Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common diseases in the world. Despite all the complexity, there are methods that can make a person's life a lot easier. First of all, you need to follow a certain diet.
If you stick to a properly prescribed diet, diabetes in no way affects your general well-being and also decreases the likelihood of various types of complications including heart attack, stroke, etc.
Types of Diets
Diet in diabetes is determined depending on the type of disease itself and the age category. So there are general principles for building a proper diet that are adjusted based on the individual indicators of the human body.
Since it is impossible to cure the disease, a specific menu is assigned to reduce the risk. Eating right at a clearly defined time is important for:
- Reducing the risk of chronic and acute complications,
- Maintaining good health and relatively strong immunity,
- Prevent or lose weight gain
- keep blood sugar levels within acceptable limits.
There are two types of diabetes. In other words, the first is called insulin dependent. Its development is linked to the damage and death of cells in the pancreas that are responsible for the production of insulin.
With this, diet is aimed at maintaining the process of insulin therapy and, rather, is an additional method of controlling the disease. Its principles are similar to those that healthy people follow in order to achieve a good figure and well-being.
The main difference is that the amount of carbohydrates needs to be calculated. Since the treatment of type 1 diabetes is the use of insulin, you need to monitor the percentage of your daily diet that contains carbohydrates. As a rule, it should not be more than 60%.
Since type 2 diabetes occurs in overweight people, even independently of insulin, nutrition is the top priority. In the initial stages of the disease or mild, the aim is to get rid of excess weight rationally.
When diabetes of this type reaches moderate or even severe form, drugs to lower blood sugar or insulin are prescribed in addition to the diet. It is worth noting that in such cases, you also need to pay attention to physical activity. Thanks to them, a problem such as obesity can be solved without surgery.
The most popular diets are the so-called 8 and 9 tables. The eighth nutrition table is for people who are overweight or prone to overweight. The ninth is taken as the basis for establishing the diet for diabetics.
Diet number 9 for diabetes
Diet No. 9 is considered curative and is prescribed to normalize metabolism (carbohydrates). It is also said to prevent disorders related to fat metabolism. Its calorie content should not exceed 2500 kcal.
Such a diet is characterized as follows:
- the calorie content should be reduced by consuming easily digestible animal fats and carbohydrates (excluding sweets and sugar).
- partial reduction or complete elimination of cholesterol and salt,
- consume more vitamins and fiber,
- the protein content should be in the normal range.
All healthy diets, including the ninth, are based on proper food intake. You need to eat often and in small portions. In total, the frequency should be 5 or 6 times a day.
Fried or steamed dishes should be eaten as little as possible or forgotten altogether. In the first place it should be baked and cooked. It's best to design a menu for the week, as this will make it easier for you to keep track of things. The following products are particularly preferred:
- lean meat
- lean fish
- Vegetables that contain no more than 5% carbohydrates,
- Fruits (not all),
- natural drinks without sugar.
In the case of spices and eggs, their consumption should be limited. This is especially true for egg yolks. The amount of protein per day should not exceed 1. 5 pieces. In addition to the fact that sweets must be excluded from the menu for diabetes, pasta, pasta and puff pastry, pickled vegetables are also prohibited.
Bananas, dates, figs, grapes and all their derivatives should generally not be consumed. The same applies to fats such as pork, lamb and beef. To get the necessary fats, you should eat butter (not salt) and vegetable oil in moderation.
Diet number 9 is the basis for the appointment of the necessary nutrition. Depending on the personal indicators of the person with diabetes, it will be adjusted. There are different types of diets that you can combine and find the one that suits you.
What is a bread unit?
Since the right diet for diabetics is about consuming a certain amount of carbohydrates, you should know how to determine this estimated norm, which depends on how much and what foods you need to eat.
All products that contain carbohydrates have different physical properties and calories. These properties are not subject to the usual measuring method. In addition, the diet in diabetes mellitus requires increased control of one's own daily intake.
To make it easier to determine how much you need to consume this or that product and not go beyond what is allowed, nutritionists have introduced the term "bread unit". The concept is used in cases where a diabetic is prescribed insulin.
With such a unit of measure, it is much easier for a person to understand what can and cannot be eaten and drunk. He compiles his healthy diet based on personal indicators and can also replace some foods with others with carbohydrates.
Typically, a person should consume 18 to 25 such units per day. Since there should be five meals, it is logical to always distribute this amount rationally. The main dose should get into the body in the first half of the day. In order to keep track of the number of bread units consumed, you can create a daily menu.
How Many Calories Consume Per Day?
The diabetes mellitus diet requires the elimination of many foods and dishes that may previously have been included in the daily diet. However, you should not confuse foods that allow you to normalize sugar levels with those necessary to lose those extra pounds.
The aim of the diet in type 1 diabetes is precisely to correctly calculate the need for insulin. The calorie content is not that important in this case. It must be monitored so as not to gain weight.
The type 2 diabetes diet requires increased control of calorie intake as it often develops with obesity. However, it is also not worth bringing their count to fanaticism.
The number of calories per day is calculated depending on the individual indicators of the body. The diet itself should be low in carbohydrates, but it does not mean a complete lack of carbohydrates. You need to eat your fill, but it is important not to overeat.
When the question arises of what to eat with type 2 diabetes, many believe that you almost have to sit on breadcrumbs and water. This is absolutely impossible. The diet should be complete and contain vitamins and fiber.
