Diabetic Diets

Learn about diabetic diets and how to create effective diabetic diets plans

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Monday, November 20, 2006

Diabetic Diet Dessert

In the past, diabetic diet program were advise to avoid sweet and dessert contain avoid sugar. It is believed that eating sugar and dessert would rapidly increase blood glucose. Recent research has shown that sugar has the same effect on blood glucose levels as other carbohydrates, such as bread or potatoes. Now experts agree that diabetic diet program can eat dessert with sugar as long as you work them into your diabetic meal plan and count it carb.

Diabetic Diet Dessert Ingredient - Sweetener

Sweetener is the main ingredient in any diabetic dessert. Sweetener makes food taste sweet, and has very calories and do not raise blood glucose levels. The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of these low-calorie sweeteners. The American Diabetes Association accepts the FDA's conclusion that these sweeteners are safe and can be part of a healthy diet.

Saccharin (Sweet N Low, Sugar Twin)

Saccharin can be used in both hot and cold foods to make them sweeter. You may recall that some studies giving very large quantities of saccharine to rats raised concerns that saccharin could cause cancer, but many studies and years of use have shown saccharin to be safe in the quantities used by consumers.

Aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal)

Aspartame is another low-calorie sweetener. Because high temperatures can decrease its sweetness, check the manufacturer's Web site or call their toll-free number for guidelines when using aspartame in recipes.

Sucralose (SPLENDA)


Sucralose is the newest low-calorie sweetener on the market. Sucralose is not affected by heat and retains its sweetness in hot beverages, baked goods, and processed foods. Splenda is the sweetener recommended in this page.

Acesulfame potassium (Sweet One, Swiss Sweet, Sunett)

another low-calorie sweetener on the market is acesulfame potassium, also called acesulfame-K. This sweetener is heat stable and can be used in baking and cooking.

If you like to cook, you know that sugar does more in hot foods, especially baked goods like cookies and cakes, than just add sweetness. It also affects the way the foods cook and the final texture. Substituting a low-calorie sweetener may affect the texture and taste. Some people use a combination of sugar and a low-calorie sweetener to reduce overall calories and sugar while still producing acceptable results.

Healthy Diabetic Diet Dessert Tips

Many sweets and desserts, in addition to having carbs, are also high in fat and calorie and do not provide the important vitamins and mineral found in healthy foods. Here are some healthy diabetic diet dessert tips to help you lose weight while enjoying your favorite diabetic diet dessert:

1. Choose lower-calorie, lower-fat versions of your favorite diabetic desserts
2. Use a low-calorie sweetener instead of sugar for your coffee or tea
3. When you are eating out, split desserts with a friend or family member
4. Cut back on the amounts of sugar and fat in your favorites diabetic dessert recipe
5. Fresh or unsweetened dried fruit serve as excellent diabetic dessert.
6. Eat a small serving of your favorite dessert, instead of something ordinary
7. Try new recipes for lower-calorie sweets

Diabetic Dessert Recipe

Include here a small list collection of diabetic diet dessert recipe:
1.Lime Cheesecake
2.Baked Custard
3.Vanilla Cheese Cake
4.Peanut Butter Cookies
5.Peach Yogurt
6.Frozen Banana
7.Chocolate Chip Cookies
8.Cherry Pie
9.Carrot Snack Cake
10.Apple Crunch

Enjoy your dessert and have great diabetic diet!

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Thursday, October 19, 2006

Food Exchanges for Diabetic Diets

Food exchanges are food equivalents designed to facilitate easy variation in your diabetic diets. By learning the use of these food exchanges you can make your diabetic diets flexible and exciting to match your taste and needs. Food can be divided into major groups which are called food exchanges.

They are:

- Vegetables
- Meat and Fish
- Pulses (Legumes and Dals)
- Milk and milk products
- Oils, fats and nut
- Fruits
- Cereals

Vegetables
Vegetables are important for their mineral, vitamins and fiber content. They also add variety to the diabetic diets. Vegetables may be broadly classified into groups.

