In my previous article I have written about my personal journey from the point of having a vague idea about this disease to knowing how to be in charge of it. Here I would like to write specifically about diabetic meals in the Indian context. Most medical research happens in USA and therefore there is more information available online about American meals and lifestyles to control diabetes. But, slowly India has become the diabetes capital of the world and sometimes we have our Indian doctors to thank for it. Diabetes is a lifestyle disease and there is very little information provided to us about the changes one needs to make in the lifestyle and food habits in order to live healthy with the disease.
There is a lot of general information available about this
online, so I am going to try to stick to information specific to Indian food
habits. Before that, let me cover some of the basics of diabetes management. In
simple words your blood sugars surge up when your body has not produced enough
insulin to manage the carbohydrate intake (not sugar alone) that you took in
the previous meal. In addition our liver
produces sugar, which can only be controlled by medication. We will not talk
about that here. We will stick to the part that we can control or manage. Let me point out that along with diet and
exercise constant touch with your doctor to manage your medication is very
important.
When I say that the insulin produced is not enough to manage
the carbohydrate intake, you either, need to increase the insulin produced, or
lower the carbohydrate intake. Increasing insulin means taking stronger drugs.
So, why not try and reduce the carbohydrate intake. What is the recommended
carbohydrate intake during the day? Let us call 15 gms of carbs = 1 unit.
Breakfast – 2 unit.
Lunch – 3 unit.
Snack – 2 unit.
Dinner – 3 unit.
Carb Counting:
This is a healthy intake for everybody. But non-diabetics
can afford some cheating, not us. Here
comes the next question, How do you know how many carbohydrates a meal has. Let
me cover all the commonly consumed food groups by Indians that have
carbohydrate and this may surprise a lot of us.
Foods approx.
Carbohydrate
Starchy or sweet
veggies: potatoes, peas,
carrots, corn etc. 15
gms in ½ cup
Beans: Rajma, Chole, Moong, Chauli, etc. 15 gms in ½ cup
Pulses or Dals: Arhar(toor),
Moong, Masoor, etc. 15 gms in ½ cup
Milk: Milk, Curd (yogurt), etc 12-15 gms in 1 small cup
Grains:
Chapti/Roti 15 gms in thin 6” round
Paratha 25 -40 gms 8” round
Naan 22-25
gms one standard triangle
Tandoori Roti 25-30
gmsin 6” round
Rice 15 gms in 1/3 cup cooked
Meats: Goat meat, Chicken, Fish, Shrimp, etc. 0 gms
Starch free veggies: Bhindi, Baingan, Karela, Doodhi, etc.. 0 gms
The 0 gm carbohydrate foods can be eaten in unlimited
quantities but the other foods have to be accounted for. Juices although may seem healthy are not recommended for diabetics
as ½ or 1/3 rd cup of fruit juice contain 15 gms.(i.e. 1 unit) of carbs each
and there is no fiber. Eat a fruit instead.
Substitution:
I decided to write
this article not only to help manage diabetes, but also to happily manage it.
What I mean by it is, if you account for the carbs that you are eating, you can
actually eat what you want once in a way. You can have 1 cup of juice if you do
not mind letting go of your 2 units of carbs(2 rotis) during one of the meals.
Have your juice and the veggies and dal. So you are substituting your foods but
still staying in the allowed limit of cars. Since, carbs are the actual
culprit, it is important that you carefully count and substitute them.
Miscalculations will show up in your sugar levels. Minor ups and downs are ok.
Diabetics are not expected to and should not control their sugar levels to
those of non-diabetics. It can be dangerous.
Substituting your healthy meals for a treat once in a way is
ok. But, you should avoid doing this often. Not all carbohydrates are created
equal. Fruits have sugars and therefore carbs, but they are a far better choice
than eating rabdi. When you eat fruits you get vitamins, antioxidants, fiber
etc. whereas rabdi is full of saturated fats.
Make choices for a healthy body in the long run. Side
effects of diabetes can shock you, since there are rarely any obvious symptoms.
So, count your carbs and plan your meals. Avoid being spontaneous. Occasional
cheating is totally acceptable.
Hi Sonal,
ReplyDeleteFound your analysis v. interesting. I too have diabetes in family, so have to watch my diet as well. Many thanks for the information.
Regards,
Mandheer
PS:Are you in Mumbai?
Thanks Mandheer, it helps to know that people find value in this information. I live in Pune.
DeleteGood & practical information even for non diabetic people like me
ReplyDeleteI am glad you found value. Thanks.
Delete