Goal Of Gestational Diabetes Diet Plan The goal of a good gestational diabetes diet plan is to provide the pregnant woman sufficient amount of energy. Generally this energy is counted in terms of calories. These calories are required to ensure proper weight gain and nutritional sufficiency to support the body of the mother and meet the needs of the growing baby. The gestational diabetes diet plan must be designed in a way to maintain the proper levels of blood glucose levels and avoid the formation of peeks and valleys of the blood glucose level.

Though calorie requirements are highly personalized; still an average woman with a proper pre-pregnancy weight requires additional 300 calories during 2nd and 3rd trimester. These extra calories must come from essential minerals, vitamins and other essential nutrients to support healthy pregnancy. The proteins requirement of the pregnant women also increases by an extra 10 gm daily as recommended by RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance)

Sample Gestational Diabetes Diet Plan

The sample diet for gestational diabetic women given below follow the above mentioned and other dietary guidelines recommended by American Diabetic Association.

Breakfast

• Whole Wheat Bread -2 slices
• Peanut Butter -2 Tbsp
• Fresh Juice - Half cup

Mid-morning Snack

• Apple - 1 No.
• Cottage Cheese - 1 cup

Lunch

• Lentil Soup -1 cup
• Whole Grain Crackers -1 serving
• Low fat cheese -2 ounces
• Baby Carrots -1 cup

Mid-afternoon Snack

• Almonds - 20
• Grapes -1 cup

Dinner

• Fish - 6 ounces
• Steamed Broccoli - 1 cup
• Brown Rice - 1 cup
• Low Fat Milk - 1 cup

Evening Snack

• Plain air popped corn - 5 cups

The American Diabetes Association is dedicated to help fight, and find a cure for diabetes. Diabetes is a deadly auto immune disease. For some reason the body attacks itself and destroys certain cells in the pancreas that help to produce insulin; however, we do not know why the body destroys these cells. Until we can figure this out, there will not be a cure for diabetes.

A Great Organization - The American Diabetes Association is the leader in raising money for the cure, organizing events and helps to fund the desperately needed research to help prevent, cure or manage diabetes. They publish the findings that are a result of the extensive research and this helps to keep medical professionals, the public and those who suffer from diabetes informed. They work with the families and with those who are diagnosed as a diabetic to help educate them so that they are better able to maintain and control their blood glucose levels and live normal, healthy lives. They also act as an advocate to ensure that those who have diabetes are ensured rights and are not unfairly treated.

The American Diabetes Association can help to provide a wide variety of information on and about all forms of diabetes and basically anything that pertains to the disease. They can teach you about pre diabetes, Type 1 or Type 2 and gestational diabetes. If you would like to contact them to receive information about diabetes or events that are planned that will help to raise money for the cure.

There are approximately 24 million children and adults in the United States who have diabetes. The American Diabetes Association is their advocate and you can help. You can contact the organization to learn about the different ways in which you can volunteer.

This organization can definitely provide you with any answers that you may have about diabetes, whether it is about management and control or prevention. They can teach you tips on how to eat healthy and exercise that will allow you to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Whatever the case may be, the American Diabetes Association can help you by providing information to you that will help you or enable you to help a loved one to live a productive life despite their disease.

They take donations from willing consumers to help fund the research and the other services that they provide. You can take part in the many Walk for Diabetes that they host across the country whether it is a community event or just a school event. All help is greatly appreciated and needed, not only by the American Diabetes Association but also by the 24 million children and adults who live with this disease across the United States each and every day.

Without the American Diabetes Association and the efforts that they have made, we would not be where we are at today in terms of the medical breakthroughs and management techniques that have been developed to help fight diabetes.

Diabetes sufferers have to keep a close watch on what they eat to ensure that their blood sugar levels remain constant and do not rise to dangerously high levels. This is principally achieved through a healthy and balanced diet containing the right amount of sugars and carbohydrates to effectively manage the condition without too much disruption to everyday life. If you are suffering from diabetes here are a number of key elements which you should adhere to helping control your blood sugar levels.

1. Watch your weight - Ensure you eat a healthy and balanced diet based on suitable foods. If you are required to lose weight, visit your medical practitioner or nutritionist if available to write up a diet plan specific to your requirements.

2. Eat regularly - Precisely how many and how frequently you eat can ordinarily be decided by what is convenient to you.

3. Consume greater amounts of starchy, high fibre foods good examples are wholemeal bread, peas, beans and lentils. These foods will instigate only a slow rise in blood sugar levels given the fibre content slows down the release of sugars.

