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The Recommended Diet for Diabetes

Upon learning you have diabetes, one of the first steps that must be taken is a change is diet. The American Diabetes Association has developed a diet to help you maintain your blood sugar and your overall health.

  1. Food Pyramid

    • Get a copy of the American Diabetes Association's Food Pyramid. On this chart, foods are grouped according to their carbohydrate and protein content, not grouped into "grains," "proteins," "dairy" or "fats."

      The foods on this chart are also grouped by how frequently they should be consumed in meals. Your dietician will remind you to eat approximately the same amount of carbohydrates per serving. This means keeping a close eye on serving sizes is critical to your ability to manage your blood sugar level. Pay close attention to the level of fats, alcohol and sweets. On the diabetic food pyramid, they are at the bottom of the list, meaning you should ingest small amounts. Grains and starches are at the top of the pyramid and the recommended daily intake is six to 11 servings. It should be noted that the diabetic food pyramid won't look like the regular U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) food pyramid. It will be up side down with the widest part at the top and the point at the bottom. In addition to grains and starches, eat three to five vegetable servings a day. These vegetables are all high in fiber and many of them are deep green, meaning you will get a very high level of nutrients which your body needs. You should eat two to four daily servings of fruit. Notice which fruits the ADA recommends. Drink two to three servings of low fat or fat free milk every day. Eat four to six ounces of meat per day, with the whole amount divided between meals. Trim visible fat. Cheese, eggs, cottage cheese, tofu, dried beans and nut butters are acceptable meat substitutes.

    Eat Regularly and Moderately

    • Your doctor will recommend that you eat at the same time every day. Eat the same amount of food, with similar amounts of carbohydrates, meats, dairy, vegetables and fruit at each meal. The food you eat counteracts the insulin or your oral medication and your insulin and/or oral medication counteract the food you take in. This is a finely-tuned balancing act. Skipping meals, eating something which is not allowed or drinking to excess will only disrupt your blood sugar, making you sick. You will either become hyperglycemic (high blood sugar) or hypoglycemic (low blood sugar).

    Good Diet Plan

    • When you received a diagnosis of diabetes, your doctor or dietician will give you a diet plan designed to help you lose or keep your weight under control as well as controlling your blood sugar. Reduce the amount of fat in your diet, reducing the saturated fats and substituting with olive or canola oil. Start eating low-fat or fat free dairy products such as two percent milk or fat-free milk, low fat or fat free yogurt, cheese and cottage cheese. Eat lean cuts of meat, reduce your intake of red meat and increase your intake of lean skinless chicken and fish. Grill, broil or bake your meat rather than fry it. Use cooking sprays, canola or olive oil for cooking your meats. Increase the amount of fiber in your diet (oatmeal, dried beans, bran, vegetables and fruits).

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