Your main focus is on keeping your blood sugar level in your target range. To help manage your blood sugar, follow a meal plan that has:

• Food from all the food groups
• Fewer calories
• About the same amount of carbohydrates at each meal and snack
• Healthy fats

Along with healthy eating, you can help keep your blood sugar in target range by maintaining a healthy weight. People with type 2 diabetes are often overweight or obese. Losing even 10 pounds (lb) or 4.5 kilograms (kg) can help you manage your diabetes better and more easily. Eating healthy foods and staying active (for example, 150 total minutes of walking or other activity per week) can help you meet and maintain your weight loss goal. Activity lets your muscles use sugar from the blood without needing insulin to move the sugar into the muscle cells.

HOW CARBOHYDRATES AFFECT BLOOD SUGAR

Carbohydrates in food give your body energy. You need to eat carbohydrates to maintain your energy. But carbohydrates also raise your blood sugar higher and faster than other kinds of food.

The main kinds of carbohydrates are starches, sugars, and fiber. Learn which foods have carbohydrates. This will help with meal planning so that you can keep your blood sugar in your target range. Not all carbohydrates can be broken down and absorbed by your body. Foods with more non-digestible carbohydrates, or fiber, are less likely to increase your blood sugar out of your goal range. These include foods such as beans and whole grains.

MEAL PLANNING FOR CHILDREN WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES

Meal plans should consider the amount of calories children need to grow. In general, three small meals and three snacks a day can help meet calorie needs. Many children with type 2 diabetes are overweight. The goal should be to reach a healthy weight by eating healthy foods and getting more activity (60 minutes per day).

Work with a registered dietitian to design a meal plan for your child. A registered dietitian is an expert in food and nutrition.

The following tips can help your child stay on track:

• No food is off-limits. Knowing how different foods affect your child's blood sugar helps you and your child keep blood sugar in target range.
• Help your child learn how much food is a healthy amount. This is called portion control.
• Have your family gradually switch from drinking soda and other sugary drinks, such as sports drinks and juices, to plain water or low-fat milk.

PLANNING MEALS

Everyone has individual needs. Work with your health care provider, registered dietitian, or diabetes educator to develop a meal plan that works for you.

When shopping, read food labels to make better food choices.

A good way to make sure you get all the nutrients you need during meals is to use the Diabetes Plate method. Using a 9-inch plate, this is a visual food guide that helps you choose the best types and right amounts of food to eat. It encourages larger portions of non-starchy vegetables (half the plate) and moderate portions of lean protein (one quarter of the plate) and carbohydrate foods (one quarter of the plate).

EAT A VARIETY OF FOODS

Eating a wide variety of foods helps you stay healthy. Try to include non-starchy vegetables, protein, and carbohydrate foods at each meal.

NON-STARCHY VEGETABLES should take up ½ your plate. Aim for 6 servings per day (For example, 1 serving of cooked broccoli equals 1/2 cup (c) or 80 grams (g) and 1 serving of raw vegetables, such as carrots, equals 1 c or 156 g).

Choose fresh or frozen vegetables without added sauces, fats, or salt. Non-starchy vegetables include dark green and deep yellow vegetables, such as cucumber, spinach, broccoli, romaine lettuce, cabbage, chard, and bell peppers.

FRUITS have carbohydrates, so you need to keep track when planning your meals. Using the Diabetes Plate method, a small piece of fruit or ½ cup fruit salad work well for dessert. If you count carbohydrates, 1 small piece of fruit or 1/2 cup (80 g) of fruit salad have about 15 grams of carbohydrates.

Choose fresh, frozen, canned (without added sugar or syrup), or unsweetened dried fruits. Try apples, bananas, berries, cherries, grapes, melon, oranges, peaches, pears, papaya, pineapple, and raisins.

CARBOHYDRATE FOODS should make up ¼ of your plate.

Choose nutritious carbohydrates that are high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. These include starchy vegetables such as corn, sweet potatoes, and green peas, and whole grains and minimally processed foods made with whole grains.

Whole grains are unprocessed and have the entire grain kernel. Examples are whole-wheat flour, oatmeal, whole cornmeal, amaranth, barley, brown and wild rice, buckwheat, and quinoa. Make sure most of the grains you eat each day are whole grains. Whole grains have lots of fiber. Fiber in the diet keeps your blood sugar level from rising too fast.

Refined grains have been processed (milled) to remove the bran and germ. Examples are white flour, de-germed cornmeal, white bread, and white rice. Try to eat less of these types of carbohydrates, as they tend to raise blood sugar more quickly.

PROTEIN FOODS should make up ¼ of your plate.

Protein foods include meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, dairy, beans and peas, nuts, seeds, and processed soy foods. Remember that plant-based proteins contain some fat and carbohydrates, so be sure to read labels. Eat fish and poultry more often. Aim for 2 servings of fish a week. Remove the skin from chicken and turkey. Select lean cuts of beef, veal, pork, or wild game. Trim all visible fat from meat. Bake, roast, broil, grill, or boil instead of frying.

Choose low-fat dairy products. Be aware that milk, yogurt, and other dairy foods have natural sugar, even when they do not contain added sugar. Take this into account when planning meals to stay in your blood sugar target range. Some non-fat dairy products have a lot of added sugar. Be sure to read the label.

OILS/FATS

Oils are not considered a food group. But they have nutrients that help your body stay healthy. Oils are different from fats in that oils remain liquid at room temperature. Fats remain solid at room temperature.

Limit your intake of fatty foods, especially those high in saturated fat, such as hamburgers, deep-fried foods, bacon, and butter. Aim to get less than 10% of calories from saturated fat. This is about 20 grams or less a day for someone eating a 2,000 calorie diet.

Instead, choose foods that are high in polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fats. These include fish, nuts, and vegetable oils.

Oils can raise your blood sugar, but not as fast as starch. Oils are also high in calories. Talk with your provider or dietitian about what your daily target should be for fats and oils.

WHAT ABOUT ALCOHOL AND SWEETS?

If you choose to drink alcohol, limit the amount and have it with a meal. Check with your provider about how alcohol will affect your blood sugar and to determine a safe amount for you.

Sweets are high in fat and sugar. Keep portion sizes small.

Here are tips to help avoid eating too many sweets:

• Ask for extra spoons and forks and split your dessert with others.
• Eat sweets that are sugar-free.
• Always ask for the smallest serving size or children's size.

YOUR DIABETES CARE TEAM IS THERE TO HELP YOU

In the beginning, meal planning may be overwhelming. But it will become easier as your knowledge grows about foods and their effects on your blood sugar. If you're having problems with meal planning, talk with your diabetes care team. They are there to help you.

Type 2 diabetes diet; Diet - diabetes - type 2

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Updated by: Sandeep K. Dhaliwal, MD, board-certified in Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism, Springfield, VA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.