Healthy Recipes for : ..Acne ..Ageing ..Alcoholic Intoxication ..Anaemia ..Arthritis ..Asthma ..Atherosclerosis ..Bad Breath ..Bed-wetting ..Boils & Carbuncles ..Breast Inflammation ..Bronchitis ..Chicken Pox ..Chloasma ..Common Cold ..Constipation ..Diabetes Mellitus     What is it?     Causes and Types     Symptoms and            Complications     Who's at Risk?     Western Treatments     Traditional Chinese            Treatments     Diet and Diabetes     Blood Glucose Test ..Diarrhoea ..Dizziness ..Dysentery ..Eczema ..Edema ..Eye, Dark Circles ..Eye, Pink ..Fishbone in Throat ..Goiter ..Gout ..Hair Loss ..Headache ..Heart Attack ..Hemorrhoids ..Hepatitis ..Hiccups ..Hoarseness ..Hyperlipaemia ..Hypertension ..Impotence ..Indigestion ..Infertility ..Insomnia ..Lactation Cessation ..Leucorrhoea ..Loss of Appetite ..Malaria ..Memory Poor ..Menopause ..Menstruation, Painful ..Menstruation, Delayed ..Menstruation,Premature ..Nosebleed ..Osteoporosis ..Overweight ..Pelvic Inflammatory    Disease ..Running Nose ..Skin Care ..Sore Throat ..Sweating ..Tinnitus ..Tuberculosis ..Urticaria ..White Hair ..Wrinkles Dietary Guidelines Foods and Herbs Commonly Used in the Treatment of      Diabetes             Grains and Legumes             Vegetables and Fruits             Herbs             Animal and Sea Products Anyone with diabetes needs a carefully planned diet. Although the general advice for most diabetics are similar, individual needs do differ slightly, depending on the type of diabetes and other factors such as body weight, how physically active the person is, the timing and type of insulin injections and of the diabetic's sensitivity to insulin and other drugs. Often, a reduced-sugar or low-calorie diet is recommended. Until the 1970s, diabetics were advised to follow a high-fat and low- carbohydrate diet. However, since then, increasing evidence has linked high-fat diets with heart disease and emphasized the benefits offered by carbohydrates in reducing coronary risk. The ability to control blood glucose levels in diabetes by eating foods that are rich in carbohydrates has also been recognized. Today, recommendations for diabetics are based on a diet that is high in complex carbohydrates, high in fiber and low in sugar and fat. The aims of such a diet are to stop immediate symptoms, often through diet and exercise alone in cases of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), and reduce the risk of hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar), which mainly affects those with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). These diets are also designed to avoid the long-term complications associated with diabetes--heart disease, eye problems and kidney failure. They apply equally to children and teenagers with diabetes. Dietary Guidelines Treatment always involves a carefully controlled and healthily balanced diet that restricts the patient's intake of simple carbohydrates and reduces concentrated sugar and sugary drinks. There are general dietary guidelines that diabetes sufferers can follow to help keep their blood sugar levels under control: Avoid being overweight. Make sure you eat a balanced, healthy diet based on complex carbohydrates such as unrefined grains, vegetables and beans. If you do need to lose weight, see your doctor or nutritionist to formulate a diet tailored to your needs. Eat regular meals and avoid late-night eating. Small, frequent meals (four or five daily) help to stimulate insulin production. Eat more starchy, high-fiber foods such as whole-grain bread, beans, peas and lentils. All of these foods cause only a gradual rise in blood sugar because the fiber content slows down the release of glucose. Nutritionists have also identified chromium, zinc and manganese as factors which control blood sugar levels. These minerals are removed in the refining process which produces white flour, white sugar, refined salt, and many highly processed foods. In whole grains, these minerals reside in the bran. Cut down on sugary sweetened soft drinks, cakes, confectionery and chocolate. The sugar is absorbed quickly and therefore causes blood glucose levels to rise more rapidly. Eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables for soluble fiber and vitamins. Fruit makes an ideal snack, but beware of eating very sweet fruits such as grapes or mangoes; or acidic, sour flavored fruits such as lemons and grapefruits in large amounts because of their effect on your blood sugar level. If you do eat tinned fruit, choose those canned in natural juice rather than syrup. Dried fruits such as dates are a concentrated form of sugar and so should only be consumed in small quantities. Cut down on greasy and fatty foods (meats, eggs, cheese, butter, excess oil, nuts and seeds) and avoid denatured foods (refined flour and sugar, synthetic fats such as margarine and shortening), which stress the liver, weaken the spleen-pancreas, and aggravate the diabetic's increased risk of coronary heart disease. However, to maintain a balanced diet, make sure that you have portions of meat, eggs or cheese as part of at least two of your meals each day. Keep the portions small, and remember that fish and pulses are alternative sources of protein. Limit salt and salty foods, because of the diabetic's increased susceptibility to high blood pressure. Be aware of hidden salt in many tinned, smoked and processed foods. Keep alcohol consumption at moderate levels, remembering that low-sugar diet beers and lagers tend to have a high alcohol content. Chew thoroughly. Chewing properly improves nutrient assimilation particularly with complex carbohydrates, whose digestion begins with saliva. Thorough chewing is essential for their complete breakdown so that adequate minerals and other nutrients are absorbed. Drink water, or sugar-free drinks. Foods and Herbs Commonly Used in the Treatment of Diabetes Eating a wide sampling of foods and herbs from the following list strengthens the pancreas, regulates blood sugar, and at the same time improves the fluid metabolism. Diabetics should choose one or more of these foods and herbs daily as part of a primarily vegetarian diet of unrefined grains, vegetables, legumes, fruits, herbs, and a limited amount of nuts and seeds. Grains and Legumes barley bean curd and soy products chick-pea fresh corn hyacinth bean kidney bean millet mung bean oats pea peach kernel rice sweet rice whole wheat and its bran Vegetables and Fruits asparagus avocado bitter gourd calabash carrot coconut grapefruit guava kiwi fruit lemon mulberry fruit pear plum radish sweet potato spinach turnip water chestnut watermelon wax gourd Herbs alismatis rhizome black plum Chinese gall Chinese yam common reed rhizome dandelion dogwood fruit fleece flower root ginseng java brucea fruit kudzu vine root large leaf gentian root magnolia vine fruit mutan bark ophipogon root ox-knee root rehmannia root and prepared rehmannia root trichosanthes root tuckahoe windweed rhizome wolfberry bark wolfberry fruit Animal and Sea Products beef chicken and black-bone chicken cow's milk and goat's milk cow stomach mutton pork kidney pork pancreas sparrow abalone clam loach Share this page with your friend DISCLAIMER: Information on this site is provided for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice nor is it intended to replace a medical doctor. You should not use the information contained herein for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication. You should read carefully all product packaging. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, promptly contact your health care provider. Information and statements on this site regarding health supplements have not been evaluated by the medical profession and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.