As more and more people resort to desk jobs that require less physical activities, they develop a lifestyle that is known as sedentary living. Everything nowadays is practically served up to people. They have ready-to-eat dinners, instant everything, and fast food drive-thrus. Huge portions are also served. High amounts of sugar and saturated fat are also present in everything that they eat. The more non-fat, low-fat, and sugar-free the food items become, the more overwhelmed the consumers are with glucose and fat in their system.
Diabetes is really a problem and once you have it, you have it for life. But this is known to be applicable only to the Type I diabetes patients. For the Type II diabetics, a drastic lifestyle and diet change may result to a complete turnaround in the condition. In fact, there were patients who have stopped taking diabetic medicines once they got rid of their obesity and maintained their normal body mass index (BMI).
Experts have formulated various diets that could really help diabetic patients deal with their insulin-glucagon fluctuations. This 1200 calorie diabetic diet is one of them. This diet is designed to maintain a steady 1,200 calorie intake in a day so that the diabetic could achieve his ideal weight if overweight. Here are some tips to take note of when you prepare your meals for the entire day:
1)Â Â Â Â Â Breakfast of champions
Some diabetics skip breakfast because they think that they will be able to lose more weight if they skip a meal. This is the most important meal of the day so it is very important for you to have this meal. Portion control matters but you can eat until you are satisfied. You have to include high-fiber foods like bran, oats, whole wheat bread, red rice, and fruit. You could also drink coffee or tea but without any sweeteners. The 1200 calorie diabetic diet permits you to eat what you want but without the fat.
2)Â Â Â Â Â Mid-morning snacks
You should not spoil your appetite when you snack before lunch. According to the 1200 calorie diabetic diet, you could just eat an apple, watermelon, or pear. Fruits are high in fiber so it would really help your system flush out the toxins.
3)Â Â Â Â Â Launch the lunch
For your lunch, you should get your healthy fats. You could get Omega 3 fatty acids from salmon or tuna if you’re in the mood for fish. If you prefer meats, then you should cook them with dry heat without any added fat. Vegetables should be included in your lunch, too. Incorporate them in a salad with low fat mayonnaise and low fat cheese. Whole wheat bread or ½ cup of red rice should also be included according to the 1200 calorie diabetic diet.
4)Â Â Â Â Â Snack in the afternoon
Late in the afternoon, you could much on 5 pieces of walnuts, cashews, or almonds. If you still want a fruit, then go ahead. Another alternative is a low fat or a non-fat yogurt.
5)Â Â Â Â Â Dinnertime
When dinner comes, you could have baked, roasted, or steamed chicken or fish, highlighted by vegetables that you could toss with any low fat dressing that you prefer. You could also incorporate boiled beans into the salad. Whole wheat pasta or red rice (1/4 or ½ cup) should also be included to provide the carbohydrates.
6)Â Â Â Â Â Bedtime snacking
Again, fruit is the ideal snack you could have before bedtime. You could also drink half a cup of skimmed milk.
The 1200 calorie diabetic diet aims to take care of your appetite. As a diabetic, you should not be hungry at any given time of the day. If this happens, your sugar level will go crazy. So, the 1200 calorie diabetic diet makes you enjoy the entire day’s diet program without leaving you hungry or worse,starving.
If you think that the 1200 calorie diabetic diet will make you eat food items that taste the same all the time, you are mistaken. There is a menu planner available for you to diversify the flavors and cooking methods that you could use for any given food item. With the 1200 calorie diabetic diet, you have the options like that of a normal individual. You just have to take into consideration the amount of food that you take in per meal. The diet teaches you to have portion control because as a diabetic, you tend to overeat and over drink because of polyphagia and polydypsia respectively. So consult your doctor and talk about the 1200 calorie diabetic diet as an option to your usual diet so that you may know what you have to really change in what you eat.