Diabetes Prevention – Helpful Eating Tips
Studies have shown that individuals, who have a high-risk of developing diabetes, significantly lowered their risk and prevented or delayed developing the disease after losing weight. The very best way to maintain a healthy weight is to enjoy a healthy diet. A healthy diet combined with regular exercise may be the best prevention against diabetes.
If your doctor finds you a high-risk candidate for diabetes, they may recommend you follow a specific meal plan that is tailored to your current nutritional needs. It is important that you eat three meals in a day and have appropriate snacks in between to maintain an optimal blood sugar balance. Skipping a meal is a big no-no for people who have diabetes or who are at risk. Keeping regular meal times will help you have better control over your blood sugar levels.
When eating, it is vital to be very aware of your portion sizes. You may need to research a bit about the right portion sizes for each food category. You may wish to ask your doctor or your dietitian about portion sizes and food servings to ensure that you are eating the correct amounts of the right foods.
Limit your intake of foods that contain high levels of unhealthy fats. You also need to be careful about cooking methods. For example, when you need to use oil, make sure to select the kind of oil that does not contain trans-fats or saturated fats.
Other foods that you should limit if not eliminate in your daily diet includes fatty portions of meat, whole milk and other dairy products that contain whole milk, fried foods, candies, crackers, cakes, pies, salad dressings, lard, and non dairy creamers. It is always better to opt for foods that are raw, boiled, broiled, grilled and steamed as they do not contain unhealthy fats.
Whole grain foods are a rich source of fiber. This can be found in cereals that contain 100% whole grains, oatmeal, and other foods which are made from whole grains such as bagels, pita, rice and tortillas. Other rich sources of fiber also include dried herbs, flax and sesame seeds, edamame, sun-dried tomatoes, beans and passion fruit.
Reduce Your Sugar Intake
If you are fond of reaching for a can of soda, then now is the time to start ditching that habit. It is a good idea to start getting used to drinking coffee without sugar in it and avoid those fruit-flavored drinks as well.
You may also want to ask your doctor or dietitian about healthy sugar substitutes. If you want to get rid of your craving for soda, try making your own fresh fruit juice. Fresh fruit juice already tastes sweet and it does not have to be added with sugar in order to taste delicious. Your juicer can become your new best friend.
Be Conscious of Your Carb-Cravings
As a person who is at high risk of developing diabetes, you need to be aware of your carbohydrate intake as well. Carbohydrates can have a great impact on your blood sugar levels and this is the reason why you need to be conscious about the amount of carbohydrates that you consume on a daily basis.
You may ask for help from a dietitian with regard to measuring food portions. If you are not already doing so, aim towards becoming well-educated about reading food nutritional labels when you are shopping. Particularly pay more attention to portion sizes and the amount of carbohydrates that each food product has.
A healthy diet is ideally coupled with regular exercise. Ask your health care provider and your fitness expert before starting any exercise regimen.
