Type 2 diabetes is a common condition in the UK often caused by a person being overweight or obese through poor diet choices.
Many people with type 2 diabetes don’t realise they have it because symptoms don’t necessarily make you feel unwell. But if it’s left untreated, it can lead to serious complications.
One way to prevent and control the condition is to make some simple diet changes.
There are three meals in particularly which should be avoided when it comes to breakfast, dinner and dessert.
Breakfast
Bupa says eating carbohydrates can make your blood sugar shoot up, so counting and using a glycemic index can be useful.
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Matthew Freeby, MD, director of the Gonda Diabetes Center at UCLA Health, says one particular food that falls into the carbohydrate category should be avoided all together.
Speaking to Prevention, Mr Freeby said popular breakfast item, the bagel, should be crossed off the menu.
He explained: “Many of my patients with diabetes think about sugar as being the worst thing that’s impacting their blood sugar, but it’s really about carbohydrates.
“I tell them to look at nutrition labels for the total carbohydrate content, not just the sugar content.
“Donuts and bagels made with refined and processed grains are major sources of blood-sugar-spiking carbs.”
Dinner
Starchy foods, such as potatoes, meat, fish, eggs, pulses, beans and nuts are recommended for people with type 2 diabetes.
But people with diabetes should try to minimise their intake of industrial trans fats as they can have a negative impact on blood sugar levels, according to nutritionists at Healthline.
Trans fats are created by adding hydrogen to unsaturated fatty acids in order to make them more stables, and the site says you should avoid frozen dinners that contain them.
It adds: “Although trans fats don’t directly raise blood sugar levels, they’ve been linked to increased inflammation, insulin resistance and belly fat, as well as lower ‘good’ HDL cholesterol levels and impaired arterial function.
“These effects are especially concerning for people with diabetes, as they are at an increased risk of heart disease.”
Dessert
Diabetes UK says foods labelled as ‘diabetic’ offer no benefit to people with diabetes and may still affect blood glucose levels.
Diabetic puddings, cakes and chocolate are popular ‘diabetic’ food items.
The research charity adds: “It adds: “They are expensive and contain as much fat and calories as ordinary versions, and they can also have a laxative effect.”
How can you identify type 2 diabetes in the first place?
Drinking this much water a day could indicate the condition.