Article by Josh Franke

Anyone suffering with diabetes will know that controlling your blood sugar within the ‘safety’ levels admissible to your doctor or diabetic clinic is a daily battle.

I am a Type 1 diabetic who needs to inject insulin 4 or 5 times and day and do constant blood tests. You would think I would have got the whole thing worked out perfectly. But trying to manage blood sugar levels can be frustrating, puzzling and sometimes quite alarming. Just when you think you get the idea how your body reacts with certain carbohydrate intake, and your blood tests are good ( between 4-7 mmol/L UK measurement), abruptly the readings soar and you find it impossible to understand why.

Sometimes even a slow-release carbohydrate breakfast such as porridge can give me a shock reading of 14 in a blood test. Then another day the reading is normal. Of course, it is not only carbohydrate-laiden food that make you blood sugar readings spike upwards. Stress also plays a part, so getting worked up because a reading is too high will often make it worse.

I did find that drinking a cup of tea with milk and no sugar showed a reading of 12, possibly because of the lactose in the milk. I am quite fond of my cup of tea but realised that several cups a day would raise my blood sugar too high and at the same time give me very little by way of nutritional value.

Now I drink a lot of water either cold filtered water or hot boiled water with a squeeze of lemon. I feel this is a positive step on all counts as we are told we should drink at least 4 litres of water a day. If we go out to a pub or restaurant I order a diet tonic water with ice and lemon, or a low-calorie ginger beer, rather than wine. I don not miss alchohol at all.

I do allow myself the odd cake or biscuit and have found it very hard to cut out potatoes completely from my daily meal. The thing with potatoes, when including them with a meal, is to keep them simple. This means not having chips, or creamed potato which is very quick release carbohydrate when mashed up with butter and milk. I have always loved food, but because of the effects diabetes could have on my general health, I have to discipline myself regarding diet.

Managing blood sugar level is so important. I decided to cut out a high amount of bread, cakes, sweets and biscuits, and all other foods packed with sugar. I try to keep my carbohydrate intake to under 200 a day. Some people strive for a much lower target. But including too too little carbohydrate in the daily diet can be harmful. We require carbs for energy. It is a case of mindful food management.

Reading the info on food packaging labels is essential and a real eye opener! For example there are 65 carbs in just one tin of baked beans.In fact if you want to maintain good blood sugar levels I’ve found it’s easier to avoid processed foods altogether. Better to increase your intake of vegetables and low carbohydrate foods & fruits.

The following vegetables are definitely good, filling and nutritious: Runner beans, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, brussels sprouts,broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, tomatoes, courgettes, aubergines, swede, squashes, celeriac, and green salads.

Whilst we are all advised to take 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day – fruit can be very high in sugars. Take your pick from rhubarb, grapefruit, raspberries, loganberries, strawberries, blueberries, all of which are low on the Glycemic Index. Don’t sprinkle them with sugar! Add nuts and seeds to your diet, but only in small amounts.

Your diet should also include a portion of pasta, rice or boiled potatoes which are slow-release carbohydrates.

Regarding protein foods, which should make up about 20% of your daily diet, buy lean meat, poultry, game and fish. Reconstituted food products such as sausages should be bought sparingly – if at all. Put the deep-fat fryer to the back of the cupboard and adjust your saturated fat intakeby cutting off any unessential fat on meat. There are benefits to cooking with olive and nut oils, as these unsaturated fats are good for you. Plenty of oily and white fish such as salmon, haddock, tuna, swordfish, mackerel & kipper are all excellent nutritious foods.

Now and again allow yourself a small treat – although after a while you will find that you do not hanker after the sweet carbohydrate-laden foods. By changing your diet, as described, you will lower your cholesterol levels and keep under control your blood sugar. Another benfit will be some natural weight loss and better energy.

About the Author

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Tagged with: blood • Controlling • Diabetes • diet • levels • sugar

Filed under: Normal Blood Sugar Levels

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