The number of people with diabetes keeps rising by the day. The World Health Organisation made it alarmingly clear on its website; over 420 million adults live with diabetes. If the whole wide world should join hands together, we may not be able to stop diabetes overnight, but with time, diabetes will no longer be such a threat to humanity.
We all should have basic knowledge about this disease, its causes, its effects, and how they can be cured. If the knowledge does not apply to you directly, it just might apply to someone around you.
Talking about the treatment for diabetes, what you eat can go a long way. The saying “let thy food be thy medicine” has always been true and effective. All you have to do is put a little effort into choosing what you eat. Just like many other ailments, your diet can go a long way to reduce your risk of developing diabetes and treating it. It is empowering to see how greatly treatment has evolved in our modern world, but with all said and done, what you eat can influence your health more than you think.
10 Best Foods to Control Diabetes
You know there is no cure for diabetes, right? It is a terminal disease that has to be managed for life. The goal is always to keep blood sugar levels well controlled. Figuring out the best food to eat in this regards can be tough. But with a little professional guidance and research on your own, you can learn what types of food can help in the control of diabetes.
Here are the 10 best foods that are very suitable for diabetic patients.
1. Whole Grains
If you’re going to depend on your diet to improve your health condition, you have to cut down on as many refined foods as possible. Replace those refined foods with healthier and more natural options. Diabetic patients, for instance, can replace simple refined carbs with whole grains like dried beans, peas, lentils, corn salsa, etc.
These foods have carbs in them still, but in very moderate and healthy quantities, even for a diabetic patient. They also have interesting flavors and can get you filled faster and for longer.
2. Fatty Fish
Fatty fish options like salmons, sardines, herrings, mackerels, and anchovies are a healthy diet option for diabetic patients. They are good sources of omega-3 fatty acid which is very beneficial to the heart.
For your information, high blood glucose from diabetes can wreck the blood vessels and nerves that control the heart. This may not be the case at the onset of the disease, but with time, diabetes can cause great damages to the heart. The longer you have diabetes, the higher your chances of developing heart disease. So, caring for the heart by eating fatty fish diets can be a lifesaver for a diabetic patient.
3. Cinnamon
A lot of researches has been carried out about cinnamon, and it’s on record that this food item has great healing effects. One of the many benefits of eating cinnamon is its ability to curb blood sugar levels by lowering insulin resistance in the body.
If you eat 1 to 3 teaspoons of cinnamon every day for 40 days, there is a high probability that you’ll experience about 18% cut in your cholesterol level and 24% cut in your blood sugar level. So, if you’re diabetic, your health is going to thank you if you take cinnamon often.
4. Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt contains probiotics and some other compounds which makes it very healthy and beneficial for diabetic patients. As a diabetic patient, you can count on greek yogurt to help reduce your risk of developing heart diseases and improve blood sugar control.
Other types of yogurt are also great for diabetes, but greek yogurt is better as a result of its low carb contents.
5. Nuts
Fibers are great for diabetic patients, and eating any kind of nut is a great way to fill up on healthy fibers daily. The level of carb contents in nuts vary from one type to the other, but they are generally low in digestible carbs which is a good thing for diabetic patients.
A very good example of healthy nuts for diabetic patients are walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, brazil nuts, pecans, pistachios, cashews, macadamia, etc.
6. Leafy Greens
This thing about leafy green vegetables is that they are always healthy in every situation. There is rarely any health condition that demands one not to eat leafy greens. They are extremely nutritious, low in calories, low in digestible carbs, and improve the health conditions of diabetic patients.
Greens also contain a lot of vitamin C which reduces inflammation, provides antioxidants, and lutein. These antioxidants protect the eye from certain health conditions like macular degeneration and cataract.
7. Eggs
Diabetic patients can gain a lot of benefits from consuming eggs. They are very versatile and contain nutrients like carbohydrate, sugar, sodium, saturated fat, fiber, protein, calories, and fat. All the saturated fats are found in the yolk, in addition to a whole lot of other nutrients.
Diabetic patients are advised to eat eggs regularly because eggs are known to reduce the risk of developing heart diseases. Eggs can improve insulin sensitivity, decrease inflammation, improve good cholesterol in the body and reduce the bad ones.
8. Turmeric
Turmeric has been used for hundreds of years by people from different parts of the world to heal different ailments. It can lower blood sugar and cholesterol, relieve pains, prevent cancer, protect the kidney, protects the eyes, and can even improve your s*x life.
The active ingredient in turmeric that gives it such healing effects is curcumin. Aside from the benefits mentioned above, curcumin may also help in the treatment of diabetes. From scientific studies, it was concluded that curcumin can suppress the activities of the white blood cells, prevent liver fat accumulation, and improve insulin functions.
9. Olive Oil
One of the most popular benefits of taking olive oil is to improve one’s heart condition. Diabetic patients are at risk of developing heart complications, and including olive oil in their diets may be all the help they need to manage their condition effectively.
Olive oil also contains oleic acid which has been shown to improve triglycerides and HDL, especially in type 2 diabetes cases. This oil also contains antioxidants known as polyphenols which reduce inflammation and protect the cells lining the blood vessels.
10. Garlic
This intensely aromatic and flavorful herb is known in most part of the world (if not all). It is not only delicious but also highly nutritious with a lot of healing qualities. When eaten in a raw state, it has a very pungent flavor that most people find offensive. But then, the benefits outweigh this offensive flavor.
Talking about diabetes, garlic is very good for heart diseases. This may not be a direct benefit of diabetes per se, but it helps to reduce the severity and effects of diabetes on the heart. Garlic is also good for high blood pressure, cancer, control of blood sugar level as well as other complications that come with diabetes.
Diabetes is one of the leading cause of death in the world and the 7th leading cause of death in the US. This record can be changed for the better if we’re mindful of what we eat every day.
