Diabetes mellitus does not have clearly defined degrees that can be expressed in numerical indices. There are usually mild, moderate and severe course of the disease. But there are two variants of this disease - the first type (insulin-dependent) and the second type (non-insulin-dependent).
It is especially important for such patients to adhere to the rules of rational nutrition, because in this case the adjustment of the diet is the main method of treatment.
Why diet?
In type 2 diabetes, tissue sensitivity to insulin is impaired and insulin resistance develops. Despite the sufficient production of this hormone, glucose cannot be absorbed and enter the cells in the required amount, which leads to an increase in its level in the blood. As a result, the patient develops complications of the disease, which affect nerve fibers, blood vessels, tissues of the lower extremities, the retina of the eye, etc.
Most patients with type 2 diabetes are overweight or even obese. Due to the slow metabolism, the process of losing weight in them is not as fast as in healthy people, but they are extremely necessary for weight loss. Normalization of body weight is one of the conditions for good health and maintaining blood sugar at the target level.
What to eat in diabetes to normalize tissue sensitivity to insulin and lower blood sugar? The patient's daily menu should be reduced in calories and contain mostly slow rather than fast carbohydrates. Usually doctors recommend that you stick to diet number 9. At the stage of weight loss the amount of fat in the dishes should be reduced (it is better to give preference to fats of vegetable origin). It is important for a diabetic to get enough protein, as it is a building material and contributes to the gradual replacement of adipose tissue with muscle fibers.
Rational nutrition improves tissue sensitivity to insulin and normalizes the regulation of blood sugar levels.
The main goals of the diet for type 2 diabetes:
- weight loss and body fat reduction;
- normalization of blood sugar levels;
- maintaining blood pressure within acceptable limits;
- lowering blood cholesterol levels;
- prevention of severe complications of the disease.
The type 2 diabetes diet is not a temporary measure, but a system that must be followed constantly. This is the only way to keep your blood sugar at a normal level and maintain good health for a long time. In most cases, just switching to proper nutrition is enough to keep diabetes under control. But even if the doctor recommends that the patient take hypoglycemic pills, this in no way cancels the diet. Without dietary control, no medical methods will have a lasting effect (even insulin injections).
Healthy natural foods help maintain normal blood sugar levels and control blood pressure.
Methods of food preparation
With type 2 diabetes, it is advisable for patients to prepare food sparingly. The best types of cooking are culinary processes such as stewing, cooking and baking. Fried foods can be consumed only occasionally by diabetics and it is preferable to prepare them in a small amount of vegetable oil or even better on a grill pan with a non-stick coating. These cooking methods preserve the maximum amount of vitamins and nutrients. Ready-made such dishes do not burden the pancreas and other organs of the digestive tract.
You can also stew dishes in their own juice, choosing only low-calorie and low-fat foods. It is not advisable to add store-bought sauces, marinades and large amounts of salt to the food. To improve the taste it is better to use permitted spices: greens, lemon juice, garlic, pepper and dried aromatic herbs.
Meat
Meat is a very important source of protein for diabetics, as it contains essential amino acids that cannot be produced by the human body. But choosing it, you need to know certain rules so as not to accidentally harm your health. First, the meat must be dietary. For sick people the most suitable are chicken, turkey, rabbit and lean beef. Second, it should be perfectly fresh, not contain a large number of veins and muscle films, as they are absorbed for a long time and can create a feeling of heaviness, slowing down the work of the intestines.
The amount of meat in the diet should be limited, but at the same time the daily dose should provide a person with sufficient protein. The distribution of proteins, fats and carbohydrates is chosen individually for each patient by the attending physician. It depends on many factors - weight, body mass index, age, anatomical features and the presence of concomitant diseases. Properly selected ratio of calories and nutrients ensures the body's normal supply of energy, vitamins and minerals.
Prohibited types of meat for diabetes:
- goose;
- duck;
- pork;
- Lamb;
- fatty beef.
Patients should not eat bacon, smoked meats, sausages and rich meat broths. It is allowed to cook poultry soups, but the water must be changed after the first boil. You can not cook soup with bone broth, because it is difficult to digest and creates an additional burden on the pancreas and liver. The skin should always be removed from the poultry during the cooking process so that excess fat does not get into the dish. It is always better to give preference to fillets and white meat, which has a minimum amount of connective tissue and fat stripes.
