High blood sugar dietary taboos

Don’t eat large amounts of foods with a high glycemic index (GI>70) for a long time, don’t always eat fast-absorbing, empty-calorie foods that don’t feel full, and don’t disrupt your normal nutritional structure with extreme dieting to control sugar. There are no foods that you absolutely cannot eat, and there is no "magic food" that can lower your blood sugar. All requirements can be flexibly adjusted according to your own physical condition.

Don't tell me, I met Uncle Zhang downstairs last week. His fasting blood sugar was just 7.2. When he came back, he gave up white rice and ate boiled vegetables with corn every meal. After half a month, he felt dizzy and unsteady. After measuring the meal, his blood sugar was still above 10. When I asked him, I found out that he had eaten two sticks of sweet corn every meal, and his carbohydrate intake was higher than the previous bowl of rice. It was all for nothing.

Regarding the control of staple foods, there are actually different views in the industry: low-carb or even ketogenic diets that have become popular in recent years advocate that people with diabetes should limit their daily carbohydrate intake to less than 20% of total energy and rely on fat and protein for energy. Indeed, many people with diabetes who are young, have a large body weight, and whose pancreatic islet function has not been significantly damaged have stabilized their blood sugar by this method, and even gradually reduced their dosage.； However, the mainstream domestic endocrine guidelines still recommend moderate carbohydrate control, maintaining the proportion of staple foods at 40%-55% of the total daily energy. It is enough to replace two-thirds of the polished rice and white flour with oats, quinoa, and mixed beans. It is more suitable for the elderly, people with poor pancreatic islet function, and people with abnormal liver and kidney function. After all, long-term low-carb may bring the risk of ketosis and electrolyte imbalance. There is no need to take other health risks to control sugar. I have treated a 62-year-old aunt before. She followed the trend of young people and ate ketogenic meals to control sugar. She suffered from ketoacidosis and went to the emergency room within three months. The gain outweighed the loss.

After talking about staple foods, let’s talk about the “sugar” that everyone is most concerned about. Many people think that controlling sugar means not eating white sugar or drinking milk tea. In fact, the real trick is the invisible sugar in food. Last month, a patient came for a review and said that he had not touched anything sweet for half a year, but his fasting blood sugar still rose from 6.9 to 7.5. After keeping a food diary for three days, he discovered that the problem was in the "sugar-free nutritious cereal" he drank every morning. The second ingredient list was maltodextrin, which has a glycemic index of 30 higher than that of white sugar. Drinking two large cups is equivalent to two spoonfuls of sugar. The lactic acid bacteria drinks that everyone often drinks, the salad dressings in takeaways, and even the salty plum preserves all contain surprisingly high levels of added sugar. Check the ingredient list before buying. If the top three are white sugar, fructose syrup, maltodextrin, and crystallized fructose, try to touch them as little as possible.

By the way, many sugar lovers are now trying to make "sugar-free foods". Here is a reminder: Sugar substitutes are not completely risk-free. A study just published by "Nature Medicine" last year showed that long-term and large intake of artificial sugar substitutes will disturb the intestinal flora and reduce insulin sensitivity. Therefore, sugar-free cola and sugar-free biscuits can only be used to satisfy your cravings once in a while. Do not eat them as daily food. It is best not to exceed 25g of daily sugar substitute intake.

Many people control their sugar very strictly, but they miss another "invisible killer" of raising blood sugar - fat. My friend's father has been suffering from diabetes for 10 years. He always thought that he would be fine if he didn't eat sweets. He cooked fat sheep and beef and ate braised pork elbows every day. The last time he measured his blood sugar after a meal, it soared to 16. He thought the blood glucose meter at home was broken. In fact, a large amount of fat intake will slow down the metabolism of carbohydrates, delaying the peak of blood sugar from 1 hour to 2-3 hours after a meal, and continue to fluctuate at a high level, which is no less harmful to the pancreatic islets than eating sugar directly. There is also a cognitive gap here: some high-protein diet schools believe that people with diabetes can eat more red meat to supplement protein, which will increase blood sugar slowly and make you feel fuller. ； However, if you are a diabetic with high blood fat and high uric acid, you should try to eat less fatty meat and animal offal, and it is safer to replace it with high-quality protein such as fish, shrimp, and chicken breast.

Finally, let me talk about a misunderstanding that many people easily fall into: Don’t believe the rumors that bitter melon, okra, and guava can lower blood sugar. These foods have a low glycemic index at most. If you eat a basket of bitter melon at a time, your blood sugar will still rise. If you really want to control your sugar, you still have to rely on diet adjustment + exercise + taking medicine as prescribed by your doctor. Food has no therapeutic effect. I tried a little trick on my mother. Her fasting blood sugar had been around 6.8 before. She changed the order of eating from "rice first, then vegetables" to "eat half a plate of vegetables first, then meat, and finally less than half a bowl of staple food." After the meal, her blood sugar stabilized directly within 7.5, which is more effective than any anti-hyperglycemic health supplement.

Among the people with diabetes I have come into contact with, the ones with the best blood sugar control are never the kind of people who weigh their meals on a scale or dare not touch anything sweet. Instead, they are able to flexibly adjust: I had a piece of sweet and sour pork ribs at a family dinner today, and then I ate less than half a bowl of staple food and walked half an hour longer after the meal, but my blood sugar remained stable. After all, controlling sugar is a lifelong matter. Instead of trapping yourself in a bunch of taboos and suffering, it is better to understand your body's reaction and find a rhythm that suits you.