How Much Sugar Intake Is Needed for a Diabetic?

Diabetes is a disease that affects over 24 million Americans to date. Additionally, another 57 million suffer from pre-diabetes (a condition that can lead to type 2 diabetes.) Although it is a disease that requires serious life changes to control, people can learn to live, thrive and enjoy a long life despite this ailment---and maybe even still enjoy some sweets here and there in moderation.

What is Diabetes?

• Diabetes is a general name given to a group of diseases where the body is unable to properly control the amount of sugar (or glucose) in the bloodstream. Most often, diabetes occurs in people who are obese, although diabetes can also occur in people of good health. People at or near their ideal weight account for 20 percent of all cases. If not treated properly, diabetes can lead to multiple other problems including nerve damage, heart failure, liver failure, kidney failure, gastrointestinal paralysis and death.

Type of Diabetes

• There are three types of diabetes: Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body stops producing insulin or cannot make enough to keep up with the body's demand. It accounts for roughly 10 percent of all diabetes cases and requires the daily use of insulin to sustain life. Type 1 diabetes usually develops during adolescence.
  Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body cannot process and utilize the insulin that it is making. Over 90 percent of all diabetes cases are type 2. The average age at onset is 45, and it is most often controlled through diet, exercise and oral medication. In severe cases, daily insulin shots could be required.
  Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes that occurs only during pregnancy. In nearly all cases, the diabetes stops after childbirth. However, gestational diabetes has been shown to increase the chance of contracting type 2 diabetes.

The Sugar Myth

• A common misconception among the lay populace is that diabetes is caused by too much sugar in one's diet. The truth, however, is that the greatest risk factor for type 2 diabetes is too many calories, period. A study done in 2003 that analyzed the diets of over 39,000 women for a six year period found that sugar had no definitive role in causing diabetes.

Sugar Versus Carbohydrates

• Sugar is a simple carbohydrate. Thus, once a person contracts diabetes of any kind, they must begin to account for their total consumption of carbohydrates during a given day. One of the first things a person is supposed to do upon being diagnosed with diabetes is begin to keep a detailed log of the sugars they consume and their blood glucose levels at different times of the day. Studies have shown there is no difference in the amount or speed of glucose production caused by one type of carbohydrate versus another. So the simple answer as to how many grams of sugar a diabetic may consume on any day is dependent on how many total grams of carbohydrates they have consumed on that day, versus what experience has taught them their body can handle.
  On average, nutritionists recommend consuming a total of 1 to 3 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight. For a diabetic, that consumption should be on the low side rather than the high side. A 150-pound man should consume no more than between 150 and 450 grams of carbohydrates on a daily basis (with it being understood it is better for a diabetic to err on the low side than the high side).

Treating Diabetes

• Living with diabetes means learning to make necessary life changes. This means more than just making an adjustment to diet. Medical experts recommend that getting just 20 minutes of exercise a day as a diabetic can significantly improve your outlook on future complications such as heart disease and kidney disease. Alcoholic use should be brought down to a minimum of seven servings per week. If a person is smoking, they should cease immediately, since smoking in all forms significantly increases the chances of all harmful side effects associated with diabetes. And, perhaps most important, people who contract diabetes must learn to actively monitor their blood glucose levels throughout the day and make necessary changes to protect their body against the effects of high or low blood sugar.