4. Reduce the amount of sugary and sweetened soft drinks, confectionery, cakes and chocolate you consume. The sugar is absorbed at a very quick rate and therefore results in high blood glucose levels.

5. Consume plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables - This provides you with soluble vitamins and fibre. Not only that, but it makes for an ideal mid-day snack or desert, but take account that you do not eat very sweet fruits, good examples are grapes or mangoes in large quantities given the effect they will have on your blood sugar levels. If you are suffering from diabetes and you consume tinned fruit, dried fruits such as dates contain a concentrated type of sugar and therefore will quickly raise your blood sugar levels and should only be eaten in very small amounts.

6. Ensure that at least two of your meals each day contain portions of eggs, meat or cheese. Fish and pulses are also an excellent source of protein and should be included in your diet.

7. Reduce the amount of salt and salty foods which you consume given diabetics increased susceptibility to high blood pressure levels. Be especially vigilant of any hidden salts in many tinned processed foods especially smoked varieties.

8. Ensure your alcohol consumption is kept at a moderate level bearing in mind that low sugar diet beers and lagers ordinarily have a much higher alcohol content.

9. Drink plenty of water or sugar free drinks.

10. Cut down on fats, which aggravate the diabetics increased risk of coronary heart disease.

When you live with diabetes, you have to learn to deal with some of the problems that can come along with it. Hypoglycemia is one such problem, and something that affects people with diabetes. Hypoglycemia is another of saying low blood sugar, and it is a problem that affects everyone with diabetes from time to time.

Hypoglycemia is sometimes called insulin reaction. It can occur even when you are doing everything you can to keep your diabetes managed and under control. And though you can’t always prevent it from happening, it can definitely be treated and handled before it gets worse if you know what to look for and are able to recognize it when it starts. So, for this reason, it is important to know the signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia (low blood glucose levels) when they happen.

There are many different signs and symptoms that can indicate low blood sugar levels, and they include: dizziness, shakiness, sweating, feelings of hunger, pale skin, headaches, sudden changes in mood or behavior like crying for no apparent reason, confusion or difficulty paying attention to anything, seizures, clumsiness or jerky movements, tingling or similar sensations around the mouth.

Checking your blood sugar levels often is the best way to stay on top of your diabetes and be aware of when your levels are getting too low so you can correct the problem before it gets any worse. Ask your doctor how often you should be checking your blood glucose levels and what the levels should be, then stick to that schedule as much as possible but always check it right away if you feel any of the symptoms of hypoglycemia coming on so you can treat. If you think you feel a reaction coming on, but you can’t check your levels, then it is best to treat anyway to be safe.

Millions of peoples have diabetes in this country. But even though it’s one of our most devastating diseases, and many people have heard about it, not many really know what it is. The name diabetes mellitus has an interesting origin. The word “mellitus” is a Greek word that means sweet. “Diabetes” is the Greek word for siphon. At some point the Ancient Greeks discovered that when certain people drank a lot, the liquids almost immediately left their body in the form of urine - as though it were siphoned from their body.

They further noticed that the urine in these people tasted sweet. Hence the phrase “diabetes mellitus” or sweet flavored siphoned liquid. So what were the ancient Greeks doing tasting urine? They used it as a mouthwash, to prevent the formation of cavities. Remember, this was before the name brand mouthwashes that are so popular today.

Diabetes does not suddenly appear. Before diabetes is diagnosed, the body has already begun to manifest changes and symptoms. Collectively these symptoms are often referred to as pre-diabetes. To test for pre-diabetes, you need to find the blood glucose levels in your bloodstream.

Researchers have defined a blood glucose level threshold that defines diabetes. They’ve also defined a glucose level below which a person is considered normal. If your blood glucose levels fall in the middle of these ranges, you will most likely be diagnosed with pre-diabetes.

But just because you have been diagnosed with pre-diabetes doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re doomed to get diabetes. But it does mean that you should begin to watch your lifestyle. Many people after being diagnosed with pre-diabetes make lifestyle changes and never experience diabetes.

A Diagnosis of diabetes can be tricky and has changed through the years as science has advanced. A diagnosis of diabetes means that you have a high percentage of glucose in the bloodstream. The percentage of sugar that experts recognize as diabetes has been continually lowered throughout the years. Today, the American Diabetes Association has set the threshold to be a blood glucose level of 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) when the patient is given the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test.

