What Should A Type 2 Diabetic Eat For Breakfast
Great breakfast options for diabetics include oatmeal, whole-grain waffles, or cereal. Cereals with less sugar content and more whole wheat are recommended.
If you have a type 2 diabetes diagnosis then it’s likely that breakfast is one of your most important meals. Eating healthy foods for breakfast will not only make it more enjoyable but also assist in balancing out your glucose levels for an easier morning. So what should type diabetics eat? Well, there are many different options, some better than others but this list will help you further.
Always consult with your diabetes doctor before making any dietary changes just in case there’s something else going on or if certain medications make it hard to process sugars properly. Once again, these options are not perfect but can help people who want to maintain stable blood sugar come breakfast time!
How To Make Low Carb Oatmeal
If you enjoy the routine of making regular oatmeal, then I have good news for you: this recipe uses almost the exact same process! Youll bring all the ingredients together in a pot until nice and thick, then serve with your desired toppings.
Step 1: Add the almond flour, coconut flour, flax seed powder, chia seeds, and ground cinnamon to a mixing bowl. Whisk together until well-combined.
Step 2: Transfer the dry ingredients to a pot over medium heat. Add the stevia drops, almond milk, and vanilla extract, then stir well.
Step 3: Cook the oatmeal for 3 5 minutes until its warmed through and starting to thicken. Remove from the heat and taste, adding salt if desired.
Step 4: Serve the oatmeal warm with your desired low carb toppings.
This thick, hearty breakfast is ready in less than 15 minutes! I like to top mine with fresh berries, nuts, and seeds for added crunch and flavor while still keeping the overall meal low in carbs.
Calculating Your Daily Allowance
If you don’t have diabetes, the AHA recommends limiting calories from sugar to 10% of your total calories. One gram of sugar equals 4 calories.
For a 2,000-calorie diet, that means you can have up to 50 grams of sugar from all sources per day. It’s worth noting that the World Health Organization recommends an even lower percentage: no more than 5% of total calories from sugar.
If you have diabetes, it’s important to work with your doctor to figure out what’s right for you. Ask what percentage of your total daily calories should come from sugar. This will help you to make adjustments if you are obese and need to cut calories or if you are underweight and need to increase calories.
Also Check: How Many Points Does Metformin Lower Blood Sugar
Choosing The Best Cereals
All cereals will contain carbs meaning that whatever kind you choose, youll need to be cautious of how much you eat and how they fit into your balanced diet as a whole. But that being said, some cereals are far healthier than others.
If you want to eat cereal when you have prediabetes, you can be careful and choose a healthy type that will work with you in reaching your health goals rather than against you.
To help you learn how to choose a healthy cereal, heres a guide on what to avoid and what to look for instead:
Overnight Oatmeal Or Regular Oatmeal
You can also try oatmeal as it’s high in fiber and will keep blood sugar levels under control. For people with diabetes who are looking to eat oatmeal as their breakfast cereal, it’s important to know that some types of oats can be really high in sugar so they should go for steel-cut oats instead since these have a much lower glycemic index than rolled or quick-cooking oats. You may also want to avoid flavored instant oatmeals because these usually contain artificial sweeteners which could lead to weight gain over time or other health problems like insulin resistance.
Also Check: Can Metformin Cause Liver Damage
Shredded Whole Wheat Cereal
When a diabetic patient has shredded wheat cereal mixed with low-fat milk, it can be a healthy choice for his/her breakfast. The reason for this is that it is rich in fiber and does not contain any kind of sugar salt. Yet, you should be careful with the veggies as they can have added sugar in them. Instead, start including healthy fruits such as a banana or berries.
Top Tips When Selecting Cereal
- Be aware of portion sizes – consider whether the portion size suggested on the box is the same as the portion size you’re consuming. Many people pour a larger bowl and therefore consume more calories and more carbohydrate. This is important if you’re counting calories to control weight, or if you carb count to adjust the correct dose of insulin.
- Weigh your cereal a couple of times to get an idea of the amount you usually consume and then keep a note of this along with other foods you consume on a regular basis. Use this weight against the per 100g values to calculate your intake.
- Another tip when carb counting – remember to allow for the extras you have added to your cereal such as milk, fruit or yogurt.
- Check the label for fibre and try to choose a cereal with a higher fibre content.
- The type of milk you choose to put on your cereal can also contribute to overall health – choosing semi-skimmed or skimmed instead of whole milk can reduce your overall fat intake for the day.
- Try to choose cereals that are graded green for sugar, where possible.
Don’t Miss: What Is A High Blood Sugar Reading
Best Cereals For Diabetics 2021
The hardest part of having diabetes is figuring out what you can and cant eat without sacrificing the quality of your meals. Often, even dietary staples like cereal require in-depth analysis and perhaps even a doctors permission before you can enjoy a serving. Because cereal is easy, accessible, and convenient, not being able to grab a bowl can be very frustrating for a lot of diabetics.
