How many carbs should a person with type 2 diabetes consume per meal. What are the recommended carbohydrate guidelines for managing blood sugar levels. Which foods contain carbohydrates and how can they be tracked effectively. What are the best methods for meal planning with diabetes.

Understanding Carbohydrates and Their Impact on Blood Sugar

Carbohydrates play a crucial role in our diet, but for individuals with type 2 diabetes, managing carb intake is essential for maintaining stable blood sugar levels. Why do carbohydrates affect blood glucose? When consumed, carbs are broken down into glucose, which enters the bloodstream and raises blood sugar levels. For people with diabetes, this process can be problematic due to insulin resistance or insufficient insulin production.

To effectively manage blood sugar, it’s important to understand which foods contain carbohydrates:

• Grains (bread, pasta, rice, cereals)
• Fruits and fruit juices
• Starchy vegetables (potatoes, corn)
• Legumes (beans, peas)
• Dairy products (milk, yogurt)
• Sweets and desserts
• Snack foods (chips, crackers)

Is it necessary to eliminate all carbs from a diabetic diet? No, carbohydrates are still an important part of a balanced diet, even for those with diabetes. The key is to manage portion sizes and choose high-quality, nutrient-dense carbohydrate sources.

Recommended Carbohydrate Intake for Type 2 Diabetes

Determining the right amount of carbohydrates for individuals with type 2 diabetes can be challenging, as needs may vary based on factors such as age, weight, activity level, and overall health. However, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) provides general guidelines to help manage carbohydrate intake:

• Aim for about 45% of total daily calories from carbohydrates
• Consume 45-60 grams of carbs per main meal
• Include 10-25 grams of carbs for snacks between meals

How should carbohydrate consumption be spread throughout the day? It’s crucial to distribute carb intake evenly across meals to prevent blood sugar spikes. This approach helps maintain more stable glucose levels and can improve overall diabetes management.

Sample Carbohydrate Distribution Plan

1. Breakfast: 45-60 grams
2. Morning Snack: 15-20 grams
3. Lunch: 45-60 grams
4. Afternoon Snack: 15-20 grams
5. Dinner: 45-60 grams
6. Evening Snack (if needed): 15-20 grams

Remember, these are general guidelines, and individual needs may vary. Working with a healthcare provider or registered dietitian can help create a personalized meal plan that suits your specific requirements.

Effective Methods for Tracking Carbohydrate Intake

Accurately tracking carbohydrate intake is essential for managing blood sugar levels effectively. Several methods can help individuals with type 2 diabetes monitor their carb consumption:

1. Food Labels

Reading food labels is a fundamental skill for managing carbohydrate intake. What information should you look for on a food label? Focus on the “Total Carbohydrate” section, which includes fiber, sugars, and other carbs. Be mindful of serving sizes, as the carb content listed is typically for one serving.

2. Carbohydrate Counting Apps

Numerous smartphone apps are available to help track carbohydrate intake. These apps often have extensive food databases, making it easy to log meals and snacks. Some popular options include MyFitnessPal, Carb Manager, and the American Diabetes Association’s MyFoodAdvisor.

3. Exchange Lists

The exchange system groups foods with similar nutritional content into categories. Each serving within a category contains approximately the same amount of carbohydrates, protein, fat, and calories. This method can simplify meal planning and provide flexibility in food choices.

4. Measuring Tools

Using measuring cups, spoons, and a food scale can help ensure accurate portion sizes, especially for foods without labels. Over time, this practice can improve your ability to estimate portion sizes visually.

Which tracking method is most effective for managing type 2 diabetes? The best method depends on individual preferences and lifestyle. Some people find carb counting apps most convenient, while others prefer the simplicity of exchange lists. Experiment with different approaches to find what works best for you.

Meal Planning Strategies for Balanced Carbohydrate Intake

Effective meal planning is crucial for managing carbohydrate intake and maintaining stable blood sugar levels. Several strategies can help individuals with type 2 diabetes create balanced meals:

1. The Plate Method

The plate method is a simple visual approach to meal planning that doesn’t require precise counting. How does the plate method work?

• Fill half of your plate with non-starchy vegetables
• Fill one-quarter with lean protein
• Fill one-quarter with carbohydrates (grains, starchy vegetables, or legumes)
• Add a serving of fruit and a glass of low-fat milk if desired

This method naturally limits carbohydrate portions while ensuring a balanced intake of nutrients.

2. Carbohydrate Counting

Carb counting involves tracking the grams of carbohydrates consumed at each meal and snack. This method requires more detailed planning but offers precise control over carbohydrate intake. To use this approach effectively, work with a healthcare provider to determine your carb goals for each meal and snack.

3. Glycemic Index (GI) Method

The glycemic index ranks carbohydrate-containing foods based on how quickly they raise blood sugar levels. Foods with a lower GI value are generally preferred as they cause a slower, more gradual rise in blood glucose. Combining the GI method with carb counting can help refine meal choices for better blood sugar control.

4. Batch Cooking and Meal Prep

Preparing meals in advance can make it easier to stick to a balanced carbohydrate intake. Batch cooking allows you to portion out meals with the right amount of carbs, ensuring you always have diabetes-friendly options available.

How can meal planning improve overall diabetes management? Consistent meal planning helps stabilize blood sugar levels, reduces the risk of unexpected highs or lows, and can contribute to better long-term health outcomes for individuals with type 2 diabetes.

Choosing High-Quality Carbohydrate Sources

Not all carbohydrates are created equal when it comes to managing type 2 diabetes. Selecting high-quality carb sources can help improve blood sugar control and overall health. What makes a carbohydrate source “high-quality”?

• High fiber content
• Low to moderate glycemic index
• Rich in nutrients
• Minimal processing

Here are some examples of high-quality carbohydrate sources:

Whole Grains

• Quinoa
• Brown rice
• Oats
• Whole wheat bread
• Barley

Legumes

• Lentils
• Chickpeas
• Black beans
• Kidney beans

Non-Starchy Vegetables

• Leafy greens (spinach, kale, lettuce)
• Broccoli
• Cauliflower
• Bell peppers
• Zucchini

Fruits

• Berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries)
• Apples
• Pears
• Citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruits)

Why are these carbohydrate sources beneficial for individuals with type 2 diabetes? High-fiber, nutrient-dense carbs are digested more slowly, leading to a gradual rise in blood sugar levels. They also provide essential vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that support overall health.

The Role of Fiber in Carbohydrate Management

Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that plays a crucial role in managing blood sugar levels for individuals with type 2 diabetes. Unlike other carbs, fiber is not digested by the body and does not raise blood glucose. How does fiber benefit those with diabetes?

• Slows digestion and absorption of other carbohydrates
• Helps maintain feelings of fullness, potentially aiding in weight management
• Supports heart health by lowering cholesterol levels
• Promotes digestive health and regularity

The American Diabetes Association recommends that adults aim for at least 25-30 grams of fiber per day. How can you increase your fiber intake?

1. Choose whole grain products over refined grains
2. Include a variety of fruits and vegetables in your diet
3. Add legumes to soups, salads, and main dishes
4. Snack on nuts and seeds
5. Experiment with high-fiber alternatives like chia seeds or flaxseed meal

When increasing fiber intake, it’s important to do so gradually and drink plenty of water to prevent digestive discomfort. Remember to count the total carbohydrates in high-fiber foods, not just the fiber content, when tracking your carb intake.

Balancing Carbohydrates with Other Nutrients

While managing carbohydrate intake is crucial for blood sugar control, it’s equally important to maintain a balanced diet that includes adequate amounts of protein and healthy fats. How do these nutrients complement carbohydrates in a diabetes-friendly meal plan?

Protein

Protein helps slow down the absorption of carbohydrates, which can lead to more stable blood sugar levels. It also promotes satiety, potentially reducing overall calorie intake. Good sources of protein include:

• Lean meats (chicken, turkey, lean beef)
• Fish and seafood
• Eggs
• Low-fat dairy products
• Plant-based proteins (tofu, tempeh, legumes)

Healthy Fats

Including healthy fats in your meals can help slow digestion and improve insulin sensitivity. Sources of healthy fats include:

• Avocados
• Nuts and seeds
• Olive oil
• Fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines)

How can you create balanced meals that incorporate all three macronutrients? Try following this simple formula:

1. Fill half your plate with non-starchy vegetables
2. Add a palm-sized portion of lean protein
3. Include a serving of complex carbohydrates (about 1/4 of your plate)
4. Add a small amount of healthy fat (e.g., a tablespoon of olive oil or a quarter of an avocado)

By balancing carbohydrates with protein and healthy fats, you can create satisfying meals that help maintain stable blood sugar levels and support overall health.