However, one test is not enough. You need to have multiple diabetes tests before you can be 100% confirmed as having diabetes. That’s because a diabetes test can give you a false positive.

Many of the complications from diabetes result from the body being unable to process the glucose that’s in the body. If the body can’t process glucose, the cells can’t get nutrients. The result is often a feeling of tiredness and listlessness. The reason for the body being unable to process glucose is often a deficit of insulin in the body.

Insulin is the magic hormone that breaks down glucose into glycogen, a form of fuel that can be stored in the body as fat and used when needed. Insulin also is the magical chemical that changes the structure of the body’s cells so that they can accept nutrients.

In my previous article I helped you better understand the problems and solutions of diabetes type 1. Unfortunately, many Americans suffer from another type of diabetes that is far more prevalent and this article will help you better comprehend the differences. Here’s a general description on the two types:

Diabetes falls into the category of metabolic diseases characterized by high blood sugar levels. Under normal conditions, blood glucose levels are controlled by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, the organ responsible for sugar control. All types of diabetics have difficulty either producing too much or not enough. Here is the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes in a nutshell.

Type 1 diabetes is sometimes called juvenile diabetes and occurs when the pancreas stops producing insulin. Nobody knows exactly why this happens, but some experts believe a virus or an autoimmune response, in which the body attacks its own pancreatic cells, is responsible. People with this type of diabetes must take insulin for life.

Type 2 was once known as adult-onset and those affected are noninsulin-dependent. In the case of type 2 diabetes, the pancreas secretes plenty of insulin, but the body’s cells don’t respond to it.

Age, Gender, and Obesity Linked to Type 2 Diabetes

Did you know that men, aged 35 to 54 are almost twice as likely to have diabetes as women Recent studies indicate that although diabetes occurs in people of all ages and races, some groups have a higher risk for developing the disease. What researchers don’t know is why certain people develop type 2 diabetes and others do not.

What medical reports do tell us are the factors that increase a person’s risk of getting type 2 diabetes. Let’s take a look at the relationship of type 2 diabetes and three very important characteristics that put you in danger of developing the disease.

Weight - The more fatty tissue you have, the more resistant your cells become to insulin.

Inactivity - Physical activity helps you control your weight, uses up glucose as energy and makes your cells more sensitive to insulin.

Age - The risk of type 2 diabetes increases as you get older, especially after age 45. It may be because as people age they tend to become less active, lose muscle tone and gain unwanted weight.

Its no wonder these common risk factors have sparked concern among members of the medical profession.

More Staggering Statistics

You might agree that it seems more and more people you know are becoming a statistic; one more victim of diabetes 2. I’d like to share a few facts about this fast growing disease that might be of interest to you.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common form and is responsible for 90% - 95% of the 21 million people afflicted with the disease.

People over 40 are at higher risk of the condition, as are people with a large waist or family history of the disease.

Type 2 diabetes is the form linked to poor exercise and diet. Many of the two million people with type 2 are overweight or obese - and an estimated 500,000 more people have type 2 but do not know it.

The number of obese people will increase in the coming decades, putting people at higher risk of heart disease, stroke and certain types of cancer.

Type 2 diabetes can be undetected for a decade or longer and many already have complications by the time it is diagnosed. These complications include heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and amputation.

The News Is Not All Bad

If you have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes it might seem frightening at first. But don’t let it get you down. Although type 2 diabetes is serious, it is also manageable. If you are willing to follow a healthy life style you can reduce your risk of developing the disease as well as learn to control it. Consider this:

Losing weight can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes in high-risk people by 58 percent.

Exercising can cut the risk by 64 percent.

There are also natural remedies for type 2 diabetes that are being explored in addition to standard treatment. Make sure that you inform your doctor about any herbs, supplements, or natural treatments you are taking to safeguard against adverse reactions with other medications.

Diabetes Improves With Natural Minerals

Chromium is a mineral that helps increase the efficiency of insulin, and picolinateis an amino acid that allows the body to use chromium much more readily.

Research shows that chromium picolinate helps lower blood sugar levels in most type 2 diabetics after taking a daily supplement containing the mineral. What’s even better is chromium picolinate has shown to reduce obesity which means it may enable some people with type 2 diabetes to lose enough weight to stop taking drugs entirely.

