6 Strange But Healthy Diabetes Tips
Whether it is diabetes or prediabetes — or just generally suffering ill effects from crazy blood sugar swings— anyone can benefit from these tips, which can make all the difference in living well and staying off the "roller coaster" that can drag down your mood and energy and skew your hunger levels. Here are 6 tips you might not expect but may work very well for diabetics!*
Tip 1: Walk It Out
Most people think eating too much sugar is the reason for diabetes, but it's a total myth!
In fact, scientists have made a recent discovery about the root cause of high blood sugar, and it has little to do with genetics, aging, or even eating too much sweets...*
It turns out that the main cause of diabetes all have to do with "beta-cells" hidden within our body... and they are vital in keeping our glucose levels in check.*
Tip 2: Eat More Barley
In your effort to eat more quinoa, you might have forgotten about an oldie-but-goodie carb: barley. This whole grain is packed with fiber that tamps down your appetite and can help decrease blood sugar**, according to a Swedish study published in the journal Cell Metabolism**.
Why? Gut bacteria interacts with barley, which may in turn help your body metabolize glucose (sugar). Besides, 1 cup of cooked barley contains 6 grams of fiber, which could help to mute blood sugar spikes. Don't be afraid to toss it in soups, on a roasted veggie salad, or have it as a side to fish or chicken.
Tip 3: Bump Up Exercise Intensity
Exercise is a great way to boost your body's ability to manage blood sugar, but making sure it's a heart-pumping workout will help even more. Performing brief spurts of high-intensity exercise (like sprinting on the treadmill for 30 seconds, then walking or slowly jogging until you recover) improved blood glucose levels in diabetics and healthy people for one to three days, per a 2013 review of research**.
Muscles soak up glucose during exercise to burn for energy, and the higher-intensity movements may aid this process even more.
Tip 4: Combine Macronutrients
Carbs plus protein or fat is a super combo when it comes to controlling blood sugar. The protein or fat you eat slows down digestion, thus buffering a blood sugar spike. "For some people, a sharp rise in blood glucose after eating carbohydrates alone could be followed by a drop in blood glucose, which may cause them to feel hungry," explains says Judith Wylie-Rosett, Ed.D., R.D., professor of health promotion and nutrition research at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
That's the exact opposite of what you want to happen after you've eaten a meal. Next time you're grabbing some fruit (carb), pair it with a hard-boiled egg (protein). Or try beans (carb) with chicken (protein) and/or a slice of avocado (fat).
Tip 5: Go for Whole Fruit over Juice
A glass of orange juice is not the same as eating a whole orange. "People generally drink more juice and therefore consume more calories and sugar than they would by just eating fruit," says Wylie-Rosett. Plus, you get more fiber from the whole fruit. For instance, there's about 4 grams in a large orange, compared to less than 1 gram in 8 ounces of juice.
A small amount of juice is OK, but it shouldn't be your go-to beverage, she says. When you do drink it, make sure you're serving it up in an actual juice glass (which might hold 4 ounces, for example) rather than a large cup.
Tip 6: Pick Veggies Wisely
You know vegetables are good for you—but they're not all equal when it comes to carbs. A half-cup of starchy veggies, like peas, corn or squash, equals 15 grams of carbohydrate, Wylie-Rosett points out.
But nonstarchy veggies contain about half that, so you can eat much more of them while making less of an impact on blood sugar. Everything in moderation is fine, but make your most-of-the-time choices the nonstarchy variety, like lettuce, cauliflower, spinach, kale and Brussels sprouts.