Fortunately, not all breakfast cereals are off limits. Wondering which option proves to be the best cereal for diabetics? Check out this list of our top 10 picks and find out which breakfast cereals you can indulge in minus the risk and guilt.
What Is The Best Cereal For A Diabetic
Diabetes
What is the best breakfast cereal for diabetics to eat?
Many of my patients tell me that their blood sugars are best and they feel the most satisfied when they eat the following brands of cold cereal:
- Cascadian Farm Organic Purely Os.
- Cheerios.
- Barbaras Bakery Puffins
which cereals have the least sugar?Breakfast cereals ranked best to worst
Don’t Miss: Drugs That Interact With Metformin
Oatmeal Is One Of The Best Cereals For Diabetics
One of the best cereal choices for people with diabetes is oatmeal. A simple bowl of instant oatmeal is so easy to make, just add hot water, and it is also incredibly healthy and keeps blood sugar levels stable. Oatmeal is also incredibly high in soluble fiber as well.
Try adding some fresh fruit to a bowl of oatmeal, and you have pretty much the perfect meal. I eat oatmeal with fresh fruit at least every other day for breakfast and it really helps to keep my glucose levels under control, and it just makes me feel great as well.
What Cereal Can I Eat With Prediabetes
When you have prediabetes, keeping your blood sugar levels in check is very important. One thing you can do to support your body is to start off each and every day with a healthy breakfast.
Pouring one of your favorite cereals into a bowl and adding milk couldnt be any easier or more convenient, but is it the best option for a healthy prediabetes diet? Not necessarily.
You May Like: Side Effects If You Stop Taking Metformin
Is Special K Good For Diabetics
Rice-based cereals, such as Kelloggs Special K, tend to affect blood sugar levels slightly less than Muesli. Special K has a GI rating of 69 and a glycemic load 14. There are numerous varieties of Special K including, Red Berries, Fruit & Yogurt, Multigrain, and Oats & Honey.
Is Shredded Wheat good for diabetics?
Get your day off to a good start with a blood sugar friendly breakfast. The following simple ideas are all popular options amongst people with diabetes. However, Weetabix, Oatabix and Shredded Wheat have quite generous amounts of fibre and therefore are some of the more blood sugar friendly cereals available.
What’s A Safe Level Of Sugar
Unfortunately, Americans eat too much sugar. They don’t seem to know where to draw the line, whether or not they have diabetes. A national survey published in 2016 showed that American adults averaged at least 77 grams of added sugar per day. Children were found to eat a startling 82 grams. To put things in context, 4 grams of sugar equals 1 teaspoon.
These numbers are way above the daily limits recommended by the American Heart Association :
- Men: 36 grams
- Women: 24 grams
- Children ages 2 to 18: less than 24 grams
If you have diabetes, your doctor will probably advise that you eat less sugar than the AHA’s recommendations. With a typical diet, you can quickly reach your sugar limit at breakfast. A pastry and a couple of cups of sweetened coffee will likely be above what’s safe for you.
Read Also: Which Pancreatic Cells Release Insulin And Glucagon
Complex Carbohydrates And Fiber Are The Key
The qualities that make a great cereal for diabetics are the same qualities that make a great option for any other kind of food. Glucose is converted directly from carbohydrates that we eat our diet, so we must make sure that we consume carbohydrates that are slow to be broken down and absorbed by our digestive systems.
This ensures that glucose is released slowly into our blood stream over a longer period of time, so that there are no spikes in our blood sugar levels. At the same time it makes it easier for our body to naturally regulate our sugar levels through insulin secretion and other means.
Simple carbohydrates are made from refined flour and simple sugars like table sugar and that is what you will find mostly in those cereals that are marketed towards children. The carbohydrates and sugars are broken down very quickly and released into the bloodstream creating a dangerous spiked in glucose levels and later a crash.
This is obviously not the kind of cereal that is suitable for people with diabetes. They need to choose complex carbohydrate-based cereal that is made from whole grains and unprocessed ingredients.
No Cost Health Kit To Lower Your Risk Of Diabetes
You see, many cereals are low in nutrients, contain added sugars, and are made of refined carbs that are quickly digested. This means that your body can quickly break these cereals down into sugar, which will rapidly spike your blood sugar levels.
But if you really love cereal and want to keep this convenient option in your diet, then there is good news. Certain cereals can be appropriate for a prediabetes diet you just have to know how to choose them.
Recommended Reading: Can A Diabetic Eat Cheese
Best Cereals For Diabetics
Cereals are a great alternative to get all of that important morning nutrients, especially if you are in a hurry and you dont have time to prepare a well-balanced breakfast.
But you cant just choose any brand of cereals if you are diabetic because a lot of these breakfast cereals come with fast-digesting carbohydrates that can cause blood sugar spikes in your body.
Here we have listed some of the best brands of cereals that deliver slower-digesting carbs, and some other useful nutrients for diabetics. We have also included some general tips on what to look for while choosing a good brand of cereals.