1. Roots and Tubers
Roots and Tubers are good sources of starch and contain some vitamins and minerals. Potato, onion, yam, carrot, beetroot, radish, turnip etc. are some of the common roots and tubers.

2. Green Leafy Vegetables
Green Leafy Vegetables like spinach, lettuce, cabbage, fenugreek etc. They are a good source of vitamin C, carotene, folic acid, and minerals like calcium and iron etc.

Meat and Fish
Rich source of proteins for your diabetic diets. White meat (fish & poultry) is considered better than red meat. Lean meats are better than fat meats. Grilled or baked meat is preferable to meat cooked in rich gravy.

Pulses (Legumes and Dals)
Pulses are an important source of protein for vegetarians. Grams, Peas, Beans whole and /or, dehusked and split dais and Gram flour (Besan) can all be grouped under this group. Though pulses and cereals are more or less equivalent in their caloric content, pulses contain double the quantity of protein compared to cereals. Both cereal and pulses, lack one each essential amino acid. Thus, if both cereals and pulses are eaten together like khicheri, lice and dal, roti and dal, the combination has all the essential amino acids and is considered to be rich in good quality protein.

Milk and milk products
Milk is a universal food product for all age groups. Milk contains good quality protein for your diabetic diets. Buffalo milk is richer in fat as compared to Cow's milk. Milk is also consumed in the form of yogurt, cheese, cottage cheese, milk powder etc.

Oils, fats and nuts
Oil, fats and nuts are an essential part of the food and are a rich source of energy. Persons with diabetes must use these rather sparingly.

A single unit of exchange within the group has the same caloric value and therefore can be interchanged, e.g., in a cereal exchange, one medium chappati is equivalent to one small katori cooked rice or one iddli (medium size) or one large slice of bread or half cup cooked dalia (porridge).

So, if during lunch, you are permitted two chappaties, you can instead have six tablespoonfuls cooked rice or two iddlies or two slices of bread. Similarly, foods in the other exchange groups can be substituted for one another (see appendix for common Indian food exchanges). Remember the exchanges can only be done within the same group.

Fruits
Fruits are a rich source of vitamins, minerals and fibre. Persons with diabetes are allowed fruits. However, some fruits are very calorie dense and must be avoided.

Cereals
Cereals are the staple diet in most cultures. They are rich in carbohydrate and a source of minerals and B group vitamins. Commonly used cereals are wheat flour, rice, maize, bajra, jowar, ragi etc. Some processed cereal based food items are also included in the database like roti, paratha, puri, biscuit, bread, dinner roil, macaroni, noodles etc.

Food exchanges require weighing and measuring food each time. Is it necessary?

When describing the food exchanges for your diabetic diets, your dietitian, besides giving weights and volumes, would give you the approximate household measure for each food within the different food exchanges (see Appendix). It would be a good idea to weigh and measure cooked food a few times initially. Once you are familiar with the household measures, you would become adept at accurately judging the permitted amount of food visually.

Hope this article helps you in your diabetic diets plans. Success for your diabetic diets.

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Monday, October 16, 2006

Diabetic Diets FAQ

Here are answers for frequently asked questions about diabetic diets.

1. Why does losing weight help my diabetes?

Weight loss helps people with diabetes in two important ways:

First, it lowers insulin resistance. This allows your natural insulin (in people with type 2 diabetes) to do a better job in lowering blood glucose levels. If you are taking a medication for diabetes, losing weight helps lower blood glucose and may allow you to reduce the amount of medication you're taking, or quit taking it altogether.

Second, it improves blood fat (lipid) and blood pressure levels. People with diabetes are about twice as likely to get cardiovascular disease as most people. Lowering blood lipid and blood pressure is a way to reduce that risk.

