30 Day Meal Plan for People with Diabetes

According to the American Diabetes Association, 23.6 million adults and children in the United States have been diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetics need to monitor their blood-sugar levels to avoid hyperglycemia, which is another term for high blood glucose. According to the American Diabetes Association, the glycemic index (GI) is used by diabetics to measure how different types of foods affect blood-glucose levels. A 30-day meal plan for people with diabetes needs to consist of carbohydrates that can provide long-lasting energy and not foods that provide large amounts of glucose.

Fruits

Every 30-day meal plan for people with diabetes should include certain types of fruit. Some fruits have extremely high GI scores, and other fruits have extremely low GI scores. A 30-day meal plan for people with diabetes should consist of fruit salads that contain fruits with extremely low GI ratings. Fruits that have a GI rating below 30 include grapefruit, plums, prunes, cherries and peaches. Fruit salads are great for a 30-day meal plan because they contain fiber and extremely low GI ratings.

However, certain fruits should be avoided when creating a 30-day meal plan because they have extremely high GI ratings. Mangos, bananas, raisins, pineapple, papaya, figs and sultanas all have GI ratings more than 50 and should be avoided when creating a 30-day meal plan for diabetics.

Nuts

When creating your 30-day diabetic meal plan, you should strongly consider adding nuts to your diet. Many nuts have fairly low GI ratings and can also be great for a snack in the middle of the day. Walnuts, cashews and peanuts all have GI ratings of under 30. Nuts are a high calorie food, which is why they should not be consumed as the only food in a meal. However, nuts can be used as a snack or added to a salad.

Vegetables

Every 30-day meal plan for diabetics should contain extremely large amounts of vegetables. Vegetables have extremely high amounts of fiber and also have an astoundingly low GI rating. Sugar will also be released into the blood stream slowly because of the fact that fiber slows down the digestive process. Salads and meals that are high in fiber are also more filling, which will prevent sugary cravings from diabetics. Red peppers, green beans, mushrooms, cabbages and tomatoes all have GI ratings lower than 20. When creating your 30-day diabetic meal plan, try to include some vegetable salads.

Beans

If you want to make your salads more interesting, then you might try adding beans to your salads. Navy beans, green lentils, red lentils, butter beans and yellow split beans have GI scores of under 40. Beans can also be used as a snack from time to time. Every 30-day meal plan for diabetics should contain vegetables, beans and some fruits because of the low GI ratings and high fiber content.