydrate. Fiber is extremely important for keeping blood sugar stable. Since fluctuating, blood sugar levels can cause feelings of hunger, irritability and low energy. Make sure you load up on high-fiber foods such as

• Whole grain chapattis
• Whole wheat pasta & breads
• brown rice
• Green vegetables

Some people who have diabetes use the glycemic index to select foods, especially carbohydrates. Foods with a high glycemic index are associated with greater increases in blood sugar than are foods with a low glycemic index. However, low-index foods aren’t necessarily healthier as foods that are high in fat tend to have lower glycemic index values than of some healthier options. Many factors affect the glycemic-index value of a specific food, including how the food is prepared and what’s eaten with it.