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The prediabetes diet is beneficial for people suffering from prediabetes. So, what's prediabetes?
Prediabetes is a serious health condition characterized by elevated blood sugar levels that are higher than normal but not high enough to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes.
Prediabetes affects approximately 96 million American adults or more than one-third of the population. More than 80% of people with prediabetes are unaware of their condition. Prediabetes puts people at serious risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
What is Prediabetes Diet?
The prediabetes diet is a specific diet designed to help lower your blood sugar levels naturally (without medication) by modifying your diet only.
Prediabetes is caused by a lot of factors, including genetics, being overweight, not getting enough physical exercise, and also the amount of carbohydrates you consume every day.
Increased blood sugar levels are generally caused when the body is unable to produce enough insulin to digest its carb intake. As a result, sugar begins to build up in the bloodstream. Blood sugar spikes are also caused by refined flour and processed carbohydrates that are digested pretty quickly.
As such, diet has an important role to play in this condition. Following a prediabetes diet can help improve your blood sugar levels in the long term and may even protect you from type II diabetes.
Keys to Prediabetes Diet
The prediabetes diet is designed to increase your intake of nutrient-rich, high-quality foods that will not cause blood sugar spikes.
The diet will focus on minimizing or completely eliminating ultra-processed foods that provide little to nutritional value. Reflecting on your current diet pattern and identifying a few areas for improvement is a good first step towards making long-term changes to your eating habits.
Follow the following parameters to improve your diet. Remember that meal planning is key to following any kind of diet. It can save you hassle and last-minute stress, and improve your eating habits drastically.
1) Reduce Sugar Intake
This is the first rule you need to follow while planning a prediabetes diet. Eating a lot of sugary foods can cause your blood sugar level to fluctuate dramatically, especially, as they're generally low in fiber and other beneficial nutrients that help keep blood sugar stable.
Avoiding added sugar is critical for maintaining normal blood sugar level. If you stop eating sugar altogether, you may not be able to sustain it for long. That's why it’s important to choose naturally sweet foods that contain fruit sugar. Choose fruits over sweets and desserts, but remember to moderate - it won't help if you eat a lot of high sugar fruits like dates, bananas, etc.
2) Increase Fiber Intake
If you're on a prediabetes diet, you must absolutely increase your fiber intake. Not only will it keep you feeling full for longer, but it will also help maintain proper gut health. It can also lead to better bowel movements and cure constipation.
Eating fiber-rich foods can help you avoid overeating and the 'crash' that can occur after having a high-sugar food. High-sugar foods often give you a big energy boost but leave you tired soon after.
Whole wheat pasta, whole grain cereals, beans and legumes, and whole grains like quinoa and barley are some examples of high-fiber foods.
3) Watch Carb Intake
To regulate the amount of carbs you're eating, you can try to understand the glycemic index of various foods. The glycemic index tells you how a particular food can affect your blood sugar level.
Foods with high glycemic index raise blood sugar faster, while foods with low GI release sugar more slowly. Always go for low GI foods like whole grains, steel cut oats, non-starchy vegetables, beans, sweet potatoes, whole wheat pasta, nuts, and seeds.
Some high GI foods include russet potatoes, white bread, sweet soda, fruit juice, and white rice. If you have a craving for these foods, balance the portion size by keeping them on the lower side and pairing them with vegetables and protein.
4) Include Lean Protein
Meat contains no carbohydrates, but it can be a rich source of fat in your diet. Consuming a lot of unhealthy fats can result in prediabetes, high cholesterol, and heart disease. So, you must include meat that's lean i.e. low in fat and high in protein to fully benefit from it in your diet.
Protein sources like chicken, turkey, white fish, eggs, shellfish, lean cuts of meat, low-fat Greek yogurt, tofu, and cottage cheese should be a regular part of your diet.
5) Balance your Plate
Paying attention to portion size can assist you in maintaining a prediabetes diet. It's critical to understand how eating more than the recommended serving size affects the nutritional value.
A serving of food may contain 15 grams of carbohydrates and 160 calories. You will consume 30 grams of carbohydrates and 320 calories if you have two servings.
However, it's not necessary to completely eliminate carbohydrates. What you need to do instead is understand how much your body needs in a meal, and include other macros like protein and fiber to balance out the carbs.
If that sounds too complicated, you can consult a dietician to look at your specific physical needs and prepare a diet plan for you.
6) Exercise Along With Diet
Exercise is the most effective way to combat prediabetes. When combined with a prediabetes diet, exercise can work magically to improve metabolism, reduce fat and keep blood sugar level stable for longer.
Exercise does not have to be difficult. Consider walking, dancing, riding a bike, or engaging in any other physical activity you enjoy. An active lifestyle can help people with diabetes manage their blood sugar level and prevent them from developing type 2 diabetes.
How to Reverse Prediabetes?
A prediabetes diagnosis does not automatically imply that you will develop type 2 diabetes. However, you must act quickly to reverse the condition.
It's critical to maintain a healthy blood sugar level, and to do that, following a prediabetes diet is of utmost importance. Follow the guidelines mentioned above to have healthy food, live better and maintain stable blood sugar levels.
Not only will it help you avoid type 2 diabetes but also its complications such as heart disease, stroke, nerve damage, and others.
