Diabetes may significantly decrease the quality of your life, but it is in your power to control the disease and feel well again.
You need to follow a few important rules to defeat diabetes:
- Be in contact with your doctor and monitor your blood sugar regularly. This will help the doctor to choose the most effective drug, depending on the individual characteristics of your disease.
- Keep to a healthy diet and refrain from eating sugar-containing foods. Reducing carbohydrate intake will help you to avoid blood sugar spikes and complications of diabetes.
- Exercise regularly. It is proved that aerobic exercises “burn” calories and reduce blood sugar levels. There are cases when just diet and exercise, with no medication, result in complete control of diabetes.
It is well known that changing eating habits can be very difficult. Therefore, it is recommended to change the diet gradually. You can get help from a nutritionist or do it yourself. First, you need to determine the right size of your food portions. You should calculate the number of daily calories for an ideal weight for your height, the calories in your current daily diet, compare the second with the first and reduce the size of your portions respectively. You must adhere to the new size of your portions forever.
Once you get used to it, the next step is to change the composition of foods. To do so, take a plate and in your mind divide it into three sections. The biggest section would be exactly half of the plate, and each of the two smaller ones would be one fourth. The biggest section of the plate should be used for non-starch vegetables, such as cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans and beets. One of the smaller sections should be used for starch containing foods, such as potatoes, beans, pasta, rice and other grains, bread and cereal. The other smaller section should be used for meats or seafood. Dairy products and desserts should be in two separate small portions. Non-fat milk and fresh fruits are preferable.
However, if you are used to candy, gingerbread or fruit preserves as desserts, there is no reason to deprive yourself. Take a look at the website of the online supermarket RussianFoodUSA.com and you’ll find a great selection of sugar-free desserts. Say goodbye to diabetes!