Monitoring Blood Sugar and Adjusting Carbohydrate Intake

Regular blood glucose monitoring is essential for individuals with type 2 diabetes to understand how different foods and portions affect their blood sugar levels. How can you use this information to fine-tune your carbohydrate intake?

1. Keep a Food and Blood Sugar Log

Record what you eat, the amount of carbohydrates consumed, and your blood sugar levels before and after meals. Over time, this can help you identify patterns and make necessary adjustments to your meal plan.

2. Test Blood Sugar at Strategic Times

Check your blood glucose levels at these key times:

• Before meals
• Two hours after the start of a meal
• Before and after exercise
• Before bed

3. Understand Your Target Range

Work with your healthcare provider to establish your target blood sugar range. Typical targets for adults with type 2 diabetes are:

• Before meals: 80-130 mg/dL
• Two hours after the start of a meal: Less than 180 mg/dL

4. Make Informed Adjustments

If you notice that certain meals consistently lead to blood sugar levels outside your target range, consider making adjustments such as:

• Reducing the portion size of carbohydrate-rich foods
• Choosing lower glycemic index alternatives
• Incorporating more protein or fiber into the meal
• Increasing physical activity after meals

Remember, any significant changes to your diet or diabetes management plan should be discussed with your healthcare provider. They can offer personalized advice and help you make safe, effective adjustments to your carbohydrate intake based on your blood glucose readings.

By consistently monitoring your blood sugar and making informed decisions about your carbohydrate consumption, you can improve your overall diabetes management and maintain better long-term health outcomes.

Carbohydrate Guidelines for Type 2 Diabetes

Carbohydrates are an essential part of a healthy diet. But carbs also raise your blood sugar. When you have type 2 diabetes, it’s important to aim for a balanced carb intake. It can seem confusing and a little overwhelming at first, but don’t be discouraged. Your doctor, diabetes educator, or dietitian can help you find a meal plan that works for you.

By setting limits on your carb intake—and tracking what you eat to make sure you stay within those limits—you can improve your blood sugar control. To get started, here are some basic facts you need to know.

Foods that contain carbohydrates include:

• Grains, such as breads, cereals, pasta, and rice

• Fruits and fruit juices

• Starchy vegetables, such as potatoes and corn (nonstarchy vegetables also contain carbs, but usually very little)

• Dried beans and peas

• Dairy foods, such as milk and yogurt

• Sweets, such as cookies, pastries, cakes and candy

• Snack foods, such as potato chips

To find the carb content of a food, check the amount of total carbohydrate on the food label. Be sure to look at the serving amount as well. If you’re eating twice as much as the listed serving, you’ll need to double the total carbs.
If a food doesn’t have a label, there are many apps and books available to help you track carbs. One great free tool is MyFoodAdvisor from the American Diabetes Association. At first, you may need to look up almost everything. But with time, you’ll start to learn how many carbs are in your favorite foods and dishes.

The American Diabetes Association recommends getting about 45% of your total calories from carbs. You should spread out your carb consumption throughout the day. Typically, that works out to about 45 to 60 grams of carbs per meal and 10 to 25 grams per snack, eaten twice a day between meals. But ask your healthcare provider for guidance on more specific goals for you.

Achieving those goals doesn’t happen by accident. You’ll need to plan your meals more carefully than someone without diabetes. Fortunately, there are several methods of meal planning to make the process easier. Your healthcare provider can help you choose the best method for you, based on your preferences and needs.

These are three techniques for planning meals so you get the right amount of carbs:

1. Carb counting. This method is the most straightforward. You work with your healthcare provider to set a limit for how many carbs you’ll consume at each meal. Then you track the grams of carbohydrate in the foods you eat.

2. Exchange lists. This method categorizes foods into groups, such as carbohydrates, meat/meat alternatives, and fats. The plan spells out how many servings you can have from each group at a meal. Within each group, the plan also specifies how much of each food equals one serving, based on its nutrient content. You can exchange a serving of one food for another within the same group.

3. Glycemic index(GI). This method lets you refine carb counting. It considers not only the quantity of carbs in the foods you eat, but also the quality. Foods with a high GI value raise blood sugar more than those with a low GI. So the goal is to choose your carbs from foods with a lower GI value, such as many whole grain foods, most fruits, nonstarchy vegetables, and dried beans and peas.

Some people with type 2 diabetes use a less formal method of gauging how many carbs to eat. Called the plate method, it doesn’t require any counting at all. Instead, you simply imagine dividing your plate in half. Then divide one side in half again.

Fill the large section with nonstarchy veggies. Fill one small section with grains, starchy veggies, or cooked beans and peas, and the other with meat or another protein food. Add a cup of low-fat milk and a piece of fruit, and you’ve got a balanced meal.

• Although carbohydrates are part of a healthy diet, they raise your blood sugar. If you have type 2 diabetes, you need to aim for a balanced carb intake.

• Carbs are found in a variety of foods. You can check food labels to find the carb content, or use a website, app, or book to help you.

• The American Diabetes Association recommends getting about 45% of your total calories from carbs.

• There are several methods to help you plan meals, including carb counting, exchange lists, glycemic index, and the plate method.

Carbohydrate Guidelines for Type 2 Diabetes

Carbohydrates are an essential part of a healthy diet. But carbs also raise your blood sugar. When you have type 2 diabetes, it’s important to aim for a balanced carb intake. It can seem confusing and a little overwhelming at first, but don’t be discouraged. Your doctor, diabetes educator, or dietitian can help you find a meal plan that works for you.

By setting limits on your carb intake—and tracking what you eat to make sure you stay within those limits—you can improve your blood sugar control. To get started, here are some basic facts you need to know.

Foods that contain carbohydrates include:

• Grains, such as breads, cereals, pasta, and rice

• Fruits and fruit juices

• Starchy vegetables, such as potatoes and corn (nonstarchy vegetables also contain carbs, but usually very little)

• Dried beans and peas

• Dairy foods, such as milk and yogurt

• Sweets, such as cookies, pastries, cakes and candy

• Snack foods, such as potato chips

To find the carb content of a food, check the amount of total carbohydrate on the food label. Be sure to look at the serving amount as well. If you’re eating twice as much as the listed serving, you’ll need to double the total carbs.
If a food doesn’t have a label, there are many apps and books available to help you track carbs. One great free tool is MyFoodAdvisor from the American Diabetes Association. At first, you may need to look up almost everything. But with time, you’ll start to learn how many carbs are in your favorite foods and dishes.

The American Diabetes Association recommends getting about 45% of your total calories from carbs. You should spread out your carb consumption throughout the day. Typically, that works out to about 45 to 60 grams of carbs per meal and 10 to 25 grams per snack, eaten twice a day between meals. But ask your healthcare provider for guidance on more specific goals for you.

Achieving those goals doesn’t happen by accident. You’ll need to plan your meals more carefully than someone without diabetes. Fortunately, there are several methods of meal planning to make the process easier. Your healthcare provider can help you choose the best method for you, based on your preferences and needs.

These are three techniques for planning meals so you get the right amount of carbs:

1. Carb counting. This method is the most straightforward. You work with your healthcare provider to set a limit for how many carbs you’ll consume at each meal. Then you track the grams of carbohydrate in the foods you eat.

2. Exchange lists. This method categorizes foods into groups, such as carbohydrates, meat/meat alternatives, and fats. The plan spells out how many servings you can have from each group at a meal. Within each group, the plan also specifies how much of each food equals one serving, based on its nutrient content. You can exchange a serving of one food for another within the same group.

3. Glycemic index(GI). This method lets you refine carb counting. It considers not only the quantity of carbs in the foods you eat, but also the quality. Foods with a high GI value raise blood sugar more than those with a low GI. So the goal is to choose your carbs from foods with a lower GI value, such as many whole grain foods, most fruits, nonstarchy vegetables, and dried beans and peas.

