Let’s say you are diabetic but you like sweets. Are you doomed to a life of deprivation, watching others enjoy themselves but never participating yourself? The surprising answer is no, at least for many type II diabetics.
The reality is that most diabetics eat sugar and then feel guilty about it. Although as a doctor I encourage my patients to avoid sweets and refined carbohydrates, I am well aware that many do not. Complete abstinence is difficult, especially for premenopausal women, who often crave carbohydrates on a cyclical basis.
Of course you hope to get your blood sugar under control, but everyone wants a piece of birthday cake every once in a while. What is a person to do?
Here are 5 tips for eating sugar wisely.
1. Enjoy a little sugar instead of a different carbohydrate. Do you feel guilty about eating sugar but not mashed potatoes? Both raise blood sugar just as quickly and by the same amount. If you’re dying for dessert, skip the bagels, the rice, the potatoes, the lemonade, the corn. After a healthy meal of lean meat and fiber-rich vegetables, enjoy a 300-calorie dessert. If you keep your total caloric intake within a reasonable limit (1,500 to 2,000 calories for most people), eating sugar will affect your blood sugar a little differently than other carbohydrates.
two. Enjoy a sugar alcohol. Although foods sweetened with sugar alcohols are not low in calories, they raise blood sugar less quickly than foods sweetened with regular sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. They also cause fewer cavities and less rebound cravings for more sugar. Most foods labeled “no added sugar” contain sugar alcohols. There are many varieties of no added sugar and reduced fat ice cream available. However, be careful not to eat too much, as this can cause diarrhea and can raise your blood sugar level due to excess calories.
3. Enjoy a mixture of sugar and an artificial sweetener. Much of the sugar we consume is not even tasted. There is a threshold to appreciating sweetness: for many people, a little can go a long way. For example, some people who say they can’t tolerate diet soda find that mixing just a little regular soda with diet soda makes the taste acceptable. Similarly, if you enjoy your coffee sweetened, try 1 teaspoon of sugar instead of 3 and substitute 2 teaspoons of an artificial sweetener; you may not be able to tell the difference.
Four. Enjoy a little sugar with a meal instead of on its own. One problem with eating sweets is that people often eat them plain, causing a spike in blood sugar levels. If eaten alongside a healthy meal of lean protein and low-calorie, high-fiber vegetables, the sugar will mix with other foods, slowing absorption and preventing an immediate rise in blood glucose.
5. enjoy a little sugar us instead of in has dessert. A lot of sugar inside a dessert is wasted, that is, it is not even tasted. Unless you take small bites, savoring each one as it melts on your tongue, chances are more than half of the sweetness will slip down your throat without meeting your taste buds. A piece of cake is high in calories, not only from sugar, but also from flour (which converts to glucose in the body just as quickly as sugar) and from fat (mainly in the frosting). Instead of diving into a 400-calorie cake, indulge in a heaping bowl of berries topped with a few tablespoons of sugar. You’re unlikely to use as much as a quarter cup of sugar, which contains less than 200 calories.
Copyright ©2010 Cynthia J. Koelker, MD
