Diabetes diet and healthy eating tips

The following foods are an important part of a healthy diet for people living with diabetes¹:

• Fruits and vegetables: These are low in calories and high in vitamins, minerals, and fibre. They help protect against conditions like heart disease, stoke and high blood pressure. Aim for at least five portions a day.
• Starchy carbohydrates: These provide energy. Choose healthier, high-fibre, and low-glycaemic index options like wholegrain bread, oats, pasta, brown rice, and potatoes with skins on.
• Protein foods: This group includes beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat, and poultry. Choose lean meats and cut off any visible fat. Try to eat two portions of fish a week, with one being oily fish like salmon or mackerel.
• Dairy and alternatives: These provide calcium for healthy bones. Options include milk, cheese, yoghurt and diary alternatives like soya milk. Choose lower-fat and lower-sugar versions.
• Oils and spreads: While some fat is essential, it’s important to limit your intake and choose healthier unsaturated fats. Opt for small amounts of vegetable, olive, or sunflower oil and spreads.

Traditional family recipes and popular foods are often centered around carbohydrates and other ingredients that people with diabetes need to track. 

There are plenty of easy substitutions, in terms of ingredients and preparation, that can help to reduce the blood sugar impact of these dishes for people living with diabetes who are looking to follow a healthy diet.

• Instead of using rice or wheat noodles, try using courgette and other veggies to make noodles.
• Stuffed veggies can be an alternative to dumplings by using cabbage as the wrapper instead of dough.
• For an easy way to add extra vegetables into a diabetes diet, consider swapping out shredded cheese for shredded butternut squash.
• Cauliflower is a versatile ingredient that can be mashed, roasted or fried for a potato substitute. It can also be used to make a delicious pizza crust.
• Choose snacks that are made from fresh, naturally low-carb ingredients. A fresh tomato with some feta cheese, black pepper, and olive oil can provide some quick energy and good nutrients.

Learn more about how carbohydrates affect diabetes in this "Diabetes and carbohydrates" article.

Cutting down on trans and saturated fats is an important aspect of any healthy diet, but especially with a diet for diabetes. That is because these types of fats can raise blood cholesterol levels.² 

People with diabetes are already at a higher risk of heart disease, heart attack, or stroke³, so reducing trans and saturated fat can help to keep your heart healthy.⁴

Tip: To start, try replacing trans fats by cooking with small amounts of unsaturated fats and oils like rapeseed, sunflower or olive oil instead of butter, ghee, lard or coconut oil.²

Saturated fats and trans fats are often found in many foods that seem healthy. Here are a few examples:

Salad dressing

Salads with all those fresh, raw vegetables are a great choice since they’re high in vitamins, minerals, and fibre. But dressings can be high in calories, fat and salt, which can diminish the benefits of eating a salad, especially since many people consume more than the recommended amount of dressing.⁵

Tip: Choose lighter versions and measure servings with a spoon. You can also try making your own salad dressing so you know what's in it.

Sandwiches

While the main sandwich ingredients might be good choices, condiments can add unnecessary fats. 

Tip: Instead of loading up on mayonnaise, use it sparingly or skip it altogether and try mustard. Avoid prepared chicken or tuna salads, as they’re often made with large amounts of full-fat mayonnaise. Create alternative sandwich recipes that use tuna or chicken packed in water and add sliced vegetables, pickle relish, or fresh herbs.

Packaged baked goods

Any kind of commercial bakery or snack item is a potential source of trans fat: pies, cakes, cookies, crisps, and even healthy-sounding wheat crackers.⁶ That’s because trans fat helps keep products fresh over time. 

Tip: Check the nutrition information and look for "partially hydrogenated" or "hydrogenated" oil, which would indicate that the product has trans fat. Understanding where bad fats can be found makes it easier to avoid those foods and make healthier eating choices instead. 

Dietary fibre

One reason people love carbs is because they give a full and satisfied feeling after a meal. But there are other options that can satiate hunger without interfering with a diabetes diet. 