Some people with type 2 diabetes use a less formal method of gauging how many carbs to eat. Called the plate method, it doesn’t require any counting at all. Instead, you simply imagine dividing your plate in half. Then divide one side in half again.

Fill the large section with nonstarchy veggies. Fill one small section with grains, starchy veggies, or cooked beans and peas, and the other with meat or another protein food. Add a cup of low-fat milk and a piece of fruit, and you’ve got a balanced meal.

• Although carbohydrates are part of a healthy diet, they raise your blood sugar. If you have type 2 diabetes, you need to aim for a balanced carb intake.

• Carbs are found in a variety of foods. You can check food labels to find the carb content, or use a website, app, or book to help you.

• The American Diabetes Association recommends getting about 45% of your total calories from carbs.

• There are several methods to help you plan meals, including carb counting, exchange lists, glycemic index, and the plate method.

Diabetes: Counting Carbs if You Don’t Use Insulin

Introduction

Carbohydrate counting is a skill that can help you plan your diet to manage type 2 diabetes and control your blood sugar. This technique helps you determine the amount of sugar and starch (carbohydrates) in the foods you eat so you can spread carbohydrates throughout the day, preventing high blood sugar after meals. Carbohydrate counting gives you the flexibility to eat what you want and increases your sense of control and confidence in managing your diabetes.

• Carbohydrate is the nutrient that most affects your blood sugar.
• Carbohydrate counting helps you keep your blood sugar at your target level.
• You can consult a registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator to help you master carbohydrate counting and plan meals.

How to count carbohydrates

Count carbohydrates and eat a balanced diet by:

• Working with a registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator. They can help you plan the amount of carbohydrates to include in each meal and snack, counting either grams or carbohydrate servings.
• Eating standard portions of carbohydrate foods. Each serving size or standard portion contains about 15 grams of carbohydrates. It might be helpful to measure and weigh your food when you are first learning what makes up a standard portion.
• Eating standard portions of foods that contain protein. Foods that contain protein (beans, eggs, meat, and cheese) are an important part of a balanced diet.
• Eating less saturated fat and trans fat. A balanced diet includes healthy fat. Talk with a registered dietitian about how much fat you need in your diet.

Know your daily amount

Your daily amount depends on several things—your weight, how active you are, what diabetes medicines you take, and what your goals are for your blood sugar levels. A registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator can help you plan how much carbohydrate to include in each meal and snack.

For most adults, a guideline for the daily amount of carbohydrates is:

• 45 to 60 grams at each meal. That’s about the same as 3 to 4 carbohydrate servings.
• 15 to 20 grams at each snack. That’s about the same as 1 carbohydrate serving.

Other helpful suggestions

Here are some other suggestions that will help you count carbohydrates:

• Read food labels for carbohydrate content. Notice the serving size shown on the package.
• Check your blood sugar level. If you do this before and 1 to 2 hours after eating, you will be able to see how food affects your blood sugar level.
• Use a food record to keep track of what you eat and your blood sugar results. At each regular visit with your dietitian or certified diabetes educator, or whenever you think your meal plan needs adjusting, you can review your food record.
• Get more help. The American Diabetes Association offers booklets to help people learn how to count carbohydrates, measure and weigh food, and read food labels. Also, you will need to talk with a registered dietitian or a certified diabetes educator to build a plan that fits your needs.

References

Other Works Consulted

• American Diabetes Association (2013). Nutrition therapy recommendations for the management of adults with diabetes. Diabetes Care, 36(11): 3821–3842. DOI: 10.2337/dc13-2042. Accessed December 5, 2013.
• Campbell AP, Beaser RS (2010). Medical nutrition therapy. In RS Beaser, ed., Joslin’s Diabetes Deskbook: A Guide for Primary Care Providers, 2nd ed., pp. 91–136. Boston: Joslin Diabetes Center.
• Franz MJ (2012). Medical nutrition therapy for diabetes mellitus and hypoglycemia of nondiabetic origin. In LK Mahan et al., eds., Krause’s Food and the Nutrition Care Process, 13th ed., pp. 675–710. St Louis: Saunders.

Credits

Current as of: August 31, 2020

Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review: E. Gregory Thompson MD – Internal Medicine
Kathleen Romito MD – Family Medicine
Adam Husney MD – Family Medicine
Rhonda O’Brien MS, RD, CDE – Certified Diabetes Educator
Colleen O’Connor PhD, RD – Registered Dietitian

Current as of: August 31, 2020

Author:
Healthwise Staff

Medical Review:E. Gregory Thompson MD – Internal Medicine & Kathleen Romito MD – Family Medicine & Adam Husney MD – Family Medicine & Rhonda O’Brien MS, RD, CDE – Certified Diabetes Educator & Colleen O’Connor PhD, RD – Registered Dietitian

Prediabetes and Carbs | How Many to Eat Daily

Prediabetes is a chronic condition with higher blood sugar levels than normal. It is related to how your body processes carbohydrates. People with prediabetes are at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explain that a prediabetes diet can lower your blood sugar, reduce your risk for diabetes, or even reverse prediabetes.

Carbohydrates are the main focus of a healthy prediabetes diet because they affect your blood sugar and your weight. According to Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health, both the quantity and quality of the carbohydrates you eat are important.

The prediabetic carbs per day that you eat should contribute to a healthy weight, and also come from nutritious sources.

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Carbs: What They Are, and Why They Matter

Carbohydrates are nutrients in your diet. Harvard Medical School explains that they are among the main sources of calories in your diet, along with protein and fat. Carbohydrates and protein each provide 4 calories per gram, and fat provides 9 calories per gram.

Starches and sugars are types of calorie-providing carbohydrates in your food and some beverages. Starches are larger and more complex than sugars. When you eat starches or sugars, your body breaks them down into a simple type of sugar called glucose. This goes into your bloodstream and contributes to your blood sugar or blood glucose levels.

So why do carbs matter?

1. They affect your weight. For most people, losing extra pounds is the single most effective thing you can do to lower your risk for diabetes. Research published in the journal Diabetes Care finds that each pound you lose can cut risk of getting diabetes by 16%! Since carbs contribute calories, too many carbs (even healthy carbs) in your diet can lead to weight gain. Reducing your carb intake (without increasing your fat and protein intake) helps you cut calories and lose weight.
2. They affect your blood sugar. Carbohydrates from your diet lead to glucose in your blood. Dietary starches and sugars directly drive up blood sugar levels more than fat or protein do. Both the type and amount of carbohydrates are important.

Blood sugar can be hard to keep track of, so we’ve made a chart to help you monitor your blood sugar levels.  

How Many Carbs per Day for Prediabetes?

Should you low-carb it? Actually… Maybe, or maybe not. Research shows that there is no single best answer to how many carbs should you have per day. 

Need a low carb food guide?

Grams of Carbs per Day for Prediabetics

Here are some common numbers for the recommended carb intake for prediabetics per day. As you can see, they vary quite a bit!

• Under 20 to 50 grams of carbohydrates per day: very low-carb ketogenic diet.
• 130 grams: “Adequate Intake” (the amount considered adequate for most people).
• 150-200 grams per day, or 30-40% of total calories on a 2,000-calorie diet: the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) description of a standard “low-carb” diet.
• 244 grams per day: average daily intake of Americans over 20 years old.
• 300 grams per day, or 60% of total calories on a 2,000-calorie diet: the daily value (DV) that you see on nutrition labels.

Low-carbohydrate diets could work, but they may not work any better than other careful diets for weight loss, for lowering blood sugar levels, or for preventing diabetes.

For more on planning your best prediabetes diet, read more here!

Pros and Cons of Low-Carb Diets

Pros

• They can help you lose weight.
• They can discourage sugary foods.
• They can discourage low-nutrient, refined starches, such as white bread and pasta, and potatoes.
• They can help lower blood sugar, especially in the short term.
• They can discourage processed foods.

Cons

• They can be hard to follow over the long-term.
• They can be high in unhealthy choices, such as fatty and processed meats, butter, and cream.
• They can exclude healthy foods, such as whole grains, beans, and fruit.
• They could raise cholesterol or cause harm to your kidneys or bones.

How well a low-carb diet helps you lose weight and keep it off, and lower blood sugar, depends on your body type, the types of carbs you choose, and how healthy the fats and protein sources you choose are. Most of all, success depends on how well you follow your plan.

