A Small Diabetic Cooking Guide

It is well said that when someone from your family develops diabetes, the meal plan for whole family should change accordingly, only to have better health benefits for all. When you cut down the use of sugars, fats, and sodium in cooking, you automatically prepare healthier meals for everyone and many diseases are prevented in this manner.

Let’s see some top 10 recommended tips for healthier cooking for diabetics:

(1) It is better to substitute simple carbohydrates like fructose and sucrose by complex carbohydrates in vegetables and whole grains. Remember that each serving should not contain more than 15 grams of carbohydrates.

(2)  Using different food-combinations including vegetables, fruits, sprouts, whole-grains etc in a single meal helps you derive all the necessary nutrients.

(3)  Simple changes in cooking like use of egg white instead of whole egg and avoiding garlic salt and using mere garlic powder can make a big difference in total carbohydrate, sodium, and fat intake.

(4)  Cut the fat content to ½ in your recipes. Avoid fried veggies and beans etc. go for newer recipes that recommend roasting, grilling, boiling, and/or baking. Trimming the meat is important. Also remove the poultry skins and fat properly. Use of olive oil that contains far less saturated fats and more of omega 3 fatty acids is recommended by experts for better cardiac health, though it should also be used in moderation. Seasoning of vegetables should be done in fat free and low-sodium broth is recommended. Switch over to liquid margarine to make your food low-fat.

(5)  To reduce salt intake, use low-sodium salt in moderation. Go for lemon juice or spices instead of salt while sprinkling on veggies and other foods.

(6)  Simple steps like cooking vegetables in non-stick pan also help reduce use of oil in cooking.

(7)  Reduce the food dressing to half and use non-fat yoghurt, non-fat salad, or mayonnaise.

(8)  Remember over-cooking will take away the essential nutrients from your meal. So avoid it to preserve nutrient value that is must for an overall balanced diet for a diabetic (and even for a normal person).

(9)  Preservatives in food almost always make it less-healthier to eat. Read the labels on packets that you buy from food markets and stick to preservative-free low-carbohydrate, low-salt, and low-fat food and drinks.

(10)               Measuring the portions you eat can be a great tool to keep excess weight at bay. Also break your day-time meals into 5-6 smaller sizes so that digestion is better and you will not ingest more calories at a time.