What about sugar-free and "diabetic" desserts?

Sugar-free and "diabetic" desserts can be away to enjoy some small treats without sending your blood-sugar levels through the food. But even these treats should be enjoyed in moderation.

What are sugar-alcohols?

"Diabetic" desserts are often formulated with sugar alcohols such as maltitol, sorbitol, xylitol, or erythritol.  You can usually recognize them by the "-itol" ending.  Sugar alcohols aren't sugar (although they do taste sweet) and they aren't alcohol--at least, not the sort of alcohol (ethanol) that we imbibe in alcoholic beverages.

Because the shape of the molecule is slightly different than a true sugar, they are metabolized differently in the body. Significantly, they are not converted to glucose and therefore do not have the same effect on blood sugar as regular sugar.

Although foods make with sugar alcohols have advantages for diabetics, overdoing it can cause temporary but unpleasant side effects such as diarrhea.   And, although sugar alcohols do not create an increase in blood sugar, they are not calorie-free. Check the labels to find out how many calories and/or carbohydrates diabetic foods contain and remember to count them toward in your daily totals.

Sugar-free foods

Sugar-free foods are generally sweetened with artificial sweeteners such as Splenda (sucralose), Equal (aspartame), or saccharin.  These sweeteners do not cause a rise in blood sugar and add no calories to a food.  Sugar-free foods can be useful for blood sugar control as well as reducing calories, but these also shouldn't be over-consumeed.

There are lingering concerns over the long-term safety of these chemicals. Plus, there is some evidence that zero-calorie sweeteners can actually increase your appetite, especially for sweets and may lead to weigh gain.

The bottom line?

If you do choose to include "diabetic" or sugar-free desserts, be sure to consume them in moderation and to count the calories and carbohydrates toward your daily totals.

Related Content: Sugar-free doesn't get you off scot-free

Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center

Building Balanced Meals

Following your diet plan can greatly reduce the risk of complications from your disease and allow you to live a long and healthy life.  A balanced diet--one that provides the right amount of carbohoydrates (not too much or too little) along with appropriate amounts of protein and fat--will help you manage your blood sugar and weight.

Learning to build balanced meals and snacks will help keep your diet on track and your blood sugar levels steady throughout the day. Here are some guidelines that can help make meal planning easier:

Space your carbohydrates evenly throughout the day.  Most diabetics do best eating three moderately sized meals meals plus two or three small snacks throughout the day. For best blood sugar control, plan to spend  about 20 to 25% of your carbohydrate "budget" at each meal, and 10-15% at each snack.

Balance carbohydrate foods with protein and fat. Eating some protein and/or healthy fats along with carbohydrates helps modulate the effect of the carbohydrates on your blood sugar. It will also keep you from getting hungry again so quickly, which can help prevent over-eating.

Don’t skip meals or snacks:  Eating well-balanced and right-sized meals and snacks at regular intervals helps prevent major dips and surges in blood sugar.  Meals should not be skipped, particularly for those who are on insulin.  Skipping meals can upset the balance between food intake and insulin and also can lead to weight gain if one eats extra food later on.

Here's an example of a balanced meal plan

Breakfast: ½ cup of oatmeal, 1 cup of milk, 1 hard boiled egg

Mid-morning Snack: 5 whole grain crackers, 1 ounce low-fat string cheese

Lunch: 3 oz turkey breast, 2 slices of whole grain bread, lettuce, tomato, 10 baby carrots

Mid-afternoon Snack: 1 apple, 2 tablespoons peanut butter

Dinner: 3 oz. of baked flounder, 2/3 cup cooked quinoa, 1 cup of steamed spinach

Evening Snack:  1/2 cup low-fat ice cream, 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts

Next Step: Create your diet plan

Related Content:
Track and analyze what you eat

Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center

Counting Carbohydrates

Counting carbohydrates can help you manage your blood sugar levels. It's simpler than it might sound!

The carbohydrates in foods cause your blood sugar to rise. In general, the more carbohydrates you eat at a meal or snack, the higher your blood sugar will go.  So, it's important not to each too much carbohydrate at one time.

At the same time, if you use insulin or other antidiabetic medications, going too long without eating can cause your blood sugar to dip dangerously low.   For best blood sugar control, you'll want to be fairly consistent about the amount of carbohydrates in your meals and snacks.

How many carbohydrates are right for you?

The amount of carbohydrates that is right for you depends on your size, whether or not you need to lose weight, and any medications you might be taking. Your health care team, including your doctor and/or diabetes educator should be able to advise you about how many grams of carbohydrates your meals and snacks should contain. 

For example, you might be advised to aim for a total of 250 grams of carbohydrates a day, and to include about 50 grams at each meal and 30 grams at each snack.

Which foods contain carbohydrates?

• starchy foods like bread, cereal, rice, and crackers
• fruit and juice
• milk and yogurt
• dried beans like pinto beans and soy products like veggie burgers
• sweets and snack foods like sodas, juice drinks, cake, cookies, candy, and chips
• starchy vegetables like corn and potatoes

Other vegetables contain carbohydrates, as well, but in much lower amounts.

You can find out how much carbohydrate a serving of a food contains by looking it up here on Nutrition Data. You can also look at the Nutrition Facts label of packaged foods. Remember to pay attention to the serving size!

 

Here are some other food servings that contain about 15 grams of carbohydrates:

• 1 small piece of fresh fruit
• 1/2 cup of canned or frozen fruit
• 1 slice of bread
• 1 (6 inch) tortilla
• 1/2 cup of oatmeal
• 1/3 cup of pasta or rice
• 4-6 crackers
• 1/2 English muffin or hamburger bun
• 1/2 cup of black beans or starchy vegetable
• 1/4 of a large baked potato 
• 2/3 cup of plain fat-free yogurt or sweetened with sugar substitutes
• 1 Tbsp syrup, jam, jelly, sugar or honey
• 1/2 cup of casserole
• 1 cup of soup

Next step: Search for foods that are low in carbohydrates

Related content: Tracking and analyze what you eat

Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center

What's a low glycemic diet?

Glycemic load is another way of looking at how a food may affect your blood sugar. Carbohydrates with a high glycemic load (such as fruit juices or doughnuts) will tend to make your blood sugar go up sharply, while carbohydrates with a low glycemic load (such as berries or bran cereal) produce a lower, slower rise in blood sugar.  Choosing foods with a low glycemic load (and avoiding foods with high glycemic loads) can help you improve your blood sugar control

You can look up the estimated glycemic load (eGL) of foods here on Nutrition Data. Foods with an eGL  of 10 or lower are considered "low" and foods with an eGL of 20 or higher are considered "high." Note that you can lower the glycemic load of a food simply by eating less of it!

 

A typical target for diabetics and others seeking to manage blood sugar issues is a total glycemic load of 80 to 100 per day.  Ideally, you'll want to spread the glycemic load of your diet out evenly throughout the day by eating 3 moderately-sized meals and 2-3 small snacks at regular intervals.

Next Step: Find foods with a low glycemic index

Related Content:
About the Glycemic Index

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Don't go it alone

  Managing diabetes is not a do-it-yourself operation.  Although our goal is to supply tools, information, support, and guidance that will empower you to take control of your diet and health, the input of your own health care team is also a critical part of the equation.

Be sure to check with your nutritionist or diabetes educator about your diet plan so that they can advise you, based on your weight, health status, lifestyle, and any medications you may be using to manage your diabetes.

Our tracking and analysis tools will help you stick with the plan and maximize your success.  Careful dietary planning and blood sugar control can minimize your risk of complications from diabetes.

Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center