Here Are Healthy Snacks You Can Munch On If You Are Diagnosed with Diabetes

Being diagnosed with diabetes doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a death sentence. However, suffering from this condition means you should be careful in what you eat because anything you put in your mouth has an impact on your body.

The key here is to make sure that the patient’s diet must regulate their blood sugar levels. But, this is easier said than done because you need to make sure that you eat the right foods at the right time. Failure to do so may cause loss of consciousness, confusion, and even seizures.

Why You Need to Eat the Right Snacks

According to the American Diabetes Association, carbohydrates tracking is vital for diabetic patients. Specifically, the right amounts of this protein and insulin are what helps you understand your blood sugar levels.

New Africa/Shutterstock — Diabetic patients should be careful of their diet

Normally, when people eat carbs, it becomes glucose and when cells absorb this, there will be a drop in blood sugar. However, for diabetic patients, the cells don’t absorb the glucose properly so it stays on the blood, hence, the spike in blood sugar.

This is why it is crucial to tweak your diet so that your carbohydrates get balanced out with other key nutrients. This means that your body needs foods that are less in carbs and more in fiber, protein, and healthy fats.

High-Fiber Foods

Fiber is an important nutrient to help regularize our bowel movement. High-fiber foods are processed by our bodies slowly, which is why it aids in keeping our cravings at bay. Moreover, it is responsible for delaying the absorption of glucose into the blood and therefore prevents high blood sugar.

Because fiber keeps you feeling full for longer periods, it can aid overweight diabetes type 2 patients, licensed dietitian Amy Stephens said. Plus, high-fiber snacks are low on the glycemic index, a ranking of high-carb foods based on how they can spike blood sugar levels.

High-Protein Snacks

Unlike carbs, proteins are used to repair and build tissues in the body and don’t cause a rise in blood sugar because it is not converted into glucose. However, you should always be careful in choosing high-protein snacks since there are also those that are rich in carbs as well like protein bars.

Eight Photo/Shutterstock — The right amount of protein doesn’t spike your blood sugar

This doesn’t mean it’s a pass to eat all proteins you can find. Excessive protein would become stored fat, which could cause a spike in blood sugar.

Healthy Fats

Syda Productions/Shutterstock — Healthy fats that are found in many foods are essential

Apart from fiber, foods rich in healthy fats can also slow down digestion. The rise in blood sugar will be more gradual as compared to a high-carb snack.