How can Nutrition Data be customized for my goals?

On NutritionData, you can customize your display, analysis, and reports to reflect your individual nutritional needs and goals.  Here's how:

1. In the navigation bar at the top of the page, click on Tools and select Preference Settings.

2. If you're not logged in, you'll need to enter your ND username and password.  If you've never registered, click on "register" to create a username and password for your account. 

3. On the preference setting page, you can select which categories of foods will display in your searches on ND. For example, if you don't wish to see food items from fast food restaurants, you can uncheck these boxes. 

4. Further down the page, you can enter in your own IDVs (individual daily values) for calories, fat, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins and minerals. You'll see the government's standard recommendations listed as a reference point. (Any values that you don't change will remain set to the government's values.)

4. Click "save preferences" and you're done.  From now on, when you analyze your total consumption, you'll see how your daily intake compares to your customized values.  (IDV's are only used in the Total Consumption Report. All other portions of this site use standard DV's, in order to report data that's consistent with other sources.)

Next Step: Go to My Preferences

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Sugars and carbs and GI, oh my!

Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center

Sugars, carbs, and GI, oh my!

People with diabetes have lost (or are losing) the ability to regulate their blood sugar properly. Whether or not you take anti-diabetic medications or insulin, careful management of your diet is the number one thing you can do to take control of your health.

Carbohydrates

In particular, you'll want to start paying attention to foods that contain carbohdrates, because these are the foods that have the most dramatic impact on your blood sugar.  It's extremely important to control how many carbohydrates you eat. Your diabetes educator or nutritionist can advise you how many grams of carbohydrates you should eat at each meal and snack. 

A typical goal for diabetics is to get 45 to 60% of total calories as carbohydrates. For most people, that's between 200 and 300 grams per day.

Sugars

Sugars are a type of carbohydrate and so they are included in your total carbohydrate count. But all of us (and not just diabetics) should limit the amount of sugar we eat.  Try to minimize your intake of foods with added sugars, such as candy, pastries, jams, cookies, and sodas.  Instead, choose a piece of fruit.

Using the glycemic load

The glycemic load is another way of looking at how a food may affect your blood sugar. Choosing foods with a low glycemic load (and avoiding foods with high glycemic loads) can help you improve your blood sugar control  For those with diabetes, a typical target for total Estimated Glycemic Load is 80-100 per day.

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Counting Carbohydrates
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Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center

How many calories do I need?

How many calories you should eat depends on your age, size, activity level, and whether or not you need to lose or gain weight.

The first step is to determine how many calories you currently burn over the course of a day, using the Daily Needs Calculator.  Enter your age, sex, height, weight, and lifestyle (sedentary, some what active, etc.). You'll find some tips to help you select the appropriate activity level. There's also a place to enter in any additional exercise you might do.

When you click "calculate," you'll see how many calories you burn over the course of a typical day.

This is your "maintenance' number. That means that if you eat this number of calories each day you will likely maintain your current weight, neither gaining nor losing.

In order to lose weight, you'll need to eat fewer calories. To lose roughly one pound a week, subtract 500 calories (kcal) from your maintenance number.  In this example, that would mean eating about 1800 kcal per day.

To lose about two pounds a week, subtract 1000 kcal from your maintenance number. In this example, that would mean eating about 1300 kcal per day.

Some important things to keep in mind if you are trying to lose weight:

1. This formula is VERY approximate. Don't be surprised if you lose weight little faster than the formula suggests at the very beginning of your weight loss program.   You'll probably also experience times when you lose weight more slowly. Over time, it tends to average out.

2. Eating fewer than 1200 kcal a day for more than a day or two is not recommended without medical supervision.

3. Be patient.  Although quick weight loss may sound desirable, slow, gradual weight loss (1-2 pounds a week) tends to be easier to do (you're not as hungry) and longer-lasting.

4. Increasing your activity and exercise level will increase your "maintenance" number. That means you'll be able to eat more calories and still lose weight.

Next Step: Go to the Daily Needs Calculator

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Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center

What's a healthy weight?

Getting to a healthy weight is an essential part of your diabetes prevention or management plan. The Daily Needs Calculator can help you determine what a healthy weight is for you. Simply enter your age, current weight, height, and activity level (as shown below) and click "Calculate."

The calculator will then display your current BMI (body mass index) as well as a range that corresponds to a healthy weight for someone your age, gender, and size. (See example below.)

If you are small boned, your healthy weight will probably be toward the lower end of the range. If you have a large frame, it might be toward the higher end. Note: A healthy weight for those who are very muscular (such as competitive athletes or body-builders) may be above the indicated range.

If you have more than twenty pounds to lose

If you have quite a bit of weight to lose, consider setting an interim goal that feels less overwhelming. For example, you might start by resolving to lose ten percent of your weight.

No matter how overweight you may be, losing just 5 to 10% of your body weight can dramatically improve your insulin sensitivity and reduce the health problems and risks associated with being overweight. And this initial success can motivate you to set the next goal...and the next.

Next Step: Go to to the Daily Needs Calculator

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Go to the Type 2 Diabetes Resource Center