Diabetes mellitus is considered the most common pathology in the world. Every year, this diagnosis is made more and more often. By some estimates, by 2025, the disease will affect more than 400 million people.
What is diabetes mellitus
Diabetes is divided into 3 types. The first or insulin-dependent occurs against the background of a lack of insulin in the body. Due to the lack of knowledge of the causes of occurrence, there are no real preventive methods to prevent the disease.
The second type, or non-insulin dependent, does not require the administration of insulin. Most often it occurs against the background of low mobility and obesity. It is characterized by the fact that there is a lot of glucose in the blood and the person has a constant feeling of hunger. It is type 2 that is more common in patients.
The third type can only occur in women and only during pregnancy. They also call it gestational . This disease can cause complications during childbirth.
Nutrition for diabetes
To avoid complications in the presence of this endocrine disease, you must adhere to a diet.
One of the fundamental principles of nutrition in the presence of a disease is the glycemic index. It shows the extent to which a particular product affects the level of sugar in the blood, or rather the carbohydrates that it contains.
You can consume those products in which the GI does not reach 55 units. The average level suggests that such foods should be limited in the diet, this figure is 55-69 units. If the product has a GI of 70 or more, then it is prohibited for use, as it will cause a sharp jump in glucose.
The second principle of nutrition is the control of grain units in products. As a rule, the doctor sets the permissible XE per day and displays how much carbohydrates the body can process.
There is a table with limit numbers that doctors are guided by:
- with a sedentary lifestyle and normal weight, 15XE is permissible, but if there are signs of obesity, even to a small extent, then 10 XE is allowed;
- with sedentary work and normal weight 18 XE, in the presence of excess – 13 XE.
Even with low levels of bread units, you can create a balanced menu that will allow you to be full and get all the useful elements from the products.
General principles of nutrition
It is very important to control the calorie intake of the menu. It should not be too small, that is, not less than 1200 kcal, but not very large either. However, in the presence of obesity, the calorie content of the diet may be less than this indicator. It is always calculated individually, depending on weight, age and physical activity. But there are general rules that everyone must follow:
- complete exclusion of rapidly digestible carbohydrates from the diet, these are sweets, confectionery;
- limiting the amount of complex carbohydrates, namely potatoes, pasta, milk;
- minimizing fat in the diet, especially animal, smoked meats and sausages.
With a strong feeling of hunger, it is recommended to lean on vegetable dishes that quickly saturate, these are sauerkraut and fresh cabbage, green peas, tomatoes.
It is impossible to ignore the issue of alcohol consumption in this type of pathology. While taking medications for diabetes, alcohol can cause irreparable harm. In addition, almost all drugs in this series cause a decrease in the body’s tolerance to alcohol, so it is best to completely abandon it.
Diet
The presence of diabetes requires the patient to adhere to the principle that the caloric content of food should be equal to the energy needs of the body. It is recommended to eat 5-6 times throughout the day, in small portions.
Products for diabetics
If you have an endocrine disease, you should completely remove sugar from the diet. It can be replaced with non-nutritive sweeteners that do not affect the GI. Doctors recommend adding sorbitol or xylitol to the diet. However, the dose of these substances should not exceed 30 g per day.
Allowed Products
Patients can eat brown bread, but no more than 350 g throughout the day. Fish, meat and vegetable soups will be useful. You can eat meat, but not pork. It is permissible to eat fish, but low-fat varieties, these are cod, carp, pike perch. Almost any vegetable can be, but low in carbohydrates. These are radishes, eggplants, zucchini, carrots, cucumbers, salad.
Sweet and sour fruits are recommended for consumption. However, their number per day should not exceed 200 g. Compotes can be made of them, but with sweeteners. You can eat cottage cheese – 200 g.
It is allowed to drink tomato juice, weak coffee and tea, but it is best to add milk. Juices are allowed, but no sugar.
Throughout the day, you can eat or add butter to the dishes, but not more than 40 g. It is recommended to drink a decoction of rose hips as a vitamin drink.
Fully or partially limited products
You can sometimes eat pork, but in jellied or boiled form. It is permissible to use potatoes, but in a minimal volume and not more often than 1 time for 5-7 days. In this case, only boiled potatoes. According to the same principle, pasta is consumed, with a parallel reduction in bread in the daily menu.
