Food Habits for Diabetics

Eating a healthy, well-balanced diet and eating meals on schedule can help control diabetes by keeping your blood sugar levels in check. It's important to stick with the same meals, control calories and not go too long without eating.

Eat the Right Foods

• Having diabetes doesn't mean you have to restrict your diet. You can eat most foods, but you must regulate the amount of calories and fat you take in with each meal, since excess fat tends to cause an unhealthy rise in blood sugar (glucose) levels. Your diet should emphasize fruits, vegetables and whole grains and put a cap on fatty foods. Also control the amount of carbohydrates you take in at one time, which you can do by avoiding large portions of carbo-heavy foods like pasta and potatoes.

Eat Moderate-Sized Meals

• Moderation is important in most healthy diets, and the same goes for a diabetic's. Make sure you watch your serving sizes so that you don't get too many calories crammed into one meal. Focusing on vegetables and grains is a good way to do this naturally, since healthy foods tend to be high in protein and low in calories. Keeping your portion sizes under control will allow you to take in the same amount of calories each day and keep your blood sugar at its proper level.

Stick to a Schedule

• Keeping a steady supply of food in your system is the best way to keep diabetes under control. The timing of your meals is just as important as the food you eat. It's also a good idea to work in small, healthy snacks like fruit between meals. This prevents you from becoming ravenously hungry and overeating, and it also keeps your body supplied with a steady stream of calories to keep you going.