2. Can I have sugar or food that has been sweetened with sugar?

For almost every person with diabetes, the answer is YES! Eating a piece of cake made with sugar as one of the ingredients will raise your blood glucose level. People with diabetes can and do eat sugar. In your body, it becomes glucose, but so do the other foods mentioned above. With sugary foods, the rule is moderation. Eat too much, and

A. You'll send your blood glucose level up higher than you would expect.

B. You'll fill up yourself with empty calories without the nutrients that come with vegetables and grains.

C. You'll gain weight and increase risk of long term diabetes complications.
So if you controlled blood sugar level well, a small amount of sugar or sweet food is allowed.

3. Can I use artificial sweetener for my diabetic diets plans?

The answer is yes. Many of us enjoy sweetened food. Artificial sweeteners offer a chance for diabetics to continue enjoying food and drinks without the accompanying calories.

However it must be emphasized that diabetic do not need to use artificial sweeteners the can have controlled amount of sugar as advise by their dietitian.

4. What are the common artificial sweetener, are they safe for consumption?

The most commonly artificial sweetener is saccharin and aspartame. Both saccharin and aspartame use is permitted in the recommendation of the American and British Diabetes Associations. However, artificial sweeteners are not actually necessary for diabetic diets. Those who choose to used them should do so in moderation

5. How can the rest of the family support a diabetic diets requirement?

Families can benefit from a diabetic diet because it's based on wholesome, well-balanced foods that include all of the exchanges. If everyone in the family eats the same foods as the diabetic, it is easier for the person preparing the food and more enjoyable for the diabetic.

6. Why should diabetic observe diabetic diets?

It is important for diabetic to observe a diabetic diets as indiscreet eating would negate what ever tablet or insulin therapy the patient is on. Diabetic diets should be the key part of therapy in diabetes and should be maintained indefinitely.

7. Why do I need to see a dietitian?

Registered dietitians (RDs) have training and expertise in how the body uses food. RDs who understand diabetes can teach you how the food you eat changes your blood glucose level and how to coordinate your diabetes medications and diabetic diets. Do you know how many calories you should eat each day? How to cut down on the fat in your meals? How to make eating time more interesting? An RD can help you learn the answers to these, and lots of other questions.

8. Should I consume special diabetic diets food?

Special diabetic diets food usually refer to food that have no added sugar for example diabetic jam, biscuits etc. Special "diabetic food" does not have special positive effects on diabetes but may be considered a convenient preparation of food that would otherwise contain lot of sugar and sucrose. They are usually more expensive and are not necessary.

9. What about going out to eat?

Before eating out in restaurants, it's wise to make sure in advance that a particular restaurant can accommodate special requests. Diabetics should choose lean meat, chicken, or fish that has been roasted, broiled or grilled. Vegetables should be unbuttered and un-creamed. Lemon wedges may be used for seasoning and fruit may replace dessert.

10. Can diabetics undertake fasts?

Fasting alters metabolism of the body and will adversely affect the diabetic state. A diabetic should preferably avoid complete fast. Religious fast are often partial, wherein, certain foods are permitted, If absolutely must, partial fasts may be undertaken. It is important that you follow your doctor's and dietitian's advice on the type and amount of permissible foods to eat during partial fasts.

11. Are some fats better than others?

Yes. Monounsaturated fats are the healthiest for your body. Nuts - like almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, and peanuts - and avocados contain this type of fat. Choose olive or canola oil for cooking.

Polyunsaturated fat is the next healthiest fat. This is found in corn oil, safflower oil, soybean oil, and mayonnaise. Use small amounts of foods that contain saturated fats like butter, lard and meat fat, bacon, and shortening. There are lower-fat versions of foods that contain saturated fats, like sour cream and cream cheese. A healthy diet includes less than 30% of calories from fat, with less than 10% of these from saturated fat.

12. How can I cut the fat in my diabetic diets plans?

See a dietitian for more advice. Stir-fry foods in tiny amounts of oil and lots of seasonings. Choose nonfat or low-fat selections, such as nonfat or 1% milk or low-fat cheese. Keep portion sizes on target. Avoid fried foods -- bake, grill, broil, or roast vegetables and meat instead.

Ok, that is frequently asked questions about diabetic diets. Hope this article useful for you and success for your diabetic diets!

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