Nutrition
Careful meal planning should be an important part of your diabetes plan. Your healthcare team will help you tailor a meal plan just for you. Your plan will include foods from all 6 groups of the Food Pyramid:
Carbohydrates
Although carbohydrates are an important source of energy, they normally affect your blood sugar quickly and last for a shorter period of time. Most likely, you will need to count carbohydrates as part of your meal plan because they can affect your blood sugar radically. Some foods contain more carbohydrates than others. In general, high-carbohydrate foods are in the bread, fruit and milk groups.
Fats
As well, you'll have to try and stay away from high-fat foods, because they usually affect your blood sugar slowly and last for a longer period of time. Follow the tips for grocery shopping to help you choose low-fat or fat-free foods whenever you can.
Vegetables and Proteins
When grocery shopping, you will choose items from the vegetable and meat groups. Vegetables give you vitamins and minerals, and do not really change your blood sugar. Keep in mind that starchy vegetables contain carbohydrate and affect your blood sugar more. The foods in the meat group are higher in protein, but also in calories, cholesterol and saturated fat. Protein raises your blood sugar at a steady rate and gives your body an energy reserve. It's a good idea to have a three-ounce serving or less of protein at lunch and dinner. Follow the grocery-shopping tips to help you select protein foods which have less fat.
Food Labels
Make sure to understanding food ingredients on foods. They offer the information you need to make good meal-planning choices.