What’s Inside
Why Whole Grains Make The Best Cereals For Diabetics
Depending on your choice of cereal, you can either end up with a healthy breakfast or one thats not. What you need to remember is that the sweeter the cereal, the more likely they are to compromise your blood sugar levels.
Most of the commercially available cereals are made using refined grains as well as sugars. Thus eating such cereals will only expose you to a lot of empty calories and very few nutrients.
Because of the refined grains, they have a high GI and therefore riskier when it comes to causing a spike in your sugar levels.
Always read the label. If the cereal lists whole grains on top of the ingredient list, this is the one you should buy. Since they are stripped of germ and bran during processing, refined grains are less healthy.
The good thing with whole grains is that it includes the grain kernel in its entirety and thus will provide you with healthy fiber. As a person with diabetes, you need a lot of fiber in your diet. It will help control the blood sugar levels and reduce the risk of heart disease.
The nutritional value of whole grains is also very high. You can, therefore, expect to get lots of minerals and vitamins from them.
Also Check: How Many Points Does Metformin Lower Blood Sugar
Can Cereal Be Healthy
Of course, some cereals are healthier than others. There are a lot of processed cereals on the market that are full of calories, carbohydrates, and sugarnone of which are great for diabetes.
Your goal: Go for whole-grain cereals with 6 grams of sugar and at least 3 grams of fiber per serving. Whole-grain cereals tend to provide more fiber and often contain high-protein ingredients such as nuts. Plus, whole grains have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, which is common in people with diabetes.
If you choose wisely and watch your portions, you can enjoy cereal. Better yet, cereals fortified with vitamins and minerals can even help you meet your nutritional needs.
If you have diabetes, a good time to eat cereal is before exercise. Physical activity helps to burn sugar, or glucose. If you take an oral medication or insulin to manage your blood sugar, you’ll likely need to eat carbohydrates before exercise to prevent low blood sugars while working out.
The Whole Grain Debate
It can be difficult to navigate all the mixed messages and conflicting sources of information out there, especially when it comes to your health.
One article may say whole grains are great for managing your blood sugar, while the next one refutes that point and sites completely different sources to back up their argument.
So, are whole grains good or are they bad for people with type 2 diabetes?
To answer that question, lets go straight to the unbiased research and see what it has to say.
To start off, yes, some research supports the idea that consuming more whole grains may be linked to a modest decrease in a persons risk for developing type 2 diabetes.
The connection between whole grain consumption and diabetes risk is not rock solid, however, and it is likely that people who purposely choose whole grains over refined grains may already be more health conscious. Therefore, these people may be less likely to develop diabetes due to their healthier lifestyle habits.
But regardless, it is important to highlight the difference between preventing diabetes and treating existing diabetes, as these are two very different scenarios. Be wary of the information you read because in many cases the information is talking about prevention, not treatment.
Therefore, we encourage you to eliminate all grains, and yes, that means all breakfast cereals commonly sold at the store.
Please pin, tweet or share then keep on reading for a few delicious recipes below.
You May Like: How Many Points Does Metformin Lower Blood Sugar
Top It Off With Dairy Or A Dairy Substitute
Consider adding half a cup of milk or dairy substitute to your bowl of cereal if it fits into your meal plan. Keep in mind that milk contains some natural sugars. Skim milk, 1 percent, or 2 percent milk can take the place of whole milk if you want to consume fewer calories and less saturated fat.
You can also use soy milk or almond milk if you have a lactose intolerance or dont like dairy milk. Unsweetened soy milk is similar to cows milk in carbohydrate content. Unsweetened almond milk contains fewer carbohydrates and calories than dairy or soy milk.
Check The Total Carbohydrates
This number should always be less than 40 grams per serving . Below total carbohydrates on the label. youll see dietary fiber, total sugar, and added sugars these make up the total carbohydrate content of the food.
Dietary fiber should be at least 4 to 5 grams per serving, total sugars less than 10 grams per serving, and added sugars minimal. Focus on choosing higher fiber content and lower total sugar.
Don’t Miss: Does Metformin Cause Blurry Vision
Get The Most Out Of Your Fruit Choices
When choosing fruit, youll want to think about portion size, convenience, cost, and flavor, but also health benefits. Certain types of fruit, such as berries and citrus fruits, can be beneficial for people with diabetes.
Berries are rich in vitamin C, folic acid, fiber, and disease-fighting phytochemicals. Vitamin C is an important water-soluble vitamin that is involved in repairing cells , slowing down aging, and boosting immunity. Additionally their rich colorred, blue, and black comes from anthocyanins. Research suggests that anthocyanins may help fend off certain chronic disease, including cardiovascular disease.
Citrus fruits, such as tangerines, also contain vitamin C, and potassium and are a good source of fat soluble vitamin A, an important vitamin for eye health. Citrus fruits, also contain phytonutrients which can protect cells from damage, reduce inflammation, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, and provide other health benefits. But, if you are on a potassium restricted diet or take cholesterol-lowering medication you may have to watch your intake of citrus fruits so make sure you discuss intake with your physician before adding them to your meal plan.