The Basics of a Diet For Diabetes Type 2 - Get the Fundamentals of a Good Diabetes Diet
Who else wants some clear direction on the basics of a diet for diabetes type 2? I can understand why you'd want it.
Diabetes is still a pretty scary disease - it's responsible for more kidney disease and loss of sight than any other - and diet is a major element that controls diabetes or makes it worse.
So what are the root basics, the foundation? Everything about your weight comes back to this: calories in less calories out.
It really is that fundamental.
And you shouldn't gloss over it.
The number of calories you consume and how those calories are divided among the different food categories are our first concern.
When you eat more calories than you burn, you put on weight, you get more resistant to insulin, less sugar enters your cells, and more floats in your blood and wreaks havoc in your system.
So how many calories do you need? Here's how to calculate it.
1.
Calculate your ideal weight.
If you're a woman, start with 100 pounds for your first 5 feet of height and add 5 pounds for every inch.
If you're a man, give yourself 106 pounds for your first 5 feet of height, and add 6 pounds for every inch.
So, for example, if you're a 5 foot 3 woman, your ideal weight is 115 ponds.
2.
To calculate the kilo calories you should be eating, multiply your ideal weight by 10.
If your ideal weight is 115, you should be eating about 1200 kilo calories a day.
3.
Add additional calories according to your level of activity.
If you're not active add 10%, moderately active 20%, very active add 40%.
Now you know how many calories you should be eating.
But how do you divide them up? Three types of food you eat contain calories: carbohydrates, proteins,and fats.
There's much controversy over how many calories of carbohydrates you should be eating.
The old American Diabetes Association rec commendation was 55 to 60% of your calories.
More recent recommendations are about 40-50%.
Fats should constitute no more than 30% of your diet.
Proteins make up the remainder.
Those are your basics.
It really is that simple.
Now measure, measure, measure.
Your first priority is to get your carbohydrates under control.
They are the largest part of your diet and the foods that transfer most readily into sugar.
Your primary tool for managing your carbohydrates is a good understanding of the glycemic index, a chart of how efficiently various foods become sugar in your blood.
The most direct way for you to lower your blood sugar is to substitute low GI foods (brown rice ) for high GI foods (white rice) in your diet.
Diabetes is still a pretty scary disease - it's responsible for more kidney disease and loss of sight than any other - and diet is a major element that controls diabetes or makes it worse.
So what are the root basics, the foundation? Everything about your weight comes back to this: calories in less calories out.
It really is that fundamental.
And you shouldn't gloss over it.
The number of calories you consume and how those calories are divided among the different food categories are our first concern.
When you eat more calories than you burn, you put on weight, you get more resistant to insulin, less sugar enters your cells, and more floats in your blood and wreaks havoc in your system.
So how many calories do you need? Here's how to calculate it.
1.
Calculate your ideal weight.
If you're a woman, start with 100 pounds for your first 5 feet of height and add 5 pounds for every inch.
If you're a man, give yourself 106 pounds for your first 5 feet of height, and add 6 pounds for every inch.
So, for example, if you're a 5 foot 3 woman, your ideal weight is 115 ponds.
2.
To calculate the kilo calories you should be eating, multiply your ideal weight by 10.
If your ideal weight is 115, you should be eating about 1200 kilo calories a day.
3.
Add additional calories according to your level of activity.
If you're not active add 10%, moderately active 20%, very active add 40%.
Now you know how many calories you should be eating.
But how do you divide them up? Three types of food you eat contain calories: carbohydrates, proteins,and fats.
There's much controversy over how many calories of carbohydrates you should be eating.
The old American Diabetes Association rec commendation was 55 to 60% of your calories.
More recent recommendations are about 40-50%.
Fats should constitute no more than 30% of your diet.
Proteins make up the remainder.
Those are your basics.
It really is that simple.
Now measure, measure, measure.
Your first priority is to get your carbohydrates under control.
They are the largest part of your diet and the foods that transfer most readily into sugar.
Your primary tool for managing your carbohydrates is a good understanding of the glycemic index, a chart of how efficiently various foods become sugar in your blood.
The most direct way for you to lower your blood sugar is to substitute low GI foods (brown rice ) for high GI foods (white rice) in your diet.
