Count Your Carbs

By now you know that carbohydrates affect your blood glucose levels. No, you do not have to avoid all sweets and starches, and yes, you can have fruit, carrots, and even sugar (in limited amounts)! You need to have a good understanding of what foods have carbohydrates, pay attention to the amount or portion size, select the healthiest carbohydrate foods that offer some fiber, and distribute your “carbs” evenly throughout the day.

What foods have carbohydrates?
- Grains : bread, crackers, rice, cereals, pretzels, pasta
- Starchy Vegetables : potatoes, peas, corn, legumes
- Fruit and fruit juices
- Milk and yogurt
- Sweets and desserts
- Non-starchy vegetables: broccoli, tomatoes, spinach, carrots etc., contain small amount s of carbohydrates and tend to not affect blood glucose unless large quantities are consumed.

The fiber and water content render the small amount of carbohydrate in these foods less available to impact blood glucose.

What are the best carbohydrate choices?

Various forms of carbohydrate affect your blood sugar differently. The same amount of carbohydrate from different foods will have a different effect on your blood sugar. A slice of white bread will raise blood sugar faster than one slice of whole grain bread. In this case, the difference is the fiber content. Foods that digest slowly will relase carbohydrate in the form of glucose into the blood stream more slowly.

Your goal is to eat carbohydrates in such a way that the foods cause a slow, steady release of glucose into your blood stream, so your body can effectively process it. Listed are some factors to keep in mind:
- Carbohydrate foods with fiber will slow digestion and release of glucose; Soluble fiber is particularly favored, such as oat bran, dried beans and peas, fruits, vegetables.
- The more refined the food, the faster the blood sugar rises. Even though fruit juice is healthy, because it is liquid and not solid like the fruit, the quicker the blood sugar will rise. Raw foods tend to be more slowly digested.
- Concentrated sweets such as simple sugar, will quickly raise blood sugar.
- Eating a carbohydrate food with fat, such as butter on the potato, will slow blood sugar rise.
- Adding protein will also slow the digestion - Have peanut butter with some crackers. This is called a combination snack (combines protein, fat and carb)

How much carbohydrate should I have?

There is no official perfect diet for diabetes. The best diabetic diet for you is one that keeps your blood glucose levels as close to target as possible, with the healthiest food choices. There are recommendations from low carbohydrate diets to the Mediterranean diet to vegetarian diets - you can create a personalized diet plan with your dietitian or certified diabetes educator.