Magnesium is a mineral that can be found naturally in green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. It is needed to help regulate blood sugar levels as well as other bodily functions. Some studies suggest that magnesium supplementation may improve insulin sensitivity and lower fasting glucose levels.

Zinc is important to type 2 diabetics because it helps in the production and storage of insulin. It can be found naturally in oysters, ginger root, lamb, pecans, split peas, egg yolk, rye, beef, liver, lima beans, almonds, walnuts, sardines, and chicken.

Vanadium can be found in soil and many foods and has been found to improve insulin and reduce blood sugar. It actually imitates the action of insulin in the body.

It’s not hard to see why nutritional supplements can be an aid to a diabetic sufferer. However, all diabetics are not created equal. Cases differ in terms of the severity, prescribed medication, diet, and exercise. That’s why I stress the importance of working with a qualified health care professional to find the best treatment and supplement for you.

Orally administered sebacic acid (C10) reduces postprandial blood glucose levels among patients with Type 2 diabetes and healthy individuals, researchers report.

This effect of C10 on blood glucose is less marked among healthy individuals than diabetics, and “occurs when C10 is either added to a mixed meal or substituted for lipids in an equivalent caloric manner,” say the researchers.

Geltrude Mingrone (Catholic University of Rome, Italy) and team recruited 10 obese (mean body mass index [BMI] of 27.98 kg/m2) patients with Type 2 diabetes, and 10 healthy individuals (mean BMI of 26.63 kg/m2) without diabetes.

All participants consumed a mixed meal consisting of 50% carbohydrates, 15% proteins, and 35% lipids. Participants were given either C10 0, 10, or 23 g with their meals, although those receiving C10 23 g had the lipid component of their meal omitted.

Mingrone and colleagues report in the journal Diabetes Care that participants who ingested C10 with their meal had smaller postprandial glycemic peaks than those who did not.

This reduction, however, was more pronounced among those who received C10 23 g than in those who ingested C10 10 g, with respective peak blood glucose reductions of 39% and 71%.

When the researchers used a time versus glucose curve to analyze their results, they found that incremental glucose area under the curve (AUC) decreased by 42% and 70% among the participants who took C10 10 g and 23 g, respectively.

Mingrone and colleagues also observe that the effect of substituting the lipid component of the meal for an additional 13 g of C10 produced a reduction in AUC of glucose rate of appearance by 18% among both the healthy controls and the diabetic patients.

In vitro investigations also revealed a 30% increase in insulin-mediated glucose uptake by L6 myoblasts in the presence of C10 compared with insulin alone. This increase was accompanied by a 70% increase in protein expression of the glucose transporter GLUT4.

Although unsure of the mechanism by which C10 suppresses endogenous glucose output, Mingrone and team hypothesize that reduced hepatic glucose output and/or increased peripheral glucose disposal are likely to be involved.

“More detailed studies are required to elucidate the mechanism of action of sebacic acid in Type 2 diabetes,” they conclude.

MedWire (www.medwire-news.md) is an independent clinical news service provided by Current Medicine Group, a trading division of Springer Healthcare Limited. © Springer Healthcare Ltd; 2010

Free abstract

Whenever a person is diagnosed as diabetic or pre-diabetic he starts to collect information about the disease. First of all he needs to learn about normal blood sugar levels and abnormal blood sugar levels. If you are also a newly diagnosed diabetic then the following reading will be of great help to you as it contains a chart which depicts the normal range of blood sugar levels.

As we know that glucose is the prime source of energy. Glucose is the class of sugar that enters the human body whenever he consumes foods rich in carbohydrates. The level of glucose is regulated by the hormone insulin. This hormone is produced by the pancreas and then released into the bloodstream.

It is not an easy task to monitor the level of glucose in blood. There are hundreds of meters in the market that are designed to measure the level of glucose in blood at home or while traveling. Sometimes doctors recommend even more sophisticated devices that are simple to use and give more detailed data.

Given below is a simple blood sugar level chart. This chart will help you to better understand which levels are required for maintaining better health and avoiding diabetic complications.

- Normal Range of Blood Sugar Level should be

70 mg/dl ~ 150 mg/dl

Typically these levels are lower in morning but rise slightly after having full meals.

- Random Blood Glucose Level should be

Less than 200 mg/dl

Regardless of the time of last meal the blood glucose must not rise above this level. If it rises it means the person is diabetic.

- Fasting Blood Sugar Level should be

70 mg/dl ~ 99 mg/dl

This must be the level when a person wakes up in the morning. If the level rises above 126 mg/dl it means the person is diabetic.

