Diabetes can cripple you for life if you let it, but one way of taking control and not letting it do that is by following a diabetes diet plan. This is not really an option - unless you do so, your health will worsen and every facet of your life will be affected by diabetes. So what you should do is, consult a nutritionist who will design a healthy eating plan for you, which has enough variation to satiate your taste buds, while ensuring that your nutritional needs are met at the same time.
A healthy diet plan for diabetics has very strict composition - it must have 50% starch, 20% fat and 30% protein. Since the composition should be so exact, diabetic food must be prepared very precisely, with a great deal of attention given to exact measurements.
You will have to pass up on some of the food stuff that you like, like fried foods. Instead, you will have to focus on baked, steamed, boiled and broiled foods when you are on your healthy eating plan. Snacking between meals is not allowed either - and you must make sure that you never miss meals, because that can affect your metabolism.
On your diabetes diet plan, you will have to avoid a lot of foods like whole milk products, frozen and preserved fruits, honey, candy, sweets, confectionery items, your favorite desserts - instead, you must stick to healthy alternatives, like fresh fruits and vegetables and skimmed milk for your diary intake.
There are plenty of other things you will have to try your very best to avoid - alcohol tops the list. Other high-fat foods like red meat, potato chips, eggs, mayonnaise etc must also be avoided, if you can, as should bottled fruit juice, cooking sauces and carbonated drinks. When you are on a strict diabetic eating plan, the daily calorie intake you must aim at is 1800 calories. So you have to make sure that your daily diet is carefully planned well in advance.
The simplest and most nutritious diabetes diet plan for a single day can include a breakfast containing 2/3 cup of apple juice, cup of oatmeal, 1 slice of wholemeal bread toast, 1 soft cooked egg and 1 cup unsweetened skimmed milk. Lunch can be cup of tuna, 2 slices of wholemeal bread, cup diced tomatoes, 1 cup mixed fruit, 1 tsp margarine and 1 glass lemon tea. The ideal dinner meal would be 3 ounces of baked chicken, cup of mashed potatoes, 1 slice of wholemeal bread, 1 cup broccoli or tossed salad. Try not to use store-bought salad dressing. Instead, use a 1tsp of olive oil mixed with some vinegar mixed in chopped garlic and parsley/basil/sage or oregano to add flavor.
So making the right diabetes diet plan is not easy - you have to know what nutrition your body needs and you have to understand your metabolism. With your doctor, you can make your own diet plan to keep diabetes away, which will be tasty, healthy and a pleasure to follow.