There are several recipes for delicious, filling and at the same time healthy dishes that will not allow you to rest, but at the same time a person will be full of strength and energy. What foods should be consumed and how many calories are allowed per day should be discussed with your doctor.
Useful and unhealthy foods
Low carb diets are different. They are less strict for a healthy person than for someone diagnosed with diabetes. But they mean the same thing. They differ in the main list of products, which is divided into healthy and harmful for diabetics.
Useful
- all kinds of vegetables,
- Greens (spinach, sorrel, dill),
- Mushrooms,
- Meat and fish (lean),
- Coffee and tea,
- Mineral water.
Harmful
Moderately increasing sugar:
- Potato,
- Grain,
- Pasta, also hard types,
- Dairy products.
Sugar increasing sharply:
- Sweets,
- Honey,
- Drinks with added sugar,
- Alcohol,
- Grapes and their derivatives,
- hot and salty spices.
This product breakdown is widely recognized and is often used as the basis for developing menus for diabetes mellitus. But what is good for one may turn out to be bad for another. Since everything is relative, an individual diet is put together for each diabetic.
How to eat when you are obese
It is believed that in order to lose weight, you must follow a strict low-calorie diet. But the point is, it doesn't work. Numerous studies have shown that if you reduce the calorie content of your diet, nothing happens other than a constant feeling of hunger, fainting, nervousness and other things.
With such a diet, it will be possible to lose weight literally by a few kilograms, but if the body is characterized by elasticity and good muscles at the same time, then this is all that will leave it in the first place. Subcutaneous fat will not go anywhere, and sometimes, on the contrary, it will accumulate even more.
A protein diet involves an active intake of protein and a simultaneous reduction in the amount of fats and carbohydrates. The approach in itself isn't bad, but it also has its own nuances. Again, it is impossible to overdo it with proteins, and it is completely forbidden to exclude fats from the diet. A lack of carbohydrates leads to a loss of vital energy.
In the end, it all boils back to a low-carb diet. In itself it is necessary to lower the sugar. She's not exactly a lifesaver when it comes to losing weight, but of all the portrayed she is the best. Its merit is that all the necessary elements that are needed to maintain vital activity get into the body.
So when there are reasonable amounts of natural fats, proteins, and carbohydrates, the body doesn't need to make any deposits. The metabolism begins to work like a clock, there is no chronic hunger, the symptoms of the disease practically go away, and the person becomes more active.
Diet for Type 1 Diabetes
Maintaining a healthy body with type 1 diabetes requires the same low-carb diet. But in this case it has to be strict. The table number does not play a special role here, although diet number 9 is often used as a basis.
The problem is that even the action of insulin is very different, so it is quite difficult to normalize the indicators. That is why it is necessary to follow a certain diet. The fewer carbohydrates that enter the body, the less insulin is needed.
It goes without saying that your own diet is linked to your personal insulin dose. Therefore, when designing your menu, you need to take into account the amount of the drug. It is better to schedule this by day to make it easier to keep track of.
Diet for Type 2 Diabetes
Because type 2 diabetes is less complex than type 1 diabetes, diet is essential to losing weight and preventing it in the future. Again, a low-carbohydrate diet is recommended. Of course, this is an approximate diet that will be adjusted. Its importance lies in the normalization of glucose and insulin in the blood, as well as in the control of insulin resistance.
Some people practice taking various diet pills and treating them with folk remedies. You should forget the first one, because these drugs are pointless at best.
Folk remedies, as a rule, consist of herbal teas and decoctions. If you really understand medicinal plants, they may work out, but you shouldn't make them the basis of treatment.
Kidney failure
Against the background of the disease, kidney failure can develop. It should be understood that it is not caused by dietary protein, as many mistakenly believe, but rather by high blood sugar levels.
The active development of such a disease is suspended when the level of glucose returns to normal. Diet helps with this. Proteins aren't excluded from the diet, but you need to work with carbohydrates. Proper nutrition available to the common people can even lead to the full recovery of the kidneys.
However, when the process is taken to extremes, there is no return to healthy kidneys. In addition, in such a case, a low-carbohydrate diet can accelerate the destructive process. In order not to lead to this, you need to monitor your condition and control your diet. A table created for you will help if necessary, in which dishes and insulin doses are planned.
Other important points
Diabetes can develop at any age. In children, this can occur against the background of overeating flour products, sweets. Finding the problem in a timely manner and starting with the right solution can help you avoid complications.
In women, the disease can occur for a variety of reasons. Constant stress, copious amounts of food (mostly unhealthy foods) and a lack of exercise can lead to obesity and, as a result, to type 2 diabetes.
Very often there is a situation when the disease appeared during pregnancy. This is due to hormonal imbalances. In addition, during this period a woman can actively consume foods that can cause the development of diabetes.
As a rule, there is a less strict diet for pregnant women, which is aimed at normalizing processes in the body and partially losing weight, but at the same time not harming the fetus.
In the case of gestational diabetes or diabetes during pregnancy, a strict diet should only be discussed with a specialist. Diet should be adjusted taking into account the parallel development of the fetus. By excluding products, you can harm the unborn child.
Type 2 diabetes mellitus develops somewhat less often in men than in women. This is because they have a slightly accelerated metabolism. But junk food, alcohol addiction, and little physical activity can easily lead to such a problem.