Treat Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes with Food: Meal Plan
You can greatly reduce your chances of getting diabetes, say experts, with minimal changes in your lifestyle. Diabetes is rapidly increasing among adults as modern lifestyles, lack of physical activity and convenience foods make obesity harder to avoid. Fortunately, these are environmental factors that can be modified. Diabetes is preventable.
Food is a crucial aspect of diabetes management. But, many diabetics feel their primary care providers aren’t able to answer their questions about food and nutrition. Keep reading – here is what diabetes experts and dieticians want you to know about eating your way to a healthier you. Over 100 clinical studies have shown you can treat diabetes and pre-diabetes with food – here’s a 5-Day menu from health experts based on those studies.
15 Foods to Eat to Treat Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes
- Apples
- Blueberries
- Pears
- Leafy Greens
- Cucumbers
- Edamame
- Sweet Potato
- Broccoli
- Salmon
- Quinoa
- Oatmeal
- Black Beans
- Chicken
- Egg whites
- Tofu
What Should I Eat to Stop Diabetes?
Your diabetes can be managed. When improperly managed, type-2 diabetes leads to health issues, including nerve damage, leg amputations, blindness, kidney disease, stroke, and heart disease. You can live a healthy life, eat delicious foods, and feel full. It is possible to treat diabetes and prediabetes with food. That’s delicious news since type-2 diabetes is the leading cause of premature deaths.
All you need is some minor changes in what you eat. To stop diabetes, research studies suggest focusing on vegetables and fruit – meal plans that are high in fiber help in the management of diabetes. Reaching for whole foods often, such as vegetables, fruits, beans, fish, and whole grains, creates a diet rich in fiber, antioxidants, and other health-promoting nutrients. Plus, eating lots of whole foods helps you avoid processed foods. Processed foods are high in refined sugars known to be associated with diabetes, weight gain, and heart disease.
How to Reverse Diabetes Naturally
Researchers at UCLA tracked over 650 men and women with type 2 diabetes who had attended the Pritikin Longevity Center and Spa in Miami, Florida, and found effects of the healthy lifestyle change included lower blood sugar levels within 3 weeks (declines from an average of 164mg/dL to 124 mg/dL). The Pritikin Food Plan focuses on eating lots of food that’s delicious, nutritious, and filling, yet has a low calorie-density to support your health. Still not sure what to eat to stop diabetes? “It is getting harder as social media and the internet are confusing people. People are really struggling because they aren’t getting the support and clarity they need,” explains Kimberly Gomer, Director of Nutrition at the Pritikin Center. Experts at the Pritikin Center treat diabetes and prediabetes with food every day – they can help.
What foods are bad for diabetics to eat?
Certain foods are bad for diabetics to eat (sugary treats, processed fatty foods), but before you start creating a list of foods you should never touch again, acknowledge that restrictive diet plans can leave you feeling deprived, and depressed. Food and your emotions are linked. Stress can cause you to crave unhealthy foods, as can boredom. It’s also important to recognize if your relationship with food is unhealthy. There’s no shame in having an eating disorder. Talking about your relationship with food can help. A binge-eating disorder is important to address if you are prediabetic or have type-2 diabetes: a binge-eating disorder can lead to weight gain, and obesity, a condition that increases your risk of type-2 diabetes.
Foods Diabetics Should Avoid
The best way to manage your diabetes is to avoid eating foods that make it hard for you to control your blood sugar. The best way to avoid bad foods is to consume healthy foods regularly. Eating regularly can prevent you from becoming hungry, a deprived state that can make it harder to stay away from sugary, convenient, low-nutrient foods that make it hard to manage your diabetes. “You can say, ‘I won’t eat the cupcake’,” notes Gomer, but eating healthy isn’t based on willpower, it’s about consistency. Eventually, when you are eating healthy food regularly and feeling satisfied by that food, you realize, “…the cupcake doesn’t taste very good.” Food is fuel – eat lots of healthy foods throughout your day. As for which foods are bad for diabetics to eat, it’s a good idea to limit your intake of processed foods that are high in sugar and low in nutrients. Evidence suggests diabetics are better off avoiding refined grains, choosing whole grain options instead. It’s a minor change, but switching from white pasta to whole grain pasta can help you better manage your diabetes. In addition, to treat diabetes and pre-diabetes with food, experts advise avoiding refined foods high in sugar. Increasing intakes of refined food and lower intakes of fiber are linked to the increase in type 2 diabetes in the United States.