Need help finding out which foods are high-carb?

Carbs to Lower Blood Sugar in Prediabetes

Regardless of the total number of prediabetes carbs per day that you have, you will get better results if you choose healthier sources and stay aware of portion sizes. Look for high-fiber, high-nutrient sources, and know that a serving size may be smaller than you think! 

Healthy Carbs for Prediabetes
(listed in serving sizes with about 15 grams of carbs each)

Whole Grains

• ½ whole-grain English muffin or small pita pocket
• 1 whole-grain slice of bread, mini-bagel
• ½ cup wheat flakes or all-bran cereal
• ½ cup cooked oatmeal (½ instant oatmeal packet) or cream of wheat
• 1/3 cup brown rice, whole-grain pasta, or quinoa
• ½ oz. whole-wheat pretzels or crackers

Legumes

• ½ cup cooked or low-sodium canned lentils, split or black-eyed peas, or garbanzo, black, pinto, fat-free refried, northern, or other beans
• 1 cup chili

Fruit

• 1 cup cantaloupe, watermelon, strawberries, or raspberries
• ¾ cup blackberries or blueberries
• ½ cup pineapple
• 1 small apple, orange, pear, or nectarine
• ½ medium banana

Starchy Vegetables

• ½ cup corn, peas, or sweet potatoes
• ¾ cup winter squash (acorn, butternut, etc. )

Dairy

• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 cup milk

Carbs to Limit

Occasional treats are fine, but in general, your blood sugar (and your weight and overall health) will be better if you limit certain carbs. In general, limit carbs with added sugars, refined grains, and processed, packaged, fried, and fast foods. Often, your gut reaction is right.

Harvard Medical School suggests that you try to limit:

• Desserts, such as ice cream, pie, muffins, cakes, cookies, and brownies.
• Refined grains, such as white bread, pasta, and rice.
• Candy and sugar-sweetened chocolate (choose 100% chocolate).
• Soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages, such as flavored coffee, juice drinks, sweet tea, and energy and sports drinks.
• Fried foods, such as fried chicken, onion rings, french fries, hash browns, and doughnuts.
• Sugar-sweetened cereal and flavored yogurt.
• Greasy fast foods, such as pizza, fried rice, and burgers.

Carbs for Prediabetic Meals and Snacks

There is something else to consider: meal planning. It’s not only a question of how many carbs to have each day, and which ones to have, but when to have them. The best bet for controlling blood sugar and hunger is to spread them throughout the day. 

For most meals, aim for 2 to 3 servings (about 30 to 45 grams of carbs). Add a large portion of non-starchy vegetables (at most meals) and some healthy fat and lean protein, for a full meal. For example…

• A turkey burger on a whole-grain bun with lean turkey burger, lettuce, tomato, and avocado, with a side of baby carrots.
• ¾ cup of Wheaties with ½ oz. of sliced almonds, ¾ cup blueberries, and 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk.
• 2/3 cup cooked whole-wheat pasta tossed with 2 teaspoons of olive oil, fresh basil, 2 cups of spinach, and 3 oz. cooked salmon.

For most snacks, you might aim for 1 to 2 servings (about 15 to 30 grams of carbs). Then add a source of protein and/or healthy fat, and always keep non-starchy vegetables in mind! For example…

• ½ cup fat-free, low-sodium refried beans with diced tomatoes and 1 oz. melted cheese.
• 1 small baked sweet potato topped with broccoli and Greek yogurt.
• ½ sliced large apple with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter.

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Keeping your prediabetic carbs per day in check can lower your risk for diabetes by helping you lose weight and by preventing wild blood sugar swings. It’s not so difficult to be sensible about healthy carbs. Choose 1 to 3 small servings of healthy carbs per meal or snack, and you will be well on your way!

Getting Help

Friends, family, a personal trainer, and fitness instructors can help you along the way. A personal health coach can also help. Lark is a fully-automated program that is available to users 24/7. You can chat with your coach anytime, set and work towards exercise and diet goals, monitor your daily carb intake, and get customized feedback and coaching.

With motivation, reminders, and tracking features, Lark DPP and other Lark programs can help you hit exercise recommendations and has achieved Full CDC Recognition.

Diabetes and Carbohydrates

One area of confusion for diabetics and their diets is carbohydrates. So, should you eat carbohydrates or avoid them?

Carbohydrates have a direct influence on blood sugar levels and so diets followed by people with diabetes tend to focus either on the quantity of carbohydrate intake or the speed at which carbohydrates are absorbed by the body.

In the UK, patients diagnosed with diabetes are generally recommended by health professionals to follow a low GI diet rather than a low-carb diet

What is a carbohydrate controlled diet?

A carbohydrate controlled diet is a diet in which carbohydrate intake is either limited or set at a particular value.

Setting carbohydrate intake at set values or limits can be used by people with diabetes help stabilise blood glucose levels.

Examples of carbohydrate controlled diets include:

Fixed carbohydrate intakes

A diet involving fixed intakes of carbohydrate through the day can help to simply diabetes control and may be helpful to people on insulin, and particularly those on fixed dose insulin regimens

Having a fixed intake of carbohydrate each day offers less flexibility in terms of meals but can offer more consistency over blood glucose control. People with type 1 diabetes will still need to have competence in carbohydrate counting

Restricted carbohydrate diets

Restricted carbohydrate diets set a limit on how much carbohydrate you take in over the course of a day or for each meal. Low carbohydrate diets are a form of restricted carbohydrate diet.

Restricted carbohydrate diets may specify a maximum value of carbohydrate intake. However, sometimes this is not needed, particularly if the diet suggests avoiding many of the kind of foods with higher carbohydrate intakes.

How do restricted carbohydrate diets work?

Restricting carbohydrates from a diet can help to reduce hunger, particularly in people with diabetes, as it can help prevent wider swings in blood glucose levels that can be responsible for causing hunger.

If carbohydrate and calorie intake is kept low enough, it can help to promote regular ketosis in which the body breaks down fat tissues to convert them into ketones, an alternative energy source to glucose. The breaking down of fat is one reason why very low carbohydrate diets can help with weight loss

Whilst restricted carbohydrate diets can help with weight loss, they may also be used primarily for maintaining good blood glucose control. If following a low carbohydrate diet, an increased intake of fat and protein may be needed to prevent weight loss occurring.

Are restricted carb diets bad for people with diabetes?

As with any diet, it is important that the diet includes a healthy balance of nutrients. People looking to follow a low carbohydrate diet or ketogenic diet are recommended to speak with a dietitian who should be able to help ensure the diet is not deficient in any vital vitamins or minerals.

Whilst it is a relatively common view that low carbohydrate diets lack fruit and vegetables, it does not need to be the case, particularly if non-starchy vegetables are chosen and fruits with a lower carbohydrate content such as berries.

Transcript

Now for somebody with diabetes, you’re going to have to match that food and the nature of that food – the amount of it, with your insulin. So the more you can understand about how foods are absorbed in your body and get used by your body, and how insulin works, the better you’re going to make the two of them balance so that you are nice and fit and healthy for the long term.

One of the things you might end up talking to your healthcare professional about is finding out your insulin to carbohydrate ratio. For example, if you have a digestive biscuit – worth 10 grams of carbohydrate or one exchange, you might need just one unit of insulin against that 10 grams of carbohydrate so you’ve got a 1-to-1 ratio.

Other people might need 2 units of insulin for that same 10 grams of carbohydrate. With time and with blood testing and just keeping a note on things, you get to know what your ratios are and they might change through the day. You might need 1-to-1 in the morning, 1-to-1.5 at lunchtime and maybe 2-to-1 in the evening. It’s perfectly normal that in the day the body uses up energy on a different time scale than other point in the day.

It’s probably likely that you might want to have carbohydrates with every meal but they don’t have to be the fullest part of your meal. You should have some fat of some sort, protein, carbohydrates and each time you eat the 3 meals you have per day if you could have a little bit of all of them that’s probably the healthiest thing to do.

You also need to understand the nature of the carbohydrate and how quick it’s going to absorb, but there’s another demo on counting carbohydrates – but just to know that the carbohydrate is basically the bit that’s going to give you the energy, well, the sugar in your diet because the body digests carbohydrate down into the sugars that they’re made of.

