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Diets for Type 2 Diabetes & High Cholesterol

Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body becomes unable to properly use insulin to manage blood sugar (glucose) levels, necessitating a specific dietary approach to managing the disease. Unfortunately, diabetes often comes in tandem with other diseases such as high blood pressure, obesity or high cholesterol. When diabetes is paired with high cholesterol, it is possible to kill both proverbial birds with one stone by paying close attention to your diet.

  1. Diabetic and Cholesterol Diets

    • Follow a simple low-carbohydrate diet to control both your diabetes and cholesterol problems concurrently. According to information from both the American Diabetes Association and a study conducted at Duke University (published in the 2006 edition of the "International Journal of Cardiology"), low-carb dieting can help control blood sugar while substantially lowering cholesterol levels above and beyond the results seen from other dietary approaches.

    Following a Low-Carb Diet

    • To follow a low-carb diet to curb diabetes and high cholesterol, limit your overall intake of carbohydrates to 30g per day or less. Distribute your carbs across several small meals throughout the day, as opposed to saving them up for one or two larger meals.

      Consume the bulk of your 30g of carbohydrates from green vegetables such as cucumber, lettuce, broccoli and spinach, as these low-carb vegetables have a nominal impact on blood sugar levels, while keeping you feeling full even while dieting. The remainder of your low-carb diet should consist of lean meats such as seafood or poultry. And even though you are encouraged to consume fat while on a low-carb diet, consume far more healthy unsaturated fat from nuts, seeds and olive oil than saturated fat from animal meat and other less-healthy sources.

    Add Fish Oil to Your Diet

    • Consume 5 to 10g of fish oil daily to further improve your cholesterol levels and your carbohydrate tolerance. According to information from the Mayo Clinic and a study published in the August 1987 issue of "Science" magazine, fish oil can reduce blood triglyceride levels (which benefits your cholesterol levels) while simultaneously increasing your body's sensitivity to insulin, which decreases the impact of diabetes. Purchase a high-quality fish oil supplement either online or at the supermarket or drugstore.

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