Diabetes is a disease that has to do with the body not properly using insulin, or not producing enough of it. Insulin is the hormone that converts sugars and starches into the energy that is needed to get through each day. Managing diabetes can be broken down into three parts; healthy eating, medication when needed, and physical activity. The key to effectively managing diabetes is controlling your blood sugar by way of a healthy lifestyle which means eating right, exercising and maintaining a healthy weight at all times.

The best way to ensure that you are eating correctly when managing your diabetes is to follow the diabetic food pyramid, which has guidelines for different food groups, and directs on how many of each food group to consume every day in order to remain healthy. The diabetic food pyramid is different than the typical Food Guide Pyramid, in that it recommends foods based on carbohydrates and proteins rather than on calories and fats. It is important for diabetics to consume a variety of foods every day. For example, eating tortillas, apples, broccoli and chicken and drinking milk in one day would effectively cover the grains, fruit, vegetable, dairy and protein groups. Eating brown rice, mangoes, tomatoes, beans and yogurt in a single day would also cover the same food groups, but in a different way. It is imperative that you eat from each food group, and are consuming the proper number of servings every day to ensure healthfulness.

Starches & Carbohydrates: The Starch group is made up of grains, starchy vegetables and beans. These are the carbohydrate-loaded foods like breads, cereals, beans, starchy vegetables and pasta. These foods should be consumed at every meal, as they are essential for creating the energy that you need to remain healthy. You should plan on consuming anywhere between six and eleven servings per day, but the number of servings depends on the calories that you need every day, and your specific diabetes treatment plan. Examples of single servings of starches and carbohydrates are single slices of bread, small plantains or potatoes, a half cup of cooked cereal like oatmeal, a third