When it comes to diets high in protein, research has suggested negative effects including calcium excretion (which could lead to osteoporosis ) and possible negative impact on kidney disease Whilst some research studies show no signs of the effects, people who have developed, or are at higher risk of, these complications should discuss the possible effects of a high protein diet with their specialist before starting.

Diabetes: Counting Carbs if You Use Insulin | CS Mott Children’s Hospital

Introduction

Carbohydrate, or carb, counting is an important skill to learn when you have diabetes. Carb counting helps you keep tight control of your blood sugar (glucose) level. It also gives you the flexibility to eat what you want. This can help you feel more in control and confident when managing your diabetes.

• Carb counting helps you keep your blood sugar at your target level.
• It allows you to adjust the amount of insulin you take. This amount is based on how many grams of carbs you eat at a meal or snack. The formula used to find how much insulin you need is called the insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio.
• The insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio is not the same for each person. You and your doctor will find your ratio by keeping track of the food you eat and testing your blood sugar level after meals.

How do you count carbohydrate grams in your diet?

To count carb grams at a meal, you need to know how many carbs are in each type of food you eat. This includes all food, whether it is a slice of bread, a bowl of lettuce, or a spoonful of salad dressing. Most packaged foods have labels that tell you how many total carbs are in one serving. Carbohydrate guides can help too. You can get these from diabetes educators and the American Diabetes Association.

To find out how many carbs are in food that is not packaged, you will need to know standard portions of carbohydrate foods. Each serving size or standard portion has about 15 grams of carbs.

By using the number of grams of carbs in a meal, you can figure out how much insulin to take. This is based on your personal insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio.

For example: Your doctor may advise you to take 1 unit of rapid-acting insulin for every 10 to 15 grams of carbs you eat. So if your meal has 50 grams of carbs and your doctor says you need 1 unit of insulin for every 10 grams of carbs, you would need 5 units of insulin to keep your post-meal blood sugar from rising above your target level.

Your insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio may change over time. In some people it will change from one meal to the next. You might take 1 unit of insulin for every 10 grams of carbs for lunch but take 1 unit for every 15 grams at dinner.

Keep these tips in mind when counting carbs:

• Portion control is important. If a package says it contains two servings and you eat the whole package, you need to double the number of grams of carbs listed for one serving.
• Protein, fat, and fiber do not raise blood sugar very much. If you eat a lot of these nutrients in a meal, carbs will change to glucose more slowly than it would with a meal that has a small amount of protein, fat, and fiber.
• Advanced carb counting takes into account the amount of fiber or sugar alcohols in a food. For example, if a food has 5 or more grams of fiber per serving, you can subtract half the amount of fiber from the total number of carb grams. A food that has 30 grams of carbs and 8 grams of fiber would be counted as 26 grams of carbs. If you use a rapid-acting insulin, you may want to consider sugar alcohols if there are more than 5 grams of them in the food. Divide the number of sugar alcohols in half. Then subtract that number from the total carb count.
• Exercise affects blood sugar. It allows you to use less insulin than you would if you did not exercise. Keep in mind that timing makes a difference. If you exercise within 1 hour of a meal, your body may need less insulin for that meal than it would if you exercised 3 hours after the meal.

When you keep track of what you eat and you test your blood sugar after meals and exercise, you can figure out what effect protein, fat, fiber, and exercise have on the amount of insulin you need.

To count carbs and eat a balanced diet:

• Talk with a registered dietitian. He or she can help you plan how many carbs to include in each meal and snack. This includes sweets.
• Measure your food portions. You won’t always have to measure your food. But it may help when you are first learning what makes up a standard portion.
• Count either grams or servings of carbs.
• Eat standard portions of foods that have protein. Foods that have protein (such as beans, eggs, meat, and cheese) are a key part of a balanced diet.
• Limit saturated fats. A balanced diet includes a limited amount of healthy fat. Talk with a registered dietitian about how much fat you need in your diet.

Know your daily amount

Your daily amount depends on several things—your weight, how active you are, what diabetes medicines you take, and what your goals are for your blood sugar levels. A registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator will help you plan how much carbohydrate to include in each meal and snack.

For most adults, a guideline for the daily amount of carbohydrate is:

• 45 to 60 grams at each meal. That’s about the same as 3 to 4 carbohydrate servings.
• 15 to 20 grams at each snack. That’s about the same as 1 carbohydrate serving.

Other helpful ideas

• Read food labels for carb amounts. Be aware of the serving size on the package.
• Check your blood sugar level. If you do this before and 1 hour after a meal, you will be able to see how the food you eat affects your blood sugar.
• Record what you eat and your blood sugar results in a food record. You can review your food record each time you visit your registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator. And you can review it anytime you think your meal plan needs adjusting.
• Get more help. The American Diabetes Association offers booklets to help people learn how to count carbs in their diet. These booklets can also teach you how to measure and weigh food and to read food labels. But you will still need to talk with a registered dietitian to make a plan that fits your needs.

References

Other Works Consulted

• American Diabetes Association (2013). Nutrition therapy recommendations for the management of adults with diabetes. Diabetes Care, 36(11): 3821–3842. DOI: 10.2337/dc13-2042. Accessed December 5, 2013.
• Campbell AP, Beaser RS (2010). Medical nutrition therapy. In RS Beaser, ed., Joslin’s Diabetes Deskbook: A Guide for Primary Care Providers, 2nd ed., pp. 91–136. Boston: Joslin Diabetes Center.
• Franz MJ (2012). Medical nutrition therapy for diabetes mellitus and hypoglycemia of nondiabetic origin. In LK Mahan et al., eds., Krause’s Food and the Nutrition Care Process, 13th ed., pp. 675–710. St Louis: Saunders.

Credits

Current as of:
August 31, 2020

Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:
E. Gregory Thompson MD – Internal Medicine
Kathleen Romito MD – Family Medicine
Adam Husney MD – Family Medicine
Rhonda O’Brien MS, RD, CDE – Certified Diabetes Educator
Colleen O’Connor PhD, RD – Registered Dietitian

Current as of: August 31, 2020

Author:
Healthwise Staff

Medical Review:E. Gregory Thompson MD – Internal Medicine & Kathleen Romito MD – Family Medicine & Adam Husney MD – Family Medicine & Rhonda O’Brien MS, RD, CDE – Certified Diabetes Educator & Colleen O’Connor PhD, RD – Registered Dietitian

How Many Carbs Should Someone With Diabetes Eat?

If you have diabetes, the number of carbs you should eat depends on several factors.

Image Credit: courtneyk/iStock/GettyImages

Between your doctor, other healthcare providers and information you see online, it’s possible you’ve heard some conflicting information about a key concern: How many carbs should someone with diabetes eat? The short answer is that it depends on several unique factors.

​Read more:​ Why This Dietitian Wants You to Stop Counting Carbs and Start Tracking Net Carbs Instead

Even for people with diabetes, carbs play a role in the body’s proper functioning. They break down into glucose, which is your main source of energy, according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

However, large amounts of carbs (especially the wrong ones) in the diet can be a problem for people with type 2 diabetes, as they are the type of food that increases your blood sugar level the most, the ADA says. So, it may be necessary to change how many and what types of carbs you eat to keep your blood sugar under control.

According to the National Institute on Aging, because your body can create energy from fat and protein as well, restricting carbs in your diet doesn’t mean that you’ll have less energy.

Many people with type 2 diabetes are told to reduce their carb intake to help improve their blood sugar levels, although how much you personally should restrict your intake depends on a number of factors, including your age, weight, gender and blood sugar levels, Julie Cunningham, RDN, CDCES, a private practice dietitian and certified diabetes care and education specialist in Hendersonville, North Carolina, says.

“The number of carbs a person needs varies greatly depending on activity level,” Cunningham says. “Some people will need as little as 30 grams of carb per meal, and other, very active people might need 75 grams of carb or more at each meal.” Working with your diabetes doctor or a diabetes educator can help you establish the right daily number for your exact needs.

Many healthcare providers recommend the consistent carbohydrate diet. This style of eating focuses less on how many carbs you eat over a day and more on spreading out your carbs evenly throughout the day to prevent blood sugar highs and lows. “Counting carbs by the meal and not by the day is key,” Cunningham says. “You want to keep your carb intake on an even keel throughout the day, rather than saving up all your carbs and eating them in one large meal — that would cause a big spike in your blood sugar.”

