What foods can type 2 diabetics eat freely?

 

A banner image with variety of diets expaining what food can a diabetic type 2 eat

Diabetes requires strict dietary and food restrictions. Despite this, meals for type 2 diabetics can be hearty, healthy, and delicious. If you eat properly with diabetes, you can not only normalize and improve the condition of the whole organism. Properly prepared diet food provides the body with the necessary elements and improves the quality of life of diabetics.

Nutrition and its specifics in type 2 diabetes

The development of type 2 diabetes is based on a violation of the body's sensitivity to the action of insulin, which leads to an increase in blood sugar. 

Because of this, fast-digesting carbohydrates must be excluded from the diet of patients with type 2 diabetes, and salt and animal fat intake should be limited. It is the foundation on which the diet of diabetics is based. In addition, diabetics should adhere to certain dietary rules:

  • you need to eat 5-6 times a day - it normalizes the digestive tract and metabolism in the body;
  • portions of food should not be large;
  • foods with diabetes and foods should be low in calories;
  • exclude sugar from your diet and use sugar substitutes instead;
  • has a lot of protein, dietary fiber, fiber;
  • eliminate or significantly limit alcohol consumption.

In addition, for patients with diabetes, it is useful to include in the diet spices: cinnamon, and ginger. They help speed up metabolism, normalize blood sugar levels, and lower cholesterol. 

Spices must be consumed in small quantities. In addition, it is important to properly prepare meals for type 2 diabetes, following certain rules. Fatty, fried foods should be excluded from the diet.

What foods are forbidden to diabetics?

The following foods and meals are strictly forbidden to patients with diabetes:

Smoked meat and practical food are forbidden for this type of disease.

smoked meat and semi-finished products:

  • sausage
  • sausages.
  • fatty meat:
  • goose;
  • pork;
  • duck;
  • mutton.
  • high percentage of dairy products
  • white bread, pastries;
  • fatty soups and broths, noodle soups;
  • canned food;
  • sweet coffee and tea, grape juice, sweet soda;
  • pasta;
  • grapes, dates, raisins, bananas, figs;
  • chocolate, pastries, cakes;
  • cooking fats and meats;
  • fatty canned food, caviar;
  • oiled fish;
  • fast food and grocery shopping;
  • alcohol.

Rules for cooking food with diabetes

For diabetics it is important to exclude fried foods from the diet, foods should be low in fat. The best ways to cook food are cooking, sautéing, baking, and steaming. When preparing meat dishes, you must first remove the fat and skin from the meat. 

The amount of oil required for a significant limit. It is better to replace sunflower vegetable oil with olive because it contains a larger amount of nutrients. It is recommended to add oil to ready meals. When buying ingredients, you should pay attention to the amount of fat and carbohydrates.

Compilation of menus

Patients with diabetes are recommended to eat 5-6 times a day in small meals. The food menu consists of breakfast, lunch (lunch), lunch, afternoon snacks, dinner, and other dinners. It is recommended to eat constantly at the same time.

 Breakfast, lunch, and dinner should be the most caloric: each meal should set aside 25% of daily calories (carbohydrate value). At lunch 10-15%, and at noon and on the second evening - 5-10% of daily calories.

The inclusion of certain ingredients in the menu is carried out on the recommendation of an endocrinologist.

Product selection criteria and dietary rules

In the case of type 1 insulin-dependent disease, the doses of hormones (insulin) and products consumed are closely related and, most importantly, can be adjusted to each other. In patients of the second type (non-insulin-dependent), this is not possible.

 The pathology is characterized by insulin resistance, that is, the inability of cells to perceive and consume insulin, the production of which is maintained in the body. The quality of life and well-being of people who have non-insulin-dependent diabetes depends on diet.

Products and meals for type 2 diabetics are selected taking into account several parameters:

  • Glycemic index (GI or GI). It is an indicator of the rate of glucose production from the food eaten and its absorption (absorption) into the blood. Allowed products are indexed from 0 to 30. 
  • Food's recommended glycemic index (GI) is between 30 and 70. Foods with a GI of 70 or higher are considered high and should not be consumed after a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.
  • The daily energy intensity for type 2 disease with obesity should not exceed 2000 kcal. Distribute your diet daily: 25% - breakfast, 30% - lunch, 20% - evening meal. 
  • The rest is divided into lunch and afternoon snacks. You need to consider age and physical activity when calculating calories. Hunger, as well as overeating, are strictly forbidden.
  •  Fast carbohydrates (monosaccharides and disaccharides) found in sugary drinks, pastry shops, and pastries are eliminated from the diet. However, not all carbohydrates are considered harmful. The permitted component of carbohydrates is fiber.
  •  Its main source is fresh vegetables, some types of legumes, and cereals. Protein foods will be beneficial for diabetics because their consumption has little effect on blood sugar. 
  • It is also important not to abuse animal fats, they accelerate the absorption of glucose, they are the cause of weight gain and cholesterol deposits on the walls of blood vessels. 

Therefore, on the menu, their number must be reduced to a minimum, giving preference to vegetable fats.

Basic Nutrition

For a patient with diabetes, it is not only the diet that is important but also the diet. Daily meals must be organized per the following rules:

  • Opt for products. It is necessary to remove the forbidden products and develop a menu that includes recommended and allowed dishes and products.
  • Stick to a regular diet. The interval between meals, taking into account snacks, should not be longer than 3-4 hours.
  • Adhere to a drinking regimen. The volume of daily fluid is 1.5 to 2 liters.
  • Don’t forget your morning meal. To satisfy a multitude of diets and get the required amount of energy, breakfast for type 2 diabetes should be early and satisfying.
  • Track your calorie content and portion size. Part of the main meal should not exceed 350 g (lunch and afternoon snack - 200-250 g). Do not be greedy for food and do not starve.
  • Enter a limit for salt and salty products. This will facilitate the work of the kidneys.

Alcohol is contraindicated in patients with diabetes. Light spirits can stimulate the rise of sugar, while strong ones kill pancreatic cells.

Correcting the grocery basket

To properly compile a menu for type 2 diabetes, you need to know what foods should be completely eliminated. First of all, these are pastries, desserts, and drinks that contain glucose and sucrose. 

You cannot include foods with a high glycemic index in your diet because they cause a sudden rise in blood sugar. High-calorie and fatty foods are also harmful, the use of which leads to expensive extra pounds.

The following main products are not available in the cart:

  • fatty varieties of poultry (goose, duck), pork;
  • sausages (ham, sausages, and sausages);
  • canned, salted, and dried fish;
  • canned food (goulash, fish and meat pastes, sour and salty vegetables, canned sweet fruits, compotes, jams, and cans);
  • rice (white), sago, semolina;
  • high-fat dairy products;
  • fat sauces based on mayonnaise;
  • products prepared by smoking (fat, fish, meat delicacies);
  • chips, flavored snacks, and crackers, popcorn.

Fast food (mashed potatoes, noodles, sweet cereals in bags, burgers, and other fast food representatives) is strictly prohibited. As for products that are limited to consumption (with an index of 30 to 70) for type 2 diabetes, their amount in the weekly diet must be agreed with the starting endocrinologist.


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