Include these Foods in Your Diet to Control Diabetes

You eat to control your blood sugar when you have diabetes. Simple. You must eat wholesome foods to feel full for longer. Carbohydrate-rich foods like cereals, fruits, milk, bread,  pasta, desserts, and pasta can lead to a higher than normal glucose level in your blood. Your diet should restrict the type and quantity of carbs you consume.

Still, you cannot eat just to, well… eat; you must enjoy your food as well. When you eat, your food should satisfy your palette as well as your stomach so that you can do the same for the rest of the day. If not, you might make the wrong food choices. Consult expert nutritionists with FITFEAST to get daily diet recommendations and find out which foods suit you and which you should avoid.

Best Foods for Diabetes Control

• Green Leafy Vegetables

Green leafy vegetables are high in important vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients, which have a positive effect on your blood sugar levels. Green leafy vegetables like kale and spinach are packed with Vitamin A, calcium, and potassium (all plant-based sources) in addition to fiber and protein. Since they are high in antioxidants and starch-digesting enzymes, a lot of researchers affirm that eating green leafy vegetables is good for diabetics.

Eat spinach, kale, cabbage, broccoli, and collard greens to keep your sugar levels in check. Add them to your salads, side dishes, soups and dinners. However you choose to eat them, remember that the best benefits of leafy green veggies can be reaped by eating them raw or just boiling them. Have them with a source of lean protein.

• Beans

Beans are a great option for people with diabetes. They are a good source of plant-based protein and are quite filling. They can help reduce the carb intake as well. They are low on the Glycaemic Index (GI), which makes them great for blood sugar regulation. Beans are complex carbohydrates, which makes them digest a lot slower and keeps you full for long. This assists in weight loss as well.

Add black beans, kidney beans, navy beans, pinto beans, and adzuki beans in your diet to regulate blood pressure and cholesterol. Beans also contain magnesium, iron, and potassium. Moreover, you can have them in many ways – stew, chilli, or salads. It is best to avoid canned beans and use as little salt as possible.

• Whole Grains

As compared to refined white grains, whole grains contain much more fiber and other nutrients. Since fiber slows down the digestive process, high-fiber foods are great for diabetics. Your blood sugar levels stay stable when the nutrients are absorbed slowly. The GI of whole wheat and whole grain is lower than rice and white bread, which means that they do not affect the blood sugar too much. Include brown rice, oats, couscous, quinoa, millet, rye, buckwheat, and other whole-grain variants in your meals.

• Citrus fruits

Citrus fruits like grapefruits, lemons, oranges, etc. have antidiabetic effects according to several pieces of research. Moreover, eating fruits provides vitamins and minerals without any carbs. Oranges, especially, contain 2 types of bioflavonoids that have antidiabetic effects. Citrus fruits contain folate, Vitamin C and potassium.