Alternatively, the extremely low-carb, high-fat ketogenic diet (less than 50 grams of carbs per day) shows promise for diabetes, according to a report in the September 2018 issue of ​Expert Review of Endocrinology & Metabolism​. On this diet, your body shifts from burning glucose as its main fuel to burning fats, and because your carb intake is drastically reduced, this can significantly improve your blood sugar.

In fact, some healthcare providers now recommend the keto diet for people who have trouble controlling their blood sugar levels. However, because it’s restrictive, speak to your healthcare provider before starting it, especially if you’re taking insulin or medications to lower your blood sugar.

Regardless of amount, the type of carbs you eat matters when you have diabetes, according to the ADA. Whole, less-processed carbs are best, especially those that have fiber, protein and/or fat, which help to reduce the effect they have on your blood sugar level. These include:

• Fruits.
• Vegetables.
• Nuts.
• Seeds.
• Legumes (all types of beans, lentils
  and dry split peas).
• Whole grains and breads and pasta
  made from them.

But the ADA cautions that the starchy foods on this list — whole grains, legumes and starchy veggies like potatoes — should only make up one quarter of your plate at meals. Combining these carbs with other food groups can help keep you more even.

What you want to avoid most of the time are refined grains like white bread and pasta, cookies and cakes, and other low-nutrient, high-sugar foods that have lost fiber and many nutrients during processing. They can cause your blood sugar levels to spike quickly, according to the ADA. Think of fruit juices and sodas as liquid sugar — these beverages also rapidly increase blood sugar levels and should be avoided, too.

​Read more:​ Diabetes and Meal Planning: Does Eating Protein With Carbs Help Blood Sugar?

90,000 Bread units table for type 2 diabetics: calculating XE in foods

With diabetes mellitus of 2 and 1 types, it is important to observe the correct diet. Patients should be most attentive to the balance between the nutrients that make up a food product that enter their body.

Particular attention is paid to carbohydrates, since they, if they enter the stomach, induce the production of glucose, that is, they increase the amount of glucose (this should be taken into account for patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus) and stimulate the production of insulin (which is important for patients with diabetes mellitus form 2).Thus, their consumption is recommended to be reduced, and their ingestion into the stomach should be uniform throughout the day.

Main characteristics

Bread unit in diabetes is precisely what allows you to determine the amount of carbohydrates in food. To better understand what a unit of bread is, it is worth giving an example. For example, for chocolate, their content is approximately equal to 5 XE per bar. At the same time, 65 g of milk ice cream is one XE. Conventionally, exactly one heh is contained in one piece of white bread, weighing 20 g.

That is, the volume or weight of carbohydrates contained in 20 g of wheat bread is equal to 1 XE. In grams, this is about 12. But this is the translation of XE for Russia. In the United States, this unit refers to 15 carbohydrates. This makes the units of bread in diabetes not the easiest system for calculating carbohydrate intake.

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Disadvantages of the calculation system

Calculation of bread units in diabetes mellitus is an inconvenient and unpopular, and most importantly, unreliable method of diet regulation.This is due to the following factors:

• The table of bread units for diabetics can vary significantly from country to country. This is because there is a difference in how many carbohydrates to take for 1 XE in a particular country (from 10 to 15 grams). For the same reason, the XE table may differ from one author to another. As a result, an error may appear in the calculations, which will lead to unpleasant consequences for health;
• On the packaging of products, the content of the constituents is indicated in grams (the discussed indicator is extremely rare and mainly only on specialized diabetic food).It is inconvenient to translate them into XE for counting and there is a high probability of making a mistake;
• Calculated in these terms, the number of XEs required per day will be very low, making it almost impossible to accurately calculate the dosage of insulin. If this does not interfere too much with type 2 diabetes, then with type 1 diabetes it will create inconvenience.

That is, before using it, you will first have to find out how many bread units are contained in a portion, then calculate the insulin.And with all this, the probability of error is still quite high. Therefore, many patients refuse such a system, and doctors do not recommend it for use.

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Consumption rate

For type 2 (and in some cases, type 1) diabetics, a low-carb diet is recommended to reduce the release of glucose into the blood. Reducing the consumption of these components will lead to the fact that weight will decrease (if necessary), insulin levels will also fall, and diabetes mellitus will be compensated.

With such a diet, the calculation is most often carried out in grams and is 25 – 30 g of carbohydrates per day for type 1 and type 1 diabetes. This corresponds to about 2 – 2.5 xe per day for diabetes mellitus. Moreover, this amount of carbohydrates should be consumed in combination with an increased dosage of proteins and, to a lesser extent, fats.

It is important to remember that the intake of carbohydrates should be uniform. For each meal, about 0.5 – 0.8 XE or 6 – 8 g. There is nothing complicated in how to correctly calculate this indicator in foods.Look at the packaging, there is always a table of carbohydrates in products, which also indicates the content of proteins and fats. Correct this number for the weight of the product. Divide the number by 12. The result is the amount of XE.

The second important question is how to calculate the amount of insulin based on these data. The use of one XE without the introduction of any antihyperglycemic drug increases the level of glucose in the body by an average of 1.7 – 2 mm / l. Based on this, determine the dose of insulin.

– FOOTNOTE –

From the above, it can be seen that the calculation of XE for insulin injection is rather complicated. It is much easier to calculate this figure per gram.

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Tables of contents XE

The average XE content of some of the most popular products has already been calculated. They are also necessary because not all food is sold in a package. The table of bread units, taking into account that 1 XE is equal to 12 g, is given below. They are developed by the Endocrinological Research Centers (ESC) in accordance with Russian enumeration standards.

Table 1

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Easy digestible carbohydrates

In type 2 diabetes, these foods should be completely eliminated.With 1 form of development of the disease, they can be used, but only in the case of a real danger of hypoglycemia.

Table 2

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Drinks

There is some difficulty in how to count the units in this case.Cups and glasses have volumes from 150 to 350 ml and it is not always indicated on the dishes. In any case, if diabetes is not compensated enough, it is better to refuse juices (this rule applies to all types of diabetes mellitus).

Table 3

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Fruit

All types of diabetes also require the exclusion of fruits. They are rich in sugars and easily digestible carbohydrates.

Table 4

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Vegetables

Since you can consume only 2 – 2.5 units in case of diabetes, vegetables that are not rich in carbohydrates are recommended for consumption so that the amount of food that covers the diabetic’s daily need for XE is sufficient.

Table 5

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Dairy products

When consuming dairy products, in addition to carbohydrates, the fat content should also be calculated.In the second form of the development of the disease, only fat-free products can be consumed.

Table 6

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Flour and cereal products

In diabetes mellitus, the table above is of great importance.To find out with its help, how much XE is in the product that the patient uses, it must be weighed. Electronic scales of high precision will help to carry out accurate counting of bread units and are indispensable for diabetics.

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90,000 Diabetics: Why the Number of Diabetic Children Is Rising | Articles

At the All-Russian online forum “About food”, dedicated to the organization of school meals, the President’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights Anna Kuznetsova said that the number of children suffering from diabetes is increasing.”According to the data of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, provided at our request, the number of children suffering from diabetes mellitus is growing every year “, – said the children’s ombudsman. Therefore, including for such children, a systematic approach to the organization of specialized meals in schools is needed. Last year, this category of schoolchildren was not provided with food at all in 11 regions of Russia. Izvestia asked the experts about the reasons for the increase in the number of cases and why, about the prevention of morbidity and the ideal breakfast for a child.

Just like adults

According to the children’s endocrinologist, pediatrician, diabetologist Anna Gavrilova, you need to figure out what type of diabetes growth is meant.

“ Type 1 diabetes mellitus is a disease caused by autoimmune damage to the pancreas. Type 2 diabetes is associated with improper diet, excess weight and the formation of insulin resistance, when the pancreas cannot cope with the huge amount of carbohydrates that a child consumes , ”the doctor explains to Izvestia.

It is generally accepted that type 1 diabetes (it is also called insulin-dependent, “diabetes of the young”) is just characteristic of children and adolescents. Type 2, which is many times more common (insulin-independent), is typical for adults. But everything is changing. According to Anna Gavrilova, recently, the growth and percentage of children with type 2 diabetes mellitus has significantly increased . This trend is also noted by the president of the Russian Diabetes Association, doctor-diabetologist Mikhail Bogomolov.

