Diabetes Diet Chart

Diabetes, also known as blood sugar, occurs when your blood glucose spikes higher than normal. Blood sugar is the primary source of energy in your body, and it is derived from the food you eat. To transfer the glucose from the food to the cells to be used for energy, the pancreas creates a hormone called insulin. Sometimes, however, your pancreas doesn’t create enough – or any – insulin, or your body fails to make appropriate use of the insulin. This results in the glucose staying in your blood instead of reaching your cells. Over time, this excess of sugar in your bloodstream can lead to serious health conditions such as vision loss, heart disease, kidney disease, etc.

Diabetes is classified into the following categories:

• Prediabetes: This means your blood sugar is higher than normal but not high enough to be categorised as type 2 diabetes just yet
• Type 1 Diabetes: This is a chronic condition wherein your pancreas creates little to no insulin and the condition typically appears in adolescence
• Type 2 Diabetes: With this condition, either the body does not produce enough insulin or resists the insulin. This is the most common form of diabetes and is considered to be a lifestyle disease.
• Gestational Diabetes: This diabetes is diagnosed for the first time during pregnancy and those who develop this condition have greater susceptibility to type 2 diabetes later in life.

While there isn’t a cure for diabetes yet, maintaining a healthy weight, eating nutritious food, and staying active can together have a significant impact on your diabetes. Other factors that can help include:

• Taking the prescribed medication in a timely manner
• Educating yourself about the self-management of diabetes
• Ensuring health check-ups at regular intervals

Now that we have understood the basics of diabetes, let’s look at the diet plan for diabetic patients that can help with regulating blood sugar.

Fortunately, you need not have an exotic shopping cart to manage your diabetes. One of the most common misconceptions when it comes to any diet plan is that you will have to shell out a lot of money. But it is a myth that needs some busting. Especially because the diet plan for diabetes patients in India is not only effective but also pocket-friendly. Without further ado, here is an Indian diet chart for diabetic patients:

• Early Morning

If you want to stick to your ideal diabetic diet chart, start your morning with a glass of lukewarm water. This will help maintain the temperature in your body and will flush out all the toxins. It would lower your blood pressure levels and also aid in easing your blood sugar levels.

• Breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because as the term suggests, you break your overnight fast with this meal. Some ideal breakfast options in a diet chart for diabetic patient include:

• A cup of tea or coffee

• Hard-boiled eggs

• Or red poha with veggies

• Or oats

• Or besan chilla

• Mid-Morning

To prevent a long gap between meals, diabetics are typically advised to eat at small intervals after every few hours. Considering this, you can have a two-hour gap between breakfast and the next meal comprising of:

• A cup of green tea with a small portion of roasted chana

• Or a portion of whole fruit (guavas, oranges, peaches, papayas, etc.)

• Lunch

Diabetics need to have a wholesome lunch that keeps them full until the next meal. Here is a great lunch diet plan for diabetes patients in India:

• A generous portion of daliya khichdi

• Or a bowl of salad, 2 rotis with a large bowl of sabzi, along with a bowl of dal/sprouts/buttermilk

• Or lemon rice with a cup of leafy salad

• Or 2 Rotis, ½ cup of soya gravy, ½ cup of dal, and an egg white omelette

• **Evening Snacks **

It is a great idea to snack at around 4-5 P.M. and it is likely that you will also be hungry by then. Instead of indulging in unhealthy snacks that will fluctuate your blood sugar levels, here are some healthy snacking options for diabetics:

• One whole fruit such as orange, guava, apple, etc.

• Or a small bowl of roasted or boiled chana

• Or a puffed rice bhel with cucumbers, tomatoes, onion, and coriander

• Or khakhra

• Dinner

Dinner constitutes the most important element of an Indian diet chart for diabetic patients. Here are some dinner options for diabetics to enjoy:

• A large bowl of vegetable oats with soup
• Or a bowl of salad with multigrain roti with a bowl of dal/fish/sprouts/chicken
• Or a bowl of sabzi – soya chunks/spinach/stuffed bitter gourds/green chana, 2 rotis, and salad

For every diabetic, the most important thing to note is eating right instead of eating less. If you don’t feel full, you will be inclined to reach for unhealthy snacks that can meddle with your ideal Indian diabetic diet and, more importantly, with your goal to stay healthy.

Unfortunately, the kind of lifestyle we lead invites several illnesses. And so, in addition to taking care of your health with a balanced diet and exercise, one must also invest in a comprehensive health insurance plan. This is particularly true for diabetic patients.

Diabetes is a lifestyle disease that can afflict you at any point in time. Therefore, it is advisable to invest in health insurance that covers diabetes. The diabetes cover with Tata AIG health insurance plan comes with unique features such as cover for pre-existing illnesses, cashless hospitalisation, and pre-and post-hospitalisation cover. Comprehensive medical insurance does not only offer coverage against health ailments, but policyholders can also avail of health insurance tax benefits to optimise their savings.