To understand the importance of creating a healthy meal plan for diabetes patients, we first need to realize the strong link between food and diabetes. For this, let’s get to know what exactly diabetes is.

What is diabetes and how it is linked to food?

When we eat, our body converts food into energy. How? During digestion, our pancreas creates a chemical or hormone called insulin. Insulin extracts the carbohydrates from the food, converts them into glucose (energy or sugar) and supplies this energy to every cell in the body through the blood stream.

But sometimes, our body cannot produce insulin or cannot use insulin properly. Instead of the glucose reaching your cells and organs, it starts accumulating in the blood stream. This high glucose or sugar content stagnant in the blood is known as diabetes.

Now imagine, what would happen to your sugar levels, if you indulge in foods that are rich in saturated fat, sugar and carbohydrates, when you already have an escalated amount of sugar or glucose in your blood? It’s a sure way of worsening your diabetes and inviting consequent health problems such as kidney failure, wounds not healing properly, heart attack, etc.

That is why creating a meal plan for diabetes patients is of utmost importance, in order to avoid foods that can aggravate diabetes and to welcome foods that can control the sugar levels.

How does a healthy meal plan control or reduce high blood sugar?

A diet plan makes you conscious of what goes into your mouth. Apart from avoiding empty calories (unhealthy fat and added sugars), a meal plan ensures that you eat the right foods only:

• Foods that have a low glycemic index
• Low-fat proteins
• Foods with healthy fats like omega 3

Low glycemic index foods are nothing but edibles that take time to digest. The longer the time for digestion, the slower is the process of the food’s conversion into energy. The more the food takes time to convert into glucose, the lower the rise of sugar in your blood. Low glycemic foods include whole- grain foods like whole wheat, oats, brown rice, etc.  Conversely, eating foods with high glycemic index leads to faster digestion. The faster the digestion, the higher will be the sugar levels.

What makes food low or high in their glycemic index?  It’s the amount of fiber or roughage they possess. Mostly, the higher the fiber content, the lower the glycemic index. That is why eating fresh vegetables and fruits are also advised for controlling diabetes.

A meal plan can be healthy only if the food items themselves are fresh and healthy. A sure way to guarantee the intake of healthy foods is to opt for their organic version – free from chemicals, artificial hormones, pesticides and harmful fertilizers. For a wide range of organic food supplies, 24 Mantra Organic can serve as your one stop solution. Shop now.