You can eat eggs, but not more than 2 pieces per day and, of course, not fried. With the permission of the attending physician, the use of yogurt, milk and kefir is allowed. But in any case, these products should not be more than 2 glasses.
Prohibited foods for diabetes
With the first form of the disease, there are no dietary restrictions. But on one condition – if the dosage of the injected insulin is correctly selected. Naturally, even when the required amount of the drug is selected, you do not need to eat anything, but adhere to the principles of proper nutrition.
With the second type, there are a number of dietary restrictions. In particular, you will have to abandon:
- pies;
- white bread;
- confectionery,
- dumplings;
- Sahara;
- sweet fruits such as persimmons, bananas, grapes, dates;
- dried fruits;
- pork, including products from this meat and lard;
- rice;
- potatoes;
- drinks with gas and sugar;
- juices.
You will have to limit the amount of salty and canned foods. Do not eat fried foods, spicy. It is necessary to constantly monitor the amount of fat in the diet, there should be no more than 10% of the total amount of food.
Food processing methods for diabetics
The best food processing methods for diabetics would be:
- boiling;
- baking;
- extinguishing;
- steam treatment.
The amount of salt should be kept to a minimum. Meat and fish, regardless of how they are further cooked, are best boiled. This method removes up to 50% of the fat.
Nutrition for type 2 diabetes
Cereals in the presence of such a pathology are almost completely prohibited. They can appear in the diet only as an exception. The diet should be based on vegetables. Almost all of them have a low GI. Better to give preference to eggplants, zucchini, tomatoes, green beans, cabbage, onions. And it is better to refuse potatoes, pumpkins, beets, corn. Their GI exceeds 65 units.
Dairy products can be consumed, but only low-fat ones. Meat and fish must be cooked according to recipes that do not involve long-term processing, as it leads to an increase in the GI in foods.
Be careful with fruits and berries, as most of them have a high GI. Cherries, apples, and citrus fruits work best. As a dessert, it is necessary to use exactly the permitted fruits, from which you can make jelly, salads.
Diet for type 2 diabetes for a week
The menu for the week can be composed as follows:
- First breakfast, which should be no later than 1 hour after waking up. This can be oatmeal, some stew, and vegetables like tomatoes or cucumbers. You can have some weak coffee or a glass of rosehip broth.
- Snack or lunch. Low fat kefir and biscuits, sugar free.
- Dinner. Vegetable soup. Fish or meat, boiled or baked. Some vegetables, salad or sliced. Unsweetened juice.
- Second snack or afternoon snack. Sugar-free and low-fat yogurt. Fruit salad.
- Dinner. Boiled beef, vinaigrette. Milk tea, no sugar.
As you can see, making a menu in the presence of diabetes is not difficult. You can eat quite satisfying and tasty. Compliance with the diet agreed with the doctor will make the diabetic feel healthy and full of energy.
Diet table number 9 Menu for the week
This diet is recommended for patients with moderate or mild disease. It is designed to improve carbohydrate metabolism and is the prevention of fat metabolism disorders in the body. It is prescribed for people with normal or slightly higher weight who do not receive additional insulin.
The calorie content of the diet is moderately reduced and amounts to 2300-2500 units. You can drink up to 1.5 liters of liquid per day. Carbohydrates in the diet should not be more than 350 g. It is necessary to eat 5-6 times.
An example menu might look like this:
- low-fat cottage cheese, tea;
- wheat bran, rosehip infusion;
- beetroot, stewed carrots and boiled fish, fruit jelly;
- fresh apples;
- boiled turkey, cabbage schnitzel.
Before going to bed, you can drink a glass of low-fat kefir.
The main attention in drawing up a menu in the presence of diabetes should be paid to the amount of carbohydrates. There should be as little of them in the diet. You should never forget that easily digestible carbohydrates should not be present in the diet at all; they can cause a strong jump in glucose. Compliance with all the rules of dietary nutrition will allow, in the presence of this endocrine disease, to stabilize the patient’s condition and prevent the occurrence of concomitant diseases.