Choosing foods rich in fibre can give a feeling of fullness.⁷ And because it’s not actually broken down by the body, eating fibre can improve your blood glucose levels.⁷ 

Tip: Great sources of fibre come from a variety of sources, including pulses (like lentils and peas), beans and legumes (like haricot beans), fruits, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains.⁷

Helpful tips for following a diabetes diet

Eating is often a communal activity with friends and family, especially around special events, such as birthdays and holidays. For both people living with diabetes and those living without it, choosing healthy foods to prepare together can add a new layer of connection to something that’s already enjoyable.

1. Use a smaller plate

A healthy portion can look quite small on a large plate, which can make it easy to overeat.⁸ When preparing food to eat at home or to take to work, choose a plate or container that matches the actual size of the meal.

2. Stay consistent 

Try to eat around the same time every day. Eating three scheduled meals a day and one to two snacks keeps blood sugar levels stable.^9-11 Make this easier to accomplish by planning meals in advance. 

3. Trade up

Small changes can make a big difference. For example, eating quinoa – instead of white rice or pasta – can provide more protein and fibre for the same serving size, and helps keep you fuller for longer.¹² 

Choose whole-grain versions of your favourite foods and try to add veggies whenever possible, from a veggie omelette to replace bacon and eggs to cauliflower in mashed potatoes. Choose homemade over processed foods whenever possible.

4. Eating protein at every meal and snack

Eating protein at every meal and snack will help sustain fullness and curb sweet and snack cravings. Yoghurt, nuts, a hard-boiled egg, lean meat, or beans can help manage your hunger.  

5. Know what you're eating

Use a pen and paper or a mobile app to keep track of what you’re actually eating. When you have a clear understanding of your food intake, you can make the necessary changes to your nutritional habits.  

6. Portion control

Many people with diabetes learn how to count carbohydrates in order to manage their blood sugar levels.¹³ So even if you have been doing this for a while you can occasionally slip up and find your blood glucose levels out of balance. One of the easiest ways to miscount carbs is by underestimating portion sizes, so here are a few handy tips.

Use a kitchen scale and measuring jug

Using a kithcen scale and measuring jug can make portion control a lot easier. Instead of guessing that a small portion of brown rice (95g) has about 28g carbs or so, knowing the exact amount of carbs that are in it can make a big difference when managing carbohydrate intake. Over the course of a day, small inaccuracies can add up and throw off carb counts.¹³

How to approximate portion size

If you do not have a kitchen scale or measuring jug to hand, here are some ways to approximate portion based on an average healthy adult.¹⁴

• Carbohydrates, like cooked rice or pasta, can be measured by cupping your two hands together (180g). For potatoes, a jacket or sweet potato is about the size of your fist (220g).
• Cooked lean meat (e.g. chicken, beef, or pork) is about the size of a deck of playing cards (60-90g).
• Cooked white fish is roughly half to a whole hand, while oily fish is about the size of your palm.
• Plant-based protiens, like Quorn or soya mince (100g) or Tofu (80-100g) is about 4 tablespoons.
• Dairy portions, hard cheese or paneer is about the size of a matchbox (30g), milk is about one medium glass (200ml), cream cheese is about three teaspoons (30g).
• Cooked vegatables is about three heaped tablespoons, whilst a bowel of salad greens is about two handfuls.
• Unsalted nuts or nut butter can be measured with a small handful or a single tablespoon.
• Fruit can be measured using your hands, for example, a handful of graps or two medium plums.
• The size of the thumb is about one tablespoon.
• The tip of a pointer finger to the first joint or a postage stamp is about one teaspoon.

Serving size and portion size

Look at food labels to see what they consider to be a serving size. Many people eat more than the serving size on the package. Microwave popcorn is a perfect example. The bags typically say they hold three servings. But how many people only eat a third of the bag? If you eat more than the recommended serving size, make sure you know the exact amount of carbs you are eating.

Plan the plate

The Eatwell Guide, developed by the NHS¹⁵, is an excellent tool for understanding the components of a healthy, balanced diet. It illustrates the proportions of different food groups that should make up your overall food intake.

When adopting a diabetes diet, it is important to prioritise moderation and balance your carbohydrate and fat intake. It's about making simple, everyday decisions that positively impact your blood sugar levels and overall health while still eating the foods you love.

This content is provided for general information only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely – you must obtain professional or specialist advice from your healthcare professional before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content. Although we make reasonable efforts to ensure that the content is up to date, Roche makes no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content is accurate, complete, up-to-date or that it should be relied upon.