Diabetic Diet for People Who Don't Cook

Not everyone has the time or inclination to spend hours in the kitchen preparing food. If you are this sort of person, but have diabetes, understand that it is still possible to eat out most of the time and remain true to your diabetic dieting efforts---it will just take a bit more effort on your part to find menu items that comply with the rules of diabetic dieting.

Diabetic Diet

• With diabetes, the body is unable to properly use insulin, a storage hormone responsible for modulating blood sugar levels. It's your responsibility to manage your own blood sugar through dietary change.

  As carbohydrates are primarily responsible for elevating blood sugar, the main goal is to restrict both the type and quantity of carbs that you consume---stick to low to moderate intake of slow-digesting carbs to avoid spiking blood sugar and triggering hyperglycemia. This means eating a diet that is rich in whole grains, fruit and vegetables, while avoiding fast-digesting carbs like white flour items and items containing a lot of sugar like cookies, candies and the like.

  The amount to which your blood sugar is affected by a particular carbohydrate is measured by the glycemic index.
  Foods that are particularly low on the glycemic index include vegetables such as broccoli, green beans, cauliflower, cabbage, lettuce and mushrooms---thus, these should be the main items you rely upon for your side dishes when ordering out. Other fruits and grains that are low on the glycemic index include cherries, apricots, apples, strawberries, oranges, as well as sourdough and ground whole wheat breads and pitas. Keep your carb intake for any one meal limited to less than 30 grams to avoid spiking blood sugar to dangerous levels.

Rules for Ordering Out

• Stick to menu items that mirror the recommendations listed above when ordering out. This means skipping the usual fast-digesting carb-laden side dishes like potatoes and french fries in favor of vegetables instead. It also means sticking to foods in their natural state---for example, order grilled chicken instead of breaded, as the breading contains a high number of fast-digesting carbs.

  Unbreaded (or otherwise unaltered) lean meats, fruits, and vegetables should form the crux of every meal. Additionally, try to avoid all types of sauces and other condiments on your meal, as many sauces and condiments contain sugars in the form of high fructose corn syrup and other unnatural sweeteners. Ask that your meal be "grilled dry" and that your side items be served plain in order to avoid the pitfalls of hidden carbohydrates.