Treat Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes with Food: Meal Plan
From the expert Registered Dieticians at the Pritikin Center, here is a 5-Day Meal Plan to help you get started on your way to a healthier lifestyle, and treat diabetes and pre-diabetes with food. This menu is filled with delicious foods you can prepare at home with help from many popular Pritikin recipes. If you want to treat diabetes with food, the best results are seen by working directly with a Registered Dietician. Diabetics can improve their clinical outcomes and reduce the cost of managing diabetes with one-on-one nutritional counseling, available at the all-inclusive health resort program at the Pritikin Center and Spa, in Miami, Florida. Over 100 clinical studies have shown the Pritikin Plan can help you improve heart health, lower blood- sugar and -pressure, naturally.
Diabetes Meal Plan: Day 1
Breakfast
- Steel-cut oatmeal (or other whole grain oatmeal) topped with berries.
- Coffee or tea (if desired) – add a splash of non-fat milk or unsweetened soy milk, and/or a bit of sugar substitute.
Mid-Morning Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Apple
Lunch
- Canned tuna mixed with chopped vegetables, lettuce, and tomato on whole-grain bread
- Cucumber onion salad
Mid-Afternoon Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Yam or sweet potato
Dinner
- Vegetarian Chili
- Salad with fresh vegetables (use pre-washed salad greens to save time)
Diabetes Meal Plan: Day 2
Breakfast
- Egg-white omelet loaded with chopped vegetables
- Coffee or tea (if desired) – add a splash of non-fat milk or unsweetened soy milk, and/or a bit of sugar substitute.
Mid-Morning Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Fruit smoothie – plain, low-fat yogurt, frozen berries, banana, and ice.
Lunch
Mid-Afternoon Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Baby carrots and red pepper hummus
Dinner
Diabetes Meal Plan: Day 3
Breakfast
- No sugar added yogurt
- Fruit Salad (a mixture of fruits such as orange, blueberries, cherries, pineapple, kiwi)
- Slice of whole wheat healthy banana bread
- Coffee or tea (if desired) – add a splash of non-fat milk or unsweetened soy milk, and/or a bit of sugar substitute.
Mid-Morning Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Popcorn, air-popped (can top with brewer’s yeast for a cheese flavor)
Lunch
- Curry hummus with cucumbers in a whole wheat pita
- Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho
Mid-Afternoon Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
Dinner
- Jerked tofu with red beans, yuca
- Lightly sautéed greens, or fresh leafy green salad
Diabetes Meal Plan: Day 4
Breakfast
- Breakfast Quesadilla
- Coffee or tea (if desired) – add a splash of non-fat milk or unsweetened soy milk, and/or a bit of sugar substitute.
Mid-Morning Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
Lunch
- Sweet potato and black bean burger with a side of grilled veggies
Mid-Afternoon Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Edamame
Dinner
- Spicy Curry Seafood Stew
- Garden salad with leafy greens and crunchy vegetables
Diabetes Meal Plan: Day 5
Breakfast
- Sweet Potato Pancakes with blueberries
- Coffee or tea (if desired) – add a splash of non-fat milk or unsweetened soy milk, and/or a bit of sugar substitute.
Mid-Morning Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
- Pear, or whole seasonal fruit
Lunch
- Turkey meatloaf
- Caesar salad, Pritikin-style
Mid-Afternoon Snack (enjoy only if hungry)
Dinner
Before you head on out to the store, check out this Shopping List for Diabetics from the Nutrition Experts at the Pritikin Center.
Ultimately, the best diet to treat diabetes and pre-diabetes is a diet that is tailored to your unique needs, notes experts. There is no “one-size-fits-all” plan to treat diabetes and pre-diabetes with food. Nutritional therapy is part of diabetes management. The best way to treat diabetes and pre-diabetes is to work with Physicians and Registered Dieticians to create healthy eating that works with your food likes and dislikes, busy lifestyle, and medical situation. During a stay at the Pritikin Center, you work closely with the expert team of board-certified Physicians, Dieticians, trained chefs, and certified personal trainers to discover which delicious, filling foods and lifestyle habits will help you successfully lead a healthy life. After your visit to the Pritikin Center, you’ll be armed with new skills and self-confidence to manage your diabetes.
It’s time to start living healthy – book today.
References
- The prevention and control the type-2 diabetes by changing lifestyle and dietary pattern. J Educ Health Promot 2014;3:1.
- Dietary and nutritional approaches for prevention and management of type 2 diabetes. BMJ 2018; 361.
- Nutrition therapy recommendations for the management of adults with diabetes -American Diabetes Association. Diabetes Care2013 Nov; 36(11): 3821-3842.
- Effect of diet on type 2 diabetes mellitus: a review. Int J Health Sci 2017;11(2): 65-71.
- Increased consumption of refined carbohydrates and the epidemic of type 2 diabetes in the United States: an ecologic assessment. Am J Clin Nutr 2004 May 79(5): 774-779.