How to eat healthier with diabetes (and a recipe!)

You have diabetes; now what? It can be difficult to know what to eat when you first get diagnosed. Learning how to eat healthy can help you control your blood sugar. Following a few basic guidelines will take some of the guesswork out of eating.

Plan your meals
Making a plan for your meals ahead of time can help you put together balanced meals without stressing about last-minute decision. Here are some guidelines to follow for meal planning:

• Make sure your meals are balanced. This means eating breakfast, lunch, dinner and two snacks.
• Include fruits and vegetables. Your meals should have about eight servings of fruits and vegetables per day.
• Count your calories. How many calories you need to eat will vary based on your age, gender, activity level and weight goals. Work with your healthcare provider to set goals for your daily calorie intake.
• Pay attention to carbohydrates. Most people should eat three to four servings of carbohydrate (45-60 grams of carbohydrate) at each meal.
• Limit “bad fats.” Bad fats are saturated fats such as butter and lard. People with diabetes are at a higher risk of having a heart attack or stroke so it’s important to eat healthy fats such as olive oil and avocadoes in small portions.
• Watch your cholesterol. People with diabetes should have 300 milligrams (mg) of cholesterol or less per day. Look for foods that can help lower your cholesterol such as oats, beans and nuts.
• Get more fiber. The best fiber for your body comes from plant-based foods like whole grains, fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and beans.
• Eat less salt. Eating less salt is important for blood pressure control. People with diabetes should have 2,300 mg of sodium or less per day.

One of the best ways to eat better is to find healthy recipes that you like and use them to put together a meal plan for the week (or the next few days). Below is a cool treat to get you started.

Real Fruit Frozen Treat (Two Ways)
Cool off with this sorbet recipe, made with some of earth’s sweetest ingredients.

Serving size: ½ cup

Ingredients
Strawberry-Banana (makes four servings)
2 bananas
1 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 cup sugar-free lemonade

Pineapple Peach (makes two servings)
½ cup frozen peaches
½ cup frozen pineapple chunks
1/2 cup sugar-free lemonade

Preparation
Freeze all fruits. Combine frozen fruits in food processor or blender. If desired, garnish with fresh fruits.

Looking for more tasty and diabetes-friendly recipes? Check out our recipe videos at www.ParklandDiabetes.com/Recipes.