The Diabetes Food Pyramid is an educational nutritional chart designed to simplify food choices for people with diabetes.
Sugar is the enemy of all diabetics
This does not mean that they cannot eat it. Their ability to enjoy sugar depends on the severity of their diabetic condition.
When a person is diagnosed with diabetes, they can no longer enjoy high-sugar foods as they once did, and the diabetes food pyramid helps them figure out which foods to eat and which to avoid.
The diabetic food pyramid is divided into six categories, with the main group at the bottom.
These are the foods that diabetics should eat the most, including whole grains, starchy vegetables, and beans.
These types of foods are made up of complex carbohydrates, which provide a steady release of glucose into the bloodstream.
The Diabetes Food Pyramid works the same way as the regular food pyramid, but obviously more importance is placed on following the guidelines of this pyramid because it actually deals with the health of a diabetic.
The pyramid will include foods that are naturally sweet or fatty. As the base of the pyramid expands, more and more foods are safely added to the diabetic diet.
Serving sizes may vary to ensure that each individual serving contains the same amount of carbohydrates.
Examples of this are cheese, which can be found in the meat group rather than its typical dairy group, and potatoes, which can be found in the starchy foods group rather than with the rest of the vegetables.
These differences were created to ensure that carbohydrate levels were roughly the same in each food group.
Vegetables. Choose fresh vegetables, not canned or even frozen, try to eat the rainbow - orange carrots, purple cabbage, green peppers, red tomatoes.
Eat corn and starchy vegetables sparingly as they are high in carbohydrates.
If you must eat canned or frozen vegetables, read the packaging to make sure there is no added sugar.