“In more than 3500 years of observation of diabetes mellitus, starting with the Ebers papyrus, type 2 diabetes has not occurred in childhood. But since 2000, the number of detected cases of childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus in children has increased , ”Mikhail Bogomolov said in an interview with Izvestia. According to him, the incidence of type 1 diabetes mellitus is relatively stable – there is a slight increase, but not the same as in type 2.

Photo: TASS / Alexander Ryumin

In 2019, according to the Ministry of Health of Russia, there were about 42 thousand people in the country.children with diabetes. Izvestia contacted the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation with a request to clarify what data Anna Kuznetsova had in mind, what were the reasons for the growth, but at the time of publication they did not receive an answer. By the way, a decline in the incidence rate is unlikely to be observed in the near future. Especially after the pandemic.

“ Quarantine is a good platform for children to stay at home, decrease their physical activity, increase the number of meals, gain excess weight and thus provoke the development of type 2 diabetes ,” says Anna Gavrilova.

Mikhail Bogomolov notes that after the outbreak of coronavirus, international organizations record an outbreak of obesity: “It always brings with it an outbreak of type 2 diabetes. Obesity is a major risk factor . ”

Grandma’s joy

Speaking about the causes of type 1 diabetes, experts first of all call a genetic predisposition to autoimmune diseases, and little is known about it. Someone considers the increase in morbidity to be a consequence of the deterioration of the environmental situation.They also talk about epigenetics (from the Greek “epi” – “over”, study of changes in gene activity under the influence of mechanisms that do not affect the primary structure of DNA) and nutritional epigenetics.

“ The concept is that the nutrition of the mother before pregnancy, during pregnancy and the nutrition of the child in the first year of life affects his health throughout the rest of his life , – says Mikhail Bogomolov. – Genes are like a book: on which page it opens (on a healthy or on a sick) depends on external factors . Manufacturers’ unions in many countries introduce the concept of “epigenetically beneficial product”. This product contains ingredients that help prevent the transmission of diseases to future generations. ”

The main causes of type 2 diabetes mellitus are decreased physical activity, unhealthy diet: the predominance of a large amount of carbohydrates, refined foods (chocolates, cookies, and so on) in the diet.

“ What is the fault of the parents? The fact that they do not control the amount of sugar and carbohydrates that children consume.Everything allows him – the child eats a lot of sweets, respectively, the weight increases, nutrition is not balanced , ”says Anna Gavrilova.

Photo: Global Look Press / West Coast Surfer

Nutritionist, endocrinologist Ekaterina Ivannikova notes that it is in the family that we get a food habit. And if we solve the problem of the same obesity as a risk factor, then the whole family. “ It shouldn’t be like this: the parents do not give the child something to eat, but at the same time they eat it themselves ,” the doctor said in an interview with Izvestia.

“ The child is forced to finish eating to the last, he is praised and forms in him such a pattern as“ I did something well, I’m great, so what am I taking? A pie off the shelf. ” Deserved. Then the child pulls this “deserved” into adulthood, and what does he do if he doesn’t get enough sleep, gets nervous, wants to please himself somehow? It goes and seizes , – notes Ekaterina Ivannikova. – Our dear and beloved grandmothers are trying to fatten their grandchildren. I often see how food is literally stuffed into a child: “No, you have to finish eating to the last!” There’s a very fine line here.A child under 3-4 years of age develops a habit of eating and the amount of food required for this. When food is ingested in a large volume, the stomach stretches: the more food is placed in it, the larger it becomes. It is better to eat a little, but often than all at one time “.

The specialist explains that childhood obesity has been talked about in the last 50-60 years: in the post-war period, people did not have the opportunity to eat well, and the manufacturers had a message – to feed more of the population with a small amount of food.

“ Hence sugar, thermally processed foods – the same muesli or breakfast cereals carry a very heavy load on the pancreas, and thus a child gets used to eating a fairly large amount of fast carbohydrates from childhood. Instead of giving a long-lasting feeling of fullness, such carbohydrates further stimulate hunger , explains Ekaterina Ivannikova. – The child constantly wants to eat, requires something sweet, rich taste. Although for us the most optimal type of dessert is fruits and berries. “

Who would suggest

“ Leaving school, a girl knows about nanoparticles, solves differential equations, but does not know how to buy a rational set of food products for a family of three in a regular store. There are no such skills. Accordingly, the skills of social inheritance are produced , – Mikhail Bogomolov laments. – For example, by the age of 25 is already, to put it mildly, overweight, because my mother cooked dumplings and threw a pack of butter into the pan. My daughter reproduces this, and then says that “we have excess weight in our family – is hereditary”. And that’s the problem. Doctors are aware of it, but when a polyclinic doctor in a state clinic has 12 minutes for an appointment and he has to fill in eight A4 documents, then when and what explanation can he give? And there are few children’s endocrinologists at all. ”

Photo: RIA Novosti / Vitaly Ankov

The President of the Russian Diabetes Association describes in theory a food labeling system that could help a competent approach to nutrition and food selection.

“ A man walks with a phone that reads barcodes: you can take one pack of this product for a week, but this one can take two. And when a person goes through the cash register, he is not only shown what and how much he bought, but also given a breakdown of fats, proteins, carbohydrates and kilocalories. Technically, it’s easy to do , says Bogomolov. – But, as they explained to me, any changes in cash registers are controlled not only by the tax service, but also by the Federal Security Service.The alignments are extremely complex. If information about what people eat becomes public, it may have some negative consequences. ”

Alarm bell

While there is no prevention of type 1 diabetes mellitus, unlike type 2 diabetes. The main thing is to reveal it in time. What symptoms will the disease give out? In one of the articles, the chief freelance pediatric endocrinologist, chief physician of the Morozovskaya DGKB of the Moscow City Health Department, Doctor of Medical Sciences Elena Petryaykina named the following signs that need to be paid attention to: a child suddenly loses weight, while his appetite is good, even too much; complaints of weakness, the child became lethargic; drinks a lot and goes to the toilet too often, even at night; complaints of abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting .

Elena Petryaykina notes that children with such symptoms are often taken to the infectious diseases hospital, where it turns out that this is how diabetes manifests itself. Therefore, with the slightest doubt, it is better to pass the analysis.

Speaking of type 2 diabetes mellitus, you need to pay attention to the other extreme – overweight.

Photo: Depositphotos

“ Parents need to sound the alarm when they notice that their child is overweight. And the sooner the better. Because when the excess weight is significant, leaves a certain imprint on the analyzes, on the physiology of the body, it is often too late to sound the alarm, – notes the children’s endocrinologist Anna Gavrilova. – Approximately half of patients come with excess weight and precisely in order to establish the endocrine causes of excess weight. While the true reasons lie in the wrong diet and in the wrong lifestyle “.

Ekaterina Ivannikova notes that if a child or adolescent is overweight, it is imperative to consult a doctor and more than one.

“As a rule, this is a therapist, endocrinologist, and it is obligatory to consult an exercise therapy doctor or a rehabilitation therapist in order to select individual physical exercises. The question of restraint of your body also arises – it makes sense to talk with a psychologist. Well, it all starts with the family. ”

Eggs and porridge – our food

How would a normal breakfast for a healthy child look like? Anna Gavrilova lists the ingredients: whole grain cereals (buckwheat, millet, bulgur), oatmeal plus an egg, vegetables or fruit.Porridge can be milk-based, but not zero-fat .

“ For a child with diabetes, the correct breakfast will look about the same, the only thing that he will control is the amount of carbohydrates. Accordingly, if the weight is large, then the amount of carbohydrates should be made smaller, and instead of one egg, give two, because the egg is protein ”.

According to the doctor, to prevent type 2 diabetes, the child should eat less refined carbohydrates.

Photo: Depositphotos

“ Do not buy cereals, juices, cookies, compotes, buns, cakes, etc. Limit these products as much as possible and make sure that the child has physical activity on the street, and not play with gadgets , ”notes Anna Gavrilova.

For dinner, for example, experts recommend classic protein: fish, seafood, chicken, turkey, beef, veal, rabbit – stew, boil, bake. Vegetables, a side dish of porridge or potatoes, but not more than 150 g of a ready-made side dish.

