Looking for sweet alternatives for people with diabetes can be one of the most challenging things to do. Doctors will commonly encourage people with diabetes to avoid sugars and carbohydrates. However, by making some simple nutritional changes, people with diabetes can enjoy desserts.
Let’s Understand Diabetes First
Diabetes is a chronic health condition that affects how your body turns food into energy. Most of the food you eat is broken down into sugar (glucose) and released into your bloodstream. Your pancreas releases insulin when your blood sugar increases. Insulin is a key to let blood sugar into your body’s cells for use as energy.
If you have diabetes, your body doesn’t make enough insulin or can’t use it as well as it should. When there isn’t enough insulin or cells stop responding to insulin, too much blood sugar stays in your bloodstream. Over time, that can cause serious health problems, such as kidney disease, heart disease, and vision loss.
There are three main types of diabetes: type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes.
- Type 1 Diabetes. This is thought to be caused by an autoimmune reaction. This reaction stops your body from making insulin. If you have type 1 diabetes, you’ll need to take insulin every day to survive.
- Type 2 Diabetes. Your body doesn’t use insulin well and can’t keep blood sugar at normal levels with type 2 diabetes. You may not notice any symptoms, so it’s important to get your blood sugar tested if you’re at risk. Type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed with healthy lifestyle changes.
- Gestational Diabetes. This develops in pregnant women who have never had diabetes. If you have gestational diabetes, your baby could be at higher risk for health problems.
Here are Some Sweet Suggestions
Diabetes is caused as a response to resistance to insulin in the cells. Lack of resistance to insulin causes excess sugar to pile up in the blood. Hence, this insulin resistance is why people that are diabetic are expected to consume little or no sugar. Here are some sweet snacks that are safe to eat for people with diabetes.
- Cocoa nut butter.
- Chia pudding
- Apple and nut butter
- Dark chocolate
- Greek yogurt
- Pears
- Oatmeal bites
- Fruit popsicles
Snacking and sweet cravings can be hard to fight if you have diabetes. These suggestions can work as a great fix for your cravings. However, everything is healthy in moderation. These foods may have low sugar but excess of these might also tamper with your sugar levels. The best way to incorporate sweet foods into your diet is to talk to your doctor and navigate which sugar substitutes work best for your diabetes.
Control Your Blood Sugar Levels with These
Easy and evidence-backed ways to naturally lower your blood sugar levels:
- Exercise regularly
- Manage your carb intake
- Eat more fiber
- Drink water and stay hydrated
- Implement portion control
- Choose foods with a low glycemic index
- Try to manage your stress levels
- Monitor your blood sugar levels
- Get enough quality sleep
- Eat foods rich in chromium and magnesium
- Maintain a moderate weight
- Eat healthy snacks more frequently
- Eat probiotic-rich foods
Oral diabetes medications:
Diabetes medications help control blood sugar levels in people whose bodies still produce some insulin. Several oral diabetes medications may be used in combination with each other or with insulin to achieve the best blood glucose control.
Recommended medication may include:
- Metformin Hcl – anti-diabetic drug and a first-choice medicine in controlling blood sugar. The drug keeps and balances the blood sugar in your body as well as prevents kidney damage, blindness, and stroke.