How Should Nutrition Be Managed in Diabetes Treatment? (14 November World Diabetes Day)

Diabetes is a chronic disease that develops as a result of reduced effectiveness of insulin hormone secreted by the pancreas, leading to increased blood sugar levels, and its incidence in our country is steadily rising, causing serious organ damage. According to International Diabetes Federation data, 1 in every 11 adults worldwide is a diabetes patient, while 1 in every 7 births is affected by gestational diabetes. "Improving the quality of life of individuals with diabetes is possible through four fundamental factors comprising nutrition, exercise, medical treatment and education. If an individual wants to manage diabetes well, they should base their living standard on healthy eating rules. Regular meals that prevent prolonged fasting and pay attention to carbohydrate intake will provide blood sugar regulation," explained Nutrition and Dietetics Specialist Dyt. Derya Fidan, describing the diabetes-nutrition relationship.

What is the Golden Ratio in Nutritional Treatment for Diabetes Patients?

Carbohydrate sources consumed in meals—whether fruit, bread, soup, rice or pasta—should comprise only 1 out of 4 options in the total menu. That is, when you divide your plate into 4 equal parts visually, 1 part should be 1 slice of bread or 1 ladle of soup, while the other sections should each contain an equal amount of meat and meat products selected according to lean mass weight. This should be completed with yogurt, buttermilk, seasonal salad and plenty of greens. If the amount of carbohydrates consumed increases, the quantity of salad, meat and yogurt should increase proportionally. The important thing here is to maintain this arrangement while not forgetting portion control regarding weight management.

Start Your Meal with Salad and End It with Salad!

While managing stomach satiety capacity, salad should be consumed first as the initial food, followed by protein and carbohydrate sources in the main course eaten together. At the end of the meal, the remaining salad should be consumed to finish the meal. In this way, salad, being the first food consumed, will be the first to leave the stomach and send a satiety signal to your brain, helping you feel full faster with less food. With this eating style, since carbohydrate sources in the meal are balanced, you will have eaten healthily and managed your diabetes well.

Which Foods and How Much Should Be Consumed!

• * After dinner, fruit, dessert, flour and flour products should never be consumed. Otherwise, this will cause your fasting blood sugar in the morning to rise.
• * Two hours before sleep after dinner, consuming 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar mixed in 1 glass of warm water will help dissolve abdominal fat while assisting in regulating your fasting blood sugar in the morning.
• * Instead of fruits with higher sugar content such as banana, fig, grape, melon, watermelon, mulberry and apricot, more sour fruits should be preferred. Appropriate fruits and vegetables should be consumed with their skin.
• * When fruit options are chosen as snacks, they should be consumed 15 minutes before or together with high protein foods such as cheese, walnut, hazelnut and almond.
• * Instead of simple carbohydrates that rapidly increase blood sugar, complex carbohydrates that increase blood sugar slowly should be selected. Options such as organic whole wheat bread, sourdough bread and sprouted bread should be preferred instead of white bread.
• * Consumption of fried foods, pan-fried dishes (meat-vegetable-pastry) and foods with fatty sauces should be avoided.
• * Processed foods such as soudjouk, pastirma, salami and sausage, as well as offal such as liver, brain and kidney should be avoided.