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Lowfat Diets for Diabetes

Diabetes is a condition which is either genetic (type 1) or developed through poor lifestyle choices (type 2). In either case, the salient characteristic of diabetes is the body's inability to produce or use the storage hormone insulin, which is responsible for regulating blood sugar levels. This means that the job of regulating blood sugar falls to you, the individual. This is accomplished by controlling intake of the food type most likely to increase resting blood sugar--carbohydrates. A low-fat diabetic diet is simply a diet of carbohydrate control, regulating the type and quantity of carbs ingested.

  1. Lowfat Diet

    • Consume a diet which contains no more than 25 to 30 percent of your total daily calories from fats in order to follow a low-fat diabetic diet. Beyond merely regulating the amount of fat you consume, you should also strive to regulate the type of fat you consume, limiting your overall intake of saturated and trans fats to no more than 10 percent of that total.

      According to information from the nutrition website Healthcentral.com, overconsumption of unhealthy fats can lead to increased cholesterol levels, something that you should especially be wary of if already suffering from diabetes. Thus, you should limit the majority of your fat intake to foods which contain either mono or polyunsaturated fats, such as cooking oils (like fish, flax, olive, coconut, peanut or sesame), nuts (walnuts, peanuts, almonds, pecans and cashews, among others), and seeds (sunflower, pumpkin and the like). Do not assume that you will be better off restricting fat as low as possible--your body requires some fats for normal hormonal functioning, so be sure to get as close to the limit as possible without exceeding it to ensure long-term health.

    Controlling Carbs

    • Control your intake of carbohydrates to form the other piece of the diabetic dieting puzzle. According to the medical information site Medline Plus, this means regulating both the quantity and type of carbs ingested, aiming to relegate your intake to slow-digesting healthy carbs such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Aim to keep your blood sugar stable throughout the day by consuming roughly the same number of carbohydrates at every meal. Additionally, further regulate blood sugar by making it a point to always consume balanced meals of carbs, protein (from meat or dairy sources) and fat, as this will slow digestion and further reduce any potential spike in blood sugar. Finally, avoid "junk" carbohydrates like sugars, alcohol, fried foods and spicy foods, as these will do nothing but elevate blood sugar levels, exacerbating the symptoms of diabetes without providing your body with a useful source of nutrition.

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