“ Plus it is very important for children, as well as for adults, to follow the daily routine, go to bed at the same time – until 22:00. Get enough sleep and, of course, minimize psycho-emotional stress. Stresses and so on also make a negative contribution, ”says Ekaterina Ivannikova.

Signs of diabetes mellitus in the News section on the website of OOKB # 2

Added on: November 14, 2016

November 14 – World Diabetes Day.

HOW TO SAVE YOURSELF FROM DEVELOPMENT OF DIABETES

It is possible to live with the diagnosis “ diabetes mellitus ”.

Therefore, it is important to know the measures to prevent its development. And even if the person is already sick, complications can be avoided or minimized.
And no one can help you with this, except yourself. There is always a choice: live a full life with some restrictions or do nothing and wait until the disease destroys the body, not knowing whether tomorrow will come for you.

The importance of preventive measures is very high, because diabetes leads to very serious disabling complications. For your decision, here is an incomplete list of complications of diabetes.
• Impaired memory and other brain functions, stroke.
• Sexual dysfunction. In men – sexual weakness and impotence, in women – menstrual irregularities and infertility.
• Sharp deterioration of vision up to blindness.
• Diseases of the teeth and oral cavity – periodontal disease, stomatitis, tooth loss.
• Fatty hepatosis with impairment of all liver functions.
• Damage to peripheral nerves with loss of pain and temperature sensitivity.
• Violation of the trophism of the skin and mucous membranes, the formation of neurotrophic ulcers, etc.
• Loss of elasticity of the vessels with impaired blood supply to all organs.
• From the side of the heart – atherosclerosis, arrhythmias, myocardiopathy, ischemic heart disease.
• Persistent deformity of the joints of the hands and feet.
• Decreased immunity with the development of purulent complications, furunculosis.
• Renal failure.
• Eventually, gangrene may develop, leading to amputation of the limbs.

Unfortunately, there are no preventive measures to prevent type 1 diabetes mellitus.
However, type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed in those who are at increased risk of developing the disease. After all, if you do not take into account the hereditary factor, then the person himself often becomes the culprit for the appearance of diabetes.

This is both a sedentary lifestyle, and the use of large amounts of “bad” carbohydrates, which lead to overweight and obesity.And obesity is the risk factor for type 2 diabetes. body tissues become insensitive to insulin. If you are at risk and have had diabetes in your family, then prevention should begin from childhood. Parents should also keep this in mind.

The list of these measures is simple:
1. By all means, reduce weight by changing your diet.
2. Increase physical activity.
3. Get rid of bad habits, if you have any (smoking, alcohol).
These measures, applied over 5 years, reduce the risk of diabetes mellitus by almost 70%.

What needs to be changed in nutrition.
Fat storage is not influenced by the excess of calories from food, as by the nature of these foods. As you know, diabetes prevention starts in the kitchen. Therefore, it is important to adhere to the following recommendations.
• Limit your intake of highly digestible carbohydrates with a high glycemic index — sugar, sweets, white bread, baked goods, honey, sugary drinks, especially soda, beer.The glycemic index measures the rate at which carbohydrates are transferred from food to the bloodstream and converted into glucose. A high GI denotes a high rate of absorption and, accordingly, these are easily digestible carbohydrates (“bad”). Low GI corresponds to slow absorption – these are complex carbohydrates (“good”).

• If you want something sweet, use sweeteners (ideally stevia), replace chocolates with marmalade or marshmallows, etc.

• Eat foods with complex carbohydrates.Glucose will slowly enter the bloodstream, and the pancreas will have time to produce insulin. These are products made from wholemeal flour, rice, vegetables, cereals (buckwheat, yachka, oatmeal), potatoes, bran and everything that contains a lot of fiber, because it slows down the absorption of carbohydrates in the digestive tract.

• Eat as many fresh vegetables and fruits as possible, given their glycemic index (for example, bananas, apricots and raisins have high values).

• Limit the consumption of animal fats, replacing them with vegetable ones.

• Give preference to lean meat and remove skin from poultry.

• Eat boiled or baked foods. Use vegetable fat for frying.

• There are a number of particularly beneficial foods for diabetes: sauerkraut and blueberries, beans, as they lower blood sugar levels, promote insulin secretion and normalize pancreatic function. It is very useful to use spinach and celery, onions and garlic, vegetable juices in the diet.

• More often substitute chicory for coffee, and green tea for black tea.

• It is mandatory to take vitamin C, B vitamins, chromium and zinc.

• Eat at least 5 times a day in small portions, so as not to load the pancreas at the same time.

• Do not starve, as hunger lowers blood sugar.

• Before you eat, consider if you are hungry. This allows you to control unconscious overeating.

• Eat slowly and never try to finish everything on your plate; food may be more than necessary.

• Do not eat to cheer up.

• Try to avoid tasting food as often as you cook.

• If you feel hungry, it is recommended that you first eat something low in calories, such as a cucumber, apple, cabbage salad, or tea with lemon.
• Do not go to the store when you are hungry.

Approximate diet for the prevention of diabetes and obesity.
Breakfast should be a compulsory meal and at the same time complete, for example:

• Oatmeal cooked in skim milk with apples and cinnamon.

• Low fat yogurt.

• Low fat cheese.

• Cottage cheese no more than 5% fat.

• Coffee or tea with wholemeal croutons.
Lunch should include:

• Vegetable salad dressed with vegetable oil or 10% sour cream.

• Soup with vegetable broth.

• Boiled or baked meat or fish.

• Garnish – barley, oatmeal, buckwheat porridge or boiled potatoes.

• Bread made from wholemeal flour or with bran.

• Fruit drink or compote. It is better to dilute juices by a third with water.

Dinner should be no later than 2 hours before bedtime, and should provide no more than 20% of the daily calorie intake.

For example:

• Vegetable stew or vinaigrette.

• Boiled rice with vegetables.

• Buckwheat with a small piece of fish or meat.

• Toast with diet cheese.

• Green tea with dried fruits (apples, pineapple, pear, prunes).

Intermediate meals – fruits, berries, a glass of milk or vegetable dishes.
While consuming these products, still observe the measure: 1-2 apples, but not 1 kg, 50 g of cheese, not 200 g, but 50, 150 – 200 g of potatoes, not 1 kg.

For the prevention of diabetes you can use medicinal plants that have a hypoglycemic effect. Unlike synthetic drugs, they not only lower glucose levels, but also have a healing effect on all cells and tissues of the body, thus allowing to delay the development of diabetes and minimize its complications.The use of natural remedies in our time of general chemistry has become especially relevant.

Garcinia, blueberries, mountain ash, elderberry, burdock, elecampane root, ginseng, walnut leaves, wild strawberries, etc. reduce blood sugar.

Remember that being overweight and obese are the consequences of consuming a lot of carbohydrates with a high glycemic index (white sugar, flour, confectionery) at the same time as consuming fat.

However, it is not advisable to reduce the caloric content of the daily diet below 1200 kcal for women and 1500 kcal for men, i.e.because in this case it will be difficult to provide the required amount of proteins, fats, carbohydrates and microelements.

If it is necessary to reduce weight, it is important to limit the amount of fat in food, since their calorie content is higher than that of proteins and carbohydrates (9 kcal per 1 g), and they rather accumulate in the body in the form of subcutaneous fat than calories from proteins and carbohydrates. It is also necessary to limit the use of mayonnaise, vegetable and butter oils, fatty meat and fish, nuts, seeds, and consume low-fat dairy products.

Lifestyle changes.
• You need to quit smoking and drinking alcohol. Alcohol is a high-calorie food that contributes to the accumulation of abdominal fat.
• Lead an active lifestyle. Try to move more in any situation. It is better to walk up the stairs than take the elevator. Good work at the summer cottage, visiting parks, exhibitions, museums.
• Provide regular exercise to reduce glucose tolerance and weight loss, especially visceral (internal) fat.To do this, you need to set aside 30 minutes a day for exercise. This can include walking at least 4 km, swimming, playing tennis or cycling. Brisk walking is the best cure for obesity.

• Maintain constant control over blood sugar and blood pressure levels.

• Monitor your body mass index (BMI). It is calculated as follows: weight in kg. divided by height in meters squared.