Gestational Diabetes Diet Food List – I know how frustrating it can be to be newly diagnosed with gestational diabetes and have no idea what “gestational diabetes approved” foods to have on hand.
When you have gestational diabetes, having the right foods in the house makes a huge difference in your ability to manage your blood sugar. Take this printable list with you to the store to give you some ideas on what foods to work into your meal plan.
Gestational Diabetes Diet Food List
This valuable resource will help you stock your fridge and pantry with foods you can actually eat with gestational diabetes. Here’s what you’ll learn when you download it (it’s FREE!):
Sample Gestational Diabetes Meal Plan With Tips + Recipes
Not all foods affect blood sugar in the same way. Learn which foods have the biggest impact on blood sugar.
It’s really hard to manage your blood sugar if you don’t have the right food around. Pay close attention to which foods are on the list AND which foods are NOT on the list.
Walking around the grocery store with that deer-in-the-headlights look? No longer! Learn how to shop so you don’t spend hours in the store!
Combining protein and non-starchy vegetables with carbohydrate-rich foods can help you manage your blood sugar and keep you full throughout the day.
Real Food For Gestational Diabetes: Podcast Episode #115
“I know what’s going through your mind right now, and I know how you probably feel. Because I’ve been right where you are right now.
I had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant with my twins, and I know how scary it can be. In fact, it was because of my experience with gestational diabetes that I went back to school to become a registered dietitian.
I learned how to strategically use food to control my blood sugar, and I want to help you learn how to do the same.” -Ambe The Gestational Diabetes Diet can be confusing when you start. Learn the “why” and “how” here .
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The Gestational Diabetes Cookbook: 101 Delicious, Dietitian Approved Recipes For A Healthy Pregnancy And Baby: Rivera, Sara Monk: 9781612438689: Books
If you haven’t already, it is highly recommended that you read everything you need to know about gestational diabetes and gestational diabetes tests and options. These articles will give you a better understanding of the “why” behind the diet.
Gestational diabetes (GD), also called gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), is diabetes detected during pregnancy. It is treated with diet, exercise and medication if needed. In most cases, diet is the first form of treatment, and if the combination of diet and exercise does not effectively control blood sugar, medication and/or insulin is the next step.
Treatment is on a case-by-case basis. You and your care team will decide what is best for your situation. For more information visit Everything you need to know about gestational diabetes.
Gestational diabetes requires a special diet because your pancreas cannot produce enough insulin to maintain safe blood sugar levels. Since carbohydrates are the nutrient that raises blood sugar, the diet requires you to change the type of carbohydrates you eat, the amount and how often you eat them.
Diabetes Grocery Checklist Diabetic Food List Grocery List
Figuring out what works for you will be a trial-and-error journey; However, there are general guidelines to help.
It is likely that you will need to reduce the number of carbohydrates you eat so that your body’s natural insulin remains effective.
For GD, breakfast and snacks are normally limited to 15g – 20g of carbohydrates and lunch and dinner are limited to 30g – 45g of carbohydrates.
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It is estimated that pregnant women (without GDM) need about 156 g of carbohydrates per day. Based on your GDM test results, your dietitian will recommend a maximum number of carbohydrates per day and per meal. Real food for pregnancy
Chicken And Chorizo Rice • Gestational Diabetes Uk
If you’ve been diagnosed but haven’t seen a dietitian yet, it’s wise to start with the lower carb intake for each meal. Note how you feel and if your blood sugar is within range and adjust up or down from there.
Take a look at the chart below. You will see that foods are not placed in their usual food groups; instead, they are categorized based on their macronutrients and how they affect blood sugar. Pay particular attention to the Carbohydrates column where you see unusually placed foods such as fruit and milk.
Notice that some foods are listed in two columns, such as beans. That’s because beans have significant amounts of both protein and carbohydrates. And you might be wondering why yogurt is in the carbs column but Greek yogurt is listed under Proteins. Greek yogurt, like beans, has a considerable amount of protein and should be considered both a protein and a carbohydrate.
So what you can take from the chart above is that the foods listed as proteins and fats will not spike your blood sugar. However, the foods listed as carbohydrates will raise your blood sugar.
