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Diabetic Food Pyramid - An Effective Solution For
Health Problems
By
Dean Shainin
Controlling your diet can be the key to reducing the risk of
diabetes as well as improving your symptoms if you are already
affected by this disease people often refer to as “the silent
killer.”
Using a diabetic food pyramid can be an effective solution to
help improve and control your health.
The Diabetes Food Pyramid, released by the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) is composed of six food groups
(arranged according to how much you should eat from the least to the
most and based on carbohydrate and protein content):
• Fats, sweets, and alcohol
• Milk
• Meat, meat substitutes, and other proteins
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Grains, beans, and starchy vegetables
Fats, sweets, and alcohol are the one food group that diabetes
patients should avoid.
Eating healthy involves eating a wide variety of foods that
encompasses the whole diet spectrum with the help of the diabetic
food pyramid of vegetables, whole grains, fruits, non-fat dairy
products, beans, lean meats, poultry, and fish.
With food labels, it all comes down to the nutrition facts. This
is where you should start to get an idea of a diabetic food pyramid.
It’s that list of nutrition information found on the package of
foods sold in the grocery store. Reading food labels can help you
make wise choices about the foods you buy. The labels will tell you
what ingredients were used, the amount of calories, and other
pertinent information essential to a diabetes patient.
The problem with diabetes involves a certain malfunction in the
way our bodies make use of glucose in the blood. It is either there
is too much glucose in our blood because we ate too much food rich
in sugar so that the hormone responsible for regulating glucose –
insulin – is unable to cope. Or, our cells are defective so that
even though we have enough insulin to handle the job, our cells do
not respond.
In order to control the levels of glucose in the blood stream,
controlling diabetes diet is important. The intake of fats, sweets,
and alcohol and other generally “unhealthy” foods should be
minimized as mentioned and only for special treats.
As for the rest of the food groups, here are the serving sizes
recommended by the American Diabetes Association from the diabetic
food pyramid to consider for your diet.
• Meat and Meat Substitutes: 4-6 oz. per day and divided between
meals. This is equivalent to ¼ cup cottage cheese, 1 egg, 1 tbsp
peanut butter, or ½ cup tofu.
• Milk: 2-3 servings per day
• Fruit: 2-4 servings per day
• Vegetables: 3-5 servings per day
• Grains and Starches: 6-11 servings per day, equivalent to 1
slice of bread, ¼ of a bagel, or ½ of an English muffin or pita
bread.
Use this Diabetic Food Pyramid only as a guide in planning your
meals. If you want a more individualized option, consult your
dietician.
Once you have removed the tempting items from your kitchen,
replace them with stocks of foods that are better for your health
and more conducive to the success of your health plan, it will be
easier to stay on track. Keeping a good stock of fruits and
vegetables in the fridge will make it easier for you to eat them
when you crave snacks.
Dean Shainin is a successful Webmaster and publisher of
Diabetes.MyWisdomBase.com For more
articles, and valuable resources for getting effective treatment,
visit his site at:
Diabetic Food Pyramid
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