It is important to watch the pattern of blood glucose readings. One must note which type of food, activity or medication cause an unwanted increase or decrease in the blood glucose levels.

In diabetes mellitus, dangerous blood sugar levels are usually caused by low insulin levels and/or by resistance to insulin at the cellular level, depending on the severity of the disease.

A large number of patients suffering heightened stress such as stroke or myocardial infarction can develop dangerous blood glucose levels, even in the absence of a diagnosis of diabetes.

Elevated blood glucose is usually not dangerous. Blood glucose levels can get above normal for long periods without causing any problems or showing any symptoms.

Chronic dangerous blood sugar levels reaching high levels for longer time periods can create a lot of serious complications over time. The result can include kidney damage, neurological damage, cardiovascular disease, even loss of vision.

Diabetes mellitus is the most common cause of chronic dangerous blood sugar levels. The preferred treatment tries to preserve blood glucose at a level as close to normal as possible. The goal is to avoid the series of diseases that can begin to show up if is left untreated.

Some of the symptoms of severe elevated levels are:

• Blurred vision
• Fatigue
• Weight loss
• Decreased healing ability
• Dry mouth
• Dry or itchy skin
• Impotence (male)
• Recurrent infections
• Sudden hyperventilation (rapid breathing)
• Cardiac arrhythmia
• Stupor
• Coma

If you have diabetes, test your blood glucose levels regularly. Spikes can be triggered by changes in diet or elevated stress levels. This is why it is important for diabetics to track their blood sugar throughout the day.

Dangerous blood levels occur when glucose levels reach 200 to 240 or higher, depending on the target range for the individual. Usually, a sudden rise in glucose level after a meal starts to drop down within an hour or two after eating.

When glucose levels remain high or gets higher, the condition becomes a chronic issue. Diabetics who eat too much in one sitting or eating a meal that contains large amounts of carbohydrates can experience dangerous blood sugar levels. Insulin can be used to treat the elevated blood sugar levels in most cases.

The English name of bitter melon is Momordica charantia. It is also termed Bitter gourd or karela. It is widely grown in tropical areas including Asia, East Africa and South America. It is used there as food as well as medicine. It is a cucumber shaped fruit of green color and has gourd type bumps over it. The fresh fruit is firm and looks like an ugly cucumber. The taste is extremely bitter. Though the leaves, seeds and vines of plant have been used in traditional medicines but fruit is medically the safest and the most effective portion of the plant. The fruit and leaves both are being used for making beer, teas and for seasoning soup in Western world.

Medicinal Properties of Bitter Melon

Since centuries it is being traditionally used for treating infections, leukemia, cancer and diabetes. It is mainly reported to help to treat psoriasis and diabetes. The ripe fruit of bitter melon holds some anti-cancer effects. There are not any decisive studies in this regard. Researches have only proven that it improves the control on blood sugar level in type 2 diabetics.

The blood sugar lowering action of the juice of unripe fruit has been scientifically proven in animals and humans. Three constituents of bitter melons are scientifically proven to have a hypoglycemic or blood sugar lowering action. These includes

1. Insulin like peptides
2. Alkaloids
3. Charantin

This is not yet clearly known that which constituent is more effective among the three. These have been proven that it significantly improves the glucose tolerance and fasting blood glucose levels.

Nutritional Ingredients of Bitter Melon

• It is rich in iron.
• The carotene content is two folds more than broccoli
• The calcium content is two folds more than spinach
• The potassium content is two folds more than banana
• It is rich of dietary fiber and vitamins.

The nutritional spectrum is good for liver, acts as an anti-tumor instrument and lessens HIV infection.

Till so far around 32 active ingredients have been identified in bitter melon. These mainly includes

• Beta-sitosterol-d-glucoside
• GABA
• Citrulline
• Lycopene
• Lutein
• Zeaxanthin

Research on Bitter Melon

Department of Health of Philippines has recently recommended that it is the most effective herbal medicine for managing diabetes. Multiple clinical studies have also clearly recognized its role in diabetics.

Research Study

A research study was conducted in India and the results were published in 1999. The effect of bitter gourd was studied in 100 diabetics. In this two day study the blood sugar level of participants were studied at fasting and after drinking glucose. Subjects were given the extract of bitter mellon the second day. On the second day there was 14 % decline in the blood sugar level of 86 patients.