Diet and diabetes

Reasons for diet

• Weight control
• Blood glucose control
• Prevention and management of short-
term and long-term complications of
diabetes
Dietary
recommendations for
diabetes
• Eat starchy foods regularly
• Eat more fruit and vegetables
• Reduce animal or saturated fat
• Cut down on sugar
• Reduce salt
Balancing food
choices
Eat starchy foods
regularly
• Bread
• Potatoes
• Rice
• Pasta
• Cereals
• Plantain
• Chapatis
Eat more fruit and
vegetables
• Fresh
• Frozen
• Tinned
• Dried
• Juice
Choose more high
fibre foods
To help maintain blood Helps to maintain a
glucose levels and healthy gut
cholesterol levels

• Fruit • Wholegrain cereals

• Vegetables • Wholemeal bread
• Pulses • Wholewheat pasta
• Oats • Brown rice
Reduce animal or
saturated fat intake
• Use low fat milk
• Use low fat spread
instead of butter
• Use oil high in
unsaturated fat, eg
olive oil, rapeseed
oil
Use less fat in
cooking

• Grill
• Dry-roast
• Microwave
• Steam
Choose the right sort
of fat
SATURATED MONO- POLY-
UNSATURATED UNSATURATED
• Full fat dairy
produce (eg • Olive oil • Sunflower oil
cheese, butter, full (products)
• Rapeseed oil
cream milk)
• Oily fish
• Groundnut oil
• Pies
• Biscuits
• Savoury snacks
• Lard
• Hard vegetable fat
Cut down on sugary
foods

• Not a sugar free

diet
• Cut out sweets
• Cut out sugary
drinks
Choose low sugar
products

• Use diet or low

calorie, sugar free
drinks
Intense sweeteners

• Tablet
• Liquid
• Granulated
Avoid diabetic
products

• Cost
• Laxative effects
• Focus on ‘sugar free’
• Still raise blood glucose levels
• Still contain same calories
Reduce salt intake

• Cut down on added

salt
• Use alternative
seasonings
• Look out for
reduced/low sodium
foods, eg bread
• Avoid salt substitutes
Eat regular meals
based on carbohydrate:

Breakfast
Lunch or snack meal
Main meal
Weight management
and diabetes
Be more active
Slimming tips

• Be realistic about your target weight

• Aim to lose weight gradually
• Eat regular meals
• Make small changes you can stick to
Drink alcohol in
moderation

That’s
2 units a day for women
3 units a day for men
 How many units in your
drink?
units
• 1 pint premium strength lager or cider 3
• 1 pint average strength lager 2.8
• 1 pint average strength cider 2.6
• 1 pint bitter 2.3
• 1 pint stout 2.3
• Medium glass (175mls)white or red wine 2.3
• Large glass (250mls) white or red wine 3.3
• Pub measure (25mls) spirit 1
For more information
on diabetes
0800 585 088
 Diabetes UK Careline
0845 120 2960
Monday to Friday
9am to 5pm
Recorded diabetes information
24hours/day
Website - www.diabetes.org.uk