How Eating Healthy Can Help Manage Diabetes

If you have diabetes, you are far from alone. Research from the American Diabetes Association shows that there are 1.5 million new cases of diabetes diagnosed every year, adding to the 10.5 percent of the population that currently has type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Having diabetes means your body has a hard time regulating blood sugar levels and producing insulin. Patients with type 1 diabetes cannot produce insulin at all and those with type 2 diabetes cannot produce enough insulin to process the glucose that is used for energy in the body. 

People diagnosed with diabetes should try to adopt a healthy lifestyle, especially when it comes to food choices. Eating a nutritionally balanced diet can help support your body's abilities to function and maintain a healthy blood sugar level. 

How Eating Affects Your Blood Sugar When You Have Diabetes

What you eat when you have diabetes dramatically affects your ability to manage the condition. Everything you eat is broken down and absorbed in your body. Your cells and organs process everything, including glucose.

Carbohydrates are the most important part of your diet to monitor. They turn into glucose, the blood sugar that diabetics have a difficult time absorbing. Too many carbohydrates cause high blood sugar, which is why you want to avoid and minimize consumption of:

• White grain pasta
• White grain rice
• White bread
• Cookies
• Processed cereals and crackers
• Sugary drinks
• Candy

Risk Factors Associated With Diabetes 

Other foods to avoid for diabetics include saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol and sodium. These foods and bad carbohydrates also cause your body to store fat and gain weight. That is one of the reasons obesity and weight gain are directly correlated with diabetes. Managing your diabetes also means managing your weight. 

When you eat those foods, your body must work extra hard to break down the excess blood sugar they produce. If diabetes and your weight go unmanaged, you are at high risk for heart disease, nerve damage and kidney failure.

Diabetes is the number one cause of kidney disease according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Your kidneys help regulate your blood pressure and hormones by filtering toxins from what you consume out of your system.

Diabetes also makes you twice as likely to have heart disease or a stroke. Without proper management of diabetes, even at a young age, you are susceptible to these conditions. 

What a Healthy Diet Looks Like for Diabetics

Eating healthy can greatly reduce your risk of disease and keep your body operating the way it should. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, your doctor may recommend a meal plan or suggest visiting a dietician that will help you manage your glucose levels. 

A diet plan for people with diabetes means eating foods that support a healthy blood sugar level, are nutritious for your body and are easy to break down. Healthful foods for diabetics include:

• Healthy carbohydrates that are easier to break down
• Fibrous foods 
• Fish rich in Omega-3 fatty acids
• Good fats that sustain energy 

A healthy diet comes down to choosing a proper combination of foods, counting carbohydrates and paying attention to the glycemic index at every meal. Incorporate new healthy habits into your lifestyle is often easier said than done. The doctors at St. Hope Foundation in Houston are here to help you make those changes. 

By eating healthy, exercising and following your doctor’s advice you can manage your diabetes and continue to live a normal life. To learn more about healthy diets for people with diabetes, contact our diabetes care specialists in Houston, Texas. We are a nonprofit 501(c)(3) community health care organization in Houston committed to helping patients diagnosed with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.