Gestational Diabetes Diet
Now that you have a general idea of what foods are considered carbohydrates in this diet, let’s break them down.
“Glycemic” is common terminology in the diabetic world. Glycemia is a ranking system for carbohydrates and how they affect blood sugar/glucose.
Simple carbohydrates are considered moderate to high glycemic because they are processed quickly by your body. In other words, they rush into your system and cause your blood sugar to rise rapidly (spike). Simple carbohydrates include:
These are usually found in heavily processed foods. These are the types of carbs you want to eat less of, if not avoid.
Gestational Diabetes And A Plant Based Diet
Tip – If your blood sugar is too low, eat simple carbohydrates to quickly bring it back to a safe level. Complex carbohydrates
Complex carbohydrates have more fiber and are digested more slowly. They will still raise your blood sugar but at a slower rate. This is important because it also makes your natural insulin more effective. Complex carbohydrates include:
You want to eat more complex carbohydrates than simple carbohydrates because they are more nutritious and better maintain your energy levels.
Note that starchy vegetables are not included in complex carbohydrates. This is because they are more starchy than fibrous. Starchy vegetables and foods include:
Gestational Diabetes Healthy Diet: Food For Diabetes During Pregnancy
Starchy vegetables and grains are high glycemic. This doesn’t mean you can’t eat a baked potato, rice or corn; rather, it means that you must strictly portion out each serving to avoid spikes. Although some mothers feel they must avoid one or more of these foods.
To summarize, carbohydrates are what raise blood sugar. Eating complex carbohydrates like whole grains, whole fruits, vegetables, beans, etc. is better than eating simple carbohydrates like sugar, white grains, juices, jellies, baked goods, etc. Starchy carbohydrates like potatoes, corn, peas, oats, brown grains, etc. are good but should be strictly portioned.
No matter what type of carbohydrate you eat, it’s best to pair it with another food group. Protein acts as a stabilizer so your blood sugar doesn’t rise. And since protein needs increase during pregnancy, pairing carbohydrates with protein is doubly beneficial.
Protein needs change with the stages of pregnancy. It is recommended that pregnant women eat around 140g of protein daily. Real food for pregnancy
Pregnancy Diet: Best Foods And Supplements
When it comes to vegetables and proteins, it’s hard to raise your blood sugar. What I mean by that is that you can probably eat double the servings (and get full) before you hit your carb max with just veggies and protein.
Yes; vegetables have carbohydrates, but they are complex carbohydrates that are digested slowly, and most are low glycemic. They are much lower in carbohydrates than any food in the carbohydrate column – foods in the carbohydrate column have carbohydrates that significantly affect your blood sugar.
*Whole fruits are encouraged in this diet because they are nature’s food with essential vitamins and minerals; but since they are simple carbohydrates that digest quickly, they must be strictly portioned. Small whole fruits are safest. Examples of whole fruits are oranges, apples, pears, peaches, berries, etc. – fruits that still have their peel or outer shell; is in its natural form. Fruits that are not considered whole are juices, concentrates, dried or otherwise transformed.
**Trans fats are found in margarine, peanut butter and other spreads, baked goods and other processed foods. Sometimes the amount of trans fat per serving is not enough to record it on the nutrition label. To know if a food contains trans fat, check the ingredients for “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated.”
Diabetic Food List (pdf)
When you eat, you tell your blood sugar what to do. If you eat simple carbs, you’re telling it to give you a quick pick, and if you eat complex carbs, you’re telling it to hold you over for a while. But what happens when you don’t eat?
When you don’t eat, your blood sugar decides what it wants to do. It can sink low or spike high. (This is why fasting glucose is the hardest.) Both situations are undesirable, so you have to tell it what to do – which means you have to eat every few hours.
Snacks are built into the diet between meals to ensure sugar doesn’t drop too low or peak too high.
Ideally, snacks are eaten about 3 hours after a meal and at least 2 hours before the next meal. As always, they should be within carbohydrate limits and paired with protein.
Meal Planning With Gestational Diabetes
When it comes to drinks for diabetics, the options are few. Soda and juice are on the list of foods to avoid, and many other drinks use “hidden” sweeteners that have an effect
