Diabetes is a condition in which dietary dos and don’ts play a very important role. It’s the food choices that largely determine fluctuations in your blood sugar level throughout the day. If you don’t want your sugar levels to deviate from the desirable range, you need to eliminate a few foods from your diet completely, or at least limit their intake because it contain high amounts of fat, sodium, carbs, and calories. Here are 5 dangerous foods diabetics should avoid.
1. Sugars
Direct sugars, in any form, can be extremely dangerous to diabetics, be it plain sugar, dried fruits like raisins, syrups, soda, sugary beverages, or desserts. They can all cause a dangerous spike in your blood glucose levels. The only exception here would be natural sugars present in fruits like apples, oranges, strawberries, lemons and plums.
2. Refined Foods
These will include food items like white bread, breakfast cereals, cakes, biscuits, buns, pastries, cookies and white pasta. Basically, anything that is made from refined flour is dangerous for diabetics. Such foods elevate your blood glucose levels as fast as simple sugars do. They also promote insulin resistance, making it even more difficult for you to control your sugar levels.
3. Fried Foods
Chips, fries are going to wreak mess in your life if you are a diabetic. They are made from ingredients that are heavy and starchy in nature. Additionally, they are drenched in oil, adding extra calories to your diet. Most of them will be cooked in hydrogenated oils that contain trans fats, the main culprit for high cholesterol and heart disease.
4. Regular Soft Drinks
Sugar-laden soda can derail your healthy meal plan and spike blood sugar levels. Every 4 grams of sugar equals 1 teaspoon, so if your drink has 30 grams of sugar, that's equal to consuming 7.5 teaspoons of sugar. Beverages with high sugar content not only add calories and carbs, but they may cause weight gain. Of course, there are diet versions of many drinks that are made with artificial sweeteners (sugar substitutes) and other healthier alternatives, such as sparkling water with fruit.
5. Fruit Juice Beverages
Fruit beverages make our list of worst foods for diabetes because they can be high in calories and sugar. Reading labels is a great way to make the best choices before drinking. Also be aware that nutrition information is per serving; many beverages that come in cans or bottles contain more than one serving.