Healthy Eating – diabetescare

Healthy Eating

General guidance on a healthy diet will include the following:

Increase consumption of a low Glycemic index carbohydrate food
Increase Fiber intake (Fruits and vegetables)
Reducing intake of saturated fatty acids
Reducing Sugar intake
Reducing Salt

Diet Control (Very Low Calorie Diet)

Very low calorie diet is defined as the one with a calorie intake of 1,000 or less. The recommended calorie intake for adults is 2,000 calories for women and 2,500 for men.

A very low calorie diet includes replacing conventional foods with diet milkshakes, soups or bars.

Recommendations: A very low calorie diet should not be maintained as longer than 12 weeks as it will lead to complications like heart problems.

Low Carb diet

Carbohydrate is the nutrient which plays a great role in raising blood glucose levels and require sufficient amount of insulin to be secreted by the pancreas. Carbohydrate is broken down into Glucose so as to provide energy to the body. Following brackets must be kept in mind for a Low Carbohydrate diet

Low Carbohydrate diet: Under 130g of Carbs

Moderate Carbohydrate diet: 130 to 225g of carbs

Very-low carbohydrate: under 30g of carbs (also known as ketogenic)

Intermittent Fasting

This is also called as the 5:2 approach, involves eating regularly five days a week. For the rest of two days, you limit yourself to one 500-600 calorie meal.

Idea behind the Intermittent Fasting

The science behind the intermittent fasting is that short periods of fasting prompt the body to repair damage but not enter a starvation mode of conserving energy.

Benefits of the 5:2 diet

Clinical studies have shown that the benefits of intermittent fasting are more or less similar to that of a calorie restricted diet

Most commonly reported are as follows:

Weight loss
Reduced levels of Triglycerides and LDL cholesterol
Decrease in blood pressure
A reduction in insulin resistance

Studies have shown that intermittent fasting also decreases the risk of Nerve disorders, Alzheimer’s disease and cancer.

Effects of Intermittent Fasting on Type 2 Diabetes

Intermittent fasting shows solid evidence that it can increase insulin sensitivity for people having BMI 25 or above. On fasting days, the body will be using stored energy in the form of glycogen which ultimately reduces weight and improves blood glucose levels and cholesterol levels.

People taking insulin or sulfonylureas are at high risk of developing hypoglycemia if they practice intermittent fasting so doctor’s advice would always play a key role.