Nutrition Essential

For most people with diabetes, figuring out what to eat can be the hardest part of managing their condition. There's no single "perfect" diet for diabetes. Meal planning needs to be tailored to the individual. Nutrition therapy is crucial for overall diabetes care. The meal planning process should focus on the individual and their specific nutritional needs.

Personal preferences (e.g., tradition, culture, religion, health beliefs and goals, economics), as well as metabolic goals, need to be considered when determining the best eating pattern.

A variety of eating patterns are acceptable for the management of diabetes. Common among the patterns include:

1. emphasize non starchy vegetables,
2. minimize added sugars and refined grains, and
3. choose whole foods over highly processed foods to the extent possible

One of the suggestions to help visualize food is through the use of the Idaho Plate Method.

Other tips in managing diet includes:

1. Reducing overall carbohydrate intake for individuals with diabetes has demonstrated evidence for improving glycemia and may be applied in a variety of eating patterns that meet individual needs and preferences.
2. Focus on high-quality, nutrient-dense carbohydrate sources that are high in fiber and minimally processed. Regular intake of sufficient dietary fiber is associated with lower all-cause mortality in people with diabetes
3. Limit the intake of sugary drinks and processed foods packed with refined grains and added sugars. Nonnutritive sweeteners (containing few or no calories) may substitute for nutritive sweeteners (those containing calories, such as sugar, honey, and agave syrup) when consumed in moderation.
4. Trans fats should be avoided. In addition, saturated fats should be replaced with unsaturated fats and not with refined carbohydrates.
5. Limit sodium consumption to < 2,300 mg/day.