It is desirable to replace animal fats with vegetable ones as much as possible. Olive, corn and flaxseed oils are considered the most beneficial for patients with diabetes.
Fish
Fish should be present in the diet of a diabetic patient at least once a week. It is a source of healthy proteins, fats and amino acids. Eating fish products helps to improve the condition of bones and muscles, and also contributes to the prevention of cardiovascular disease. The most useful fish allowed, according to the rules of the diet, for diabetics is lean fish, which is cooked in the oven or steamed.
Diabetics can eat tilapia, hake, pollock, tuna, cod. It is also recommended to periodically include red fish (trout, salmon, salmon) in your diet, as it is rich in omega acids. These biologically active substances protect the body from the development of cardiovascular disease and help reduce the level of "bad" cholesterol.
Patients should not eat smoked and salted fish, as this can cause problems with the pancreas, as well as provoke edema and the development of hypertension. Because type 2 diabetes usually develops in middle-aged and elderly people, high blood pressure problems are relevant to many of them. Consumption of many salty foods (including red fish) can provoke pressure surges and worsen the condition of the heart and blood vessels.
When cooking fish, it is better to add a minimum amount of salt to it, replacing it with other spices and condiments. It is desirable to bake without adding oil, as the product itself already contains a certain amount of healthy fats. In order not to dry the fillet, it can be prepared in the oven in a special plastic cuff. The fish prepared in this way contains more moisture and has a melting texture.
Diabetics are forbidden to eat white fish of fatty varieties (eg pangasius, nototenia, herring, catfish and mackerel). Despite the pleasant taste, these products, unfortunately, can provoke the appearance of excess weight and cause problems with the pancreas. Low fat fish and seafood are a healthy natural source of vitamins and minerals that are perfectly absorbed by the body.
It is useful for diabetics to eat cooked seafood. Shrimp, squid and octopuses are high in protein, vitamins and phosphorus.
Vegetables
The type 2 diabetes diet is based on the predominance of plant foods in the diet, so vegetables in any form should be an important part of the food that sufferers eat. They contain very little sugar and at the same time are rich in fiber, vitamins and other valuable chemical elements. The most useful vegetables in diabetes are green and red. This is due to the fact that they contain a large amount of antioxidants that prevent the formation of harmful free radicals. Eating tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers and green onions can boost human immunity and improve digestion.
The following vegetables are also useful for patients:
- Cauliflower;
- Jerusalem artichoke;
- pumpkin;
- onions and blue onions;
- broccoli;
- radish;
- zucchini and eggplant.
Beets are also very useful for diabetics, as they contain amino acids, enzymes and slow carbohydrates. This vegetable has no fat at all, so its calorie content is low. Beetroot dishes have anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties, increase immunity and strengthen the walls of blood vessels. Another important property of beets for diabetics is the smooth regulation of intestinal motility, which helps to avoid constipation and a feeling of heaviness in the stomach.
A balanced diet in type 2 diabetes allows even potatoes to be included in the diet, but this vegetable should not be essential in the selection and preparation of dishes. It contains a lot of starch and has a relatively high calorie content (compared to other vegetables), so its amount should be strictly limited.
In order for vegetables to bring only benefits to the body, they must be properly prepared. If vegetables can be eaten raw and the diabetic has no digestive problems, it is better to use them in this form, as it retains the maximum amount of nutrients, vitamins and minerals. But if the patient has concomitant problems with the gastrointestinal tract (eg inflammatory diseases), then all vegetables should be subjected to pre-heat treatment.
It is highly undesirable to fry vegetables or stew them with a lot of oil and vegetable oil, as they absorb fat, and the benefits of such a dish will be much less than the harm. Fatty and fried foods not only disrupt the functioning of the pancreas, but also often cause weight gain.
Vegetables cooked with excess oil are high in calories and can raise blood cholesterol levels.
Fruits
Some patients, after being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, try to eliminate all fruits from the diet, leaving only sour, green apples and sometimes pears. But this is not necessary, as most fruits have a low glycemic index and are low in carbohydrates and calories. All fruits and berries with low and medium glycemic index are useful for diabetics, as they contain many vitamins, organic acids, pigments and mineral compounds.
- apples;
- pears;
- tangerines;
- oranges;
- grapefruits;
- apricots;
- plums;
- black currant;
- cherry;
- blueberries;
- raspberries.
Fruits contain carbohydrates, so their amount in the diet should be limited. It is recommended to eat them in the morning (maximum until 16: 00), so as not to turn sugar into body fat. Before going to bed and on an empty stomach in the morning it is also better not to eat fruit, as this can lead to irritation of the gastric mucosa and a set of extra pounds.
The forbidden fruits in type 2 diabetes are melons, watermelons and figs, because they have a high glycemic index and are high in sugar. For the same reason, it is undesirable for patients to consume dried fruits such as dates and dried figs.
Peaches and bananas may be present in a diabetic's diet, but it is recommended that you eat them no more than once or twice a week. For daily use, it is better to give preference to plums, apples and citrus fruits, as they help improve digestion and contain a lot of coarse fiber. They contain many vitamins and minerals that are necessary for the well-coordinated, complete work of the whole organism.
Fruits are a healthy and tasty delicacy that can help you overcome the desire for forbidden sweet foods. Patients who eat fruit regularly find it easier to follow a diet and daily routine.
Cereals and pasta
What can patients eat from cereals and pasta? There are many permitted products in this list, from which you can prepare delicious and healthy meals. Cereals and pasta should be the source of slow carbohydrates that the patient needs for brain function and energy. The products recommended by the doctor include:
- buckwheat;
- oatmeal that requires cooking (not instant cereals);
- bulgur;
- peas;
- durum wheat paste;
- Wheat meal;
- unpolished rice;
- millet.
It is highly undesirable for diabetics to eat white rice, semolina and instant oatmeal. These products are high in carbohydrates, calories and low in biologically valuable substances. In general, these cereals simply saturate the body and satisfy the feeling of hunger. Excessive consumption of such cereals can lead to weight gain and digestive problems.
But even permitted cereals must be properly prepared and consumed. It is best to cook porridge in water without adding oils and fats. It is preferable to eat them for breakfast, as carbohydrates should provide the patient with energy for the whole day. These simple recommendations should always be remembered, because properly selected and prepared cereals will bring only benefits and will not harm human health.
With type 2 diabetes, you need to eat in portions. It is recommended to divide the daily diet into 5-6 meals.
What should be given up?
Patients with type 2 diabetes should completely exclude such dishes and foods from the diet:
- sugar and products containing it;
- fatty dishes prepared with a large amount of vegetables or butter;
- smoked meats;
- semi-finished products and fast food;
- marinades;
- salty and spicy hard cheeses;
- bakery products of first class flour.
You cannot make exceptions to the rules and use something from the banned list from time to time. With type 2 diabetes, the patient does not receive insulin injections and the only chance to keep blood sugar at a normal level is to eat properly while following other doctor's recommendations.
Sample menu for the day
It is better to make a menu for the day in advance, calculating its calorie content and the ratio of fat, protein and carbohydrates in the dishes. Table 1 shows the caloric content and chemical composition of some foods that are allowed in diet No. 9. Guided by these data, the recommendations of the attending physician and the composition, which is always indicated on the packaging of the products, you can easily create a diet with optimal energy value.
An example menu for the day might look like this:
- breakfast - oatmeal, a slice of low-fat cheese, wholemeal bread without yeast;
- snack - nuts or apple;
- lunch - vegetable broth, boiled chicken breast or turkey, buckwheat porridge, berry juice;
- afternoon breakfast - allowed fruit and a glass of rosehip broth;
- dinner - stewed fish with vegetables or low-fat cottage cheese, a glass of compote without sugar;
- snack before bedtime - 200 ml of low-fat yogurt.
The diet of type 2 diabetes can be really varied and delicious. The lack of sweet foods in it is compensated with healthy fruits and nuts, and fatty meat is replaced by dietary options. A big plus of this menu is that it can be prepared for the whole family. Limiting animal fats and sugars is good even for healthy people, and diabetes is a prerequisite for maintaining normal health for many years.