Diabetes The Different Parts Of Eating
A healthy diabetes meal plan should include a variety of foods. these foods might include grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, dairy products, meats, and fats. Your meal plan can include special meals, sick days, pregnancy and travel days. You may need to eat special meals during these times so you have to make sure you're ready for them.
Try to be as consistent as you can with your meal plans. You may be making a different meal plan for each day or each week. You need to make sure you're eating the same number of calories, amounts of foods, types of foods, during the same time periods each day. Three systems you
might use include exchanges, carbohydrate counting, and the keeping track of calories and fat grams
EXCHANGE LISTS
Exchange lists are lists of foods that are grouped together because they are alike. One serving of any of the foods on a list will have about the same amount of carbohydrate, protein, fat and calories. Any food that is on the list can be exchanged, or traded for any other food that is on the same list.
You can get the exchange lists from a dietician, nutritionist, or some books might also have exchange list meal plans. Also look for the exchange values when you buy food in the supermarket and in recipes you might use. One other source of exchange lists are various websites
on the Internet that deal with diabetes and meal planning.
When you use exchange lists you don't have to count nutrients as long as you follow your meal plan. If you stay on your plan you'll be eating a balanced diet. There are 3 main groups and 15 exchange lists for exchanges:
CARBOHYDRATES
Starch List
Fruit List
Milk List
Other Carbohydrates List
Vegetable List
MEAT & MEAT SUBSTITUTES
Very-Lean List
Lean List
Medium-Fat List
High-Fat List
FATS
Monounsaturated Fats List
Polyunsaturated Fats List
Saturated Fats
OTHER LISTS
Free Foods List
Combination Foods List
Fast Foods List
CARBOHYDRATE COUNTINGFoods are usually a mixture of carbohydrates, protein, and fat. Your body changes carbohydrates into glucose faster than it changes protein and fat into glucose.
If you want to try carbohydrate counting you would count foods that are mostly carbohydrate. These foods include starches, fruits, juices (fruit juices), ice cream, sugars (jellies, syrup) and milk. You wouldn't count meats or fats since these foods have very little carbohydrate.
Type I diabetics, who take Regular insulin may be able to adjust their insulin dose to cover the amount of carbohydrates eaten. Type II diabetics may want to try eating the same amount of carbohydrates each day.
FOOD PYRAMIDThe Food Pyramid contain six groups. The foods are in sections of the pyramid. It is called the Food Guide Pyramid.
The American Diabetes Association adapted this Food Pyramid for diabetics into a plan called the Diabetes Food Pyramid. The pyramid will tell you the daily number of servings you need from each group of foods. The six food groups in the Diabetes Food Pyramid from bottom to top are:
Grains, Beans, and Starchy Vegetables
Vegetables
Fruits
Milk
Meat & Others
Fat, Sweets and Alcohol
There are a few things to remember when using the Food Pyramid for your meal planning. Eat larger amounts of the foods from groups of foods that take up more space on the pyramid. The three groups of foods that take up more space on the list are grains, beans and starchy
vegetables, vegetables, and fruits. Try to eat smaller amounts from the rest of the groups on the list.
HOW MUCH SHOULD YOU EAT?Deciding how much you eat depends on how what your diabetes management goals are. Do you need to lose weight? Are you a person who needs to eat less protein? Less carbohydrates?
Also try to eat a good variety of foods so you won't get bored with your meals.
REVIEW YOUR MEAL PLAN EVERY 6 MONTHSTry to go over your meal plan every six months or so to see if any changes need to be made. Here are a few reasons why you may need to change your meal plan:
a) your blood glucose testing results have changed
b) your economic position changes and you can no longer buy the same foods you are used to eating
c) you decide that you need to lose or gain weight
d) you need to help control high blood pressure
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