Summer Diet Guidelines for Diabetics

In addition to normal intramuscular insulin and oral medication to control blood sugar and urine sugar in diabetics, diet therapy is also an important basis for controlling blood sugar. In daily life, we should not think that the diet therapy of diabetes is difficult. From the perspective of nutrition, as long as we know how to scientifically match ingredients and understand the principles of food nutrition, we can control blood sugar well.

| Dietary Guidelines for Diabetics

1. Control your intake of sweets

Diabetic patients should strictly limit their intake of sugar, candy, honey and sugary drinks, as these sugars are easily absorbed by the body and increase blood sugar, increasing the burden on the pancreas and aggravating the condition.

2. Daily Diet

The following foods can control blood sugar while ensuring nutrition.

A. Eat whole grains regularly: You can choose whole-wheat foods, which are rich in trace elements. Long-term consumption can lower blood sugar and blood lipids.

B. High-fiber foods: Corn, celery, leeks, beans, pumpkin, bamboo shoots, etc. promote the body's sugar metabolism and prevent blood sugar from being absorbed too quickly. Foods rich in high fiber can lower blood sugar in diabetics and increase satiety.

C. Low-sugar vegetables: leeks, zucchini, winter melon, pumpkin, eggplant, bitter melon, onion, shiitake mushrooms, etc.

D. Foods rich in calcium: dried shrimps, kelp, spareribs, etc. Calcium deficiency will aggravate the condition of diabetic patients.

E. Foods rich in selenium: mushrooms, fish, etc. They can regulate sugar metabolism and improve diabetes symptoms because selenium and insulin have the same physiological activity.

F. Foods rich in vitamins: tomatoes, cabbage, etc. Supplementing vitamins is of great significance for preventing and treating complications of diabetic nerves, blood vessels and eyes.

3. Choose Fruit

Fruits contain high levels of fructose and glucose and are easily digested and absorbed by the human body. They are extremely unfriendly to diabetic patients, but they are not completely inedible. We must eat them selectively with skills. Patients can make flexible choices based on their own circumstances and grasp the principle of moderation. Daily intake should not exceed 200g.

A. Grapefruit, watermelon and cherry contain less sugar and are the first choice for consumption;

B. Strawberries, peaches, kiwis, etc. have a low glycemic index and can also be eaten;

C. Tomatoes and cucumbers are low in sugar and can be eaten in moderation instead of fruits.

4. Less cholesterol

Eating less high-fat foods, less animal offal, less egg yolks, and high cholesterol intake will aggravate the patient's condition.

5. Drink tea appropriately

Studies have shown that drinking tea is negatively correlated with the risk of diabetes. Here, the editor recommends green tea. Long-term drinking of green tea can effectively prevent the occurrence of diabetes because green tea contains antioxidants such as polyphenols, which can promote metabolism and inhibit amylase from converting carbonate compounds into glucose.

6. Quit smoking and drinking

As we all know, many patients smoke and drink, but we know that smoking has an impact on the complications of diabetes, including microvascular and macrovascular lesions and increased blood sugar. There may be no obvious symptoms in the short term, but vascular abnormalities will eventually appear. Smoking and drinking also cause great damage to the vascular endothelium. Drinking a lot of alcohol on an empty stomach can cause severe hypoglycemia, and drunkenness can often mask the symptoms of hypoglycemia, making it difficult to detect and very dangerous.

| Dietary Misconceptions of Diabetics

1. It is OK if the taste is not sweet Some patients mistakenly believe that people with diabetes should not eat sweet foods, and that salty bread, salty biscuits, and a large number of diabetes-specific sweetener foods on the market do not contain sugar, so they can be used to satisfy hunger when hungry without control. In fact, all kinds of bread and biscuits are made of grains, and like rice and steamed buns, they will be converted into glucose in the body after eating, leading to increased blood sugar.

2. Increasing the dosage of medication can make you feel at ease. Some patients often cannot help but eat more when they feel hungry. They think that increasing the original dosage of medication can offset the extra food. In fact, doing so not only makes dietary control ineffective, but also increases the burden on the pancreas, increases the possibility of hypoglycemia and drug toxicity, and is not conducive to the control of the disease.

3. It is wrong to eat less animal oil and more vegetable oil. Although vegetable oil contains more unsaturated fatty acids, both animal oil and vegetable oil are fat and high-calorie food. If you don't control it, it is easy to exceed the total daily calories, leading to obesity or increased blood lipids.

4. Eat only whole grains, not refined grains Although whole grains have many benefits, if you eat too much, it may increase the gastrointestinal burden and affect the absorption of nutrients, which will cause malnutrition in the long run. Therefore, it is best to add whole grains in a certain proportion.

5. You can eat whatever you want after taking insulin. Some patients switch to insulin therapy because oral medications do not control blood sugar well, thinking that they no longer need to control their diet with insulin. The purpose of insulin therapy is to keep blood sugar stable, and the amount of insulin used can only be adjusted on the basis of a fixed diet. If the diet is not controlled, blood sugar will become more unstable.

| Recommend several sugar-lowering teas

1. Chrysanthemum and Hawthorn Tea

15g chrysanthemum, 20g hawthorn. Decoction or brew with boiling water for 10 minutes before drinking. Regular drinking of chrysanthemum hawthorn tea not only dilates coronary arteries, relaxes blood vessels, lowers blood pressure, but also lowers blood lipids. Suitable for coronary heart disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, heart failure, etc.

2. Chrysanthemum and Sophora japonica tea

10g each of chrysanthemum and sophora japonica. Use boiling water to brew for 10 minutes and then drink. Repeat the brewing for no more than 3 times. This tea can calm the liver and lower blood pressure, soften blood vessels. It is mainly used to treat various hypertension diseases, especially for the elderly with hypertension and arteriosclerosis.

3. Chrysanthemum black tea

10g chrysanthemum, 5g safflower, 5g salvia miltiorrhiza. Brew with boiling water for 10 minutes and drink. Repeat the brewing for no more than 3 times. Chrysanthemum tea can reduce coronary resistance and improve myocardial microcirculation. Consistent use can reduce the frequency of coronary heart disease and angina attacks and reduce the severity of attacks.

4. Pomegranate tea

Pomegranate tea contains an element called chromium, which plays an important role in the metabolism of sugar and fat. Supplementing chromium can help diabetics improve glucose tolerance, lower blood sugar and blood lipids, and enhance insulin sensitivity. Mild diabetics can stabilize their blood sugar by drinking guava tea, while severe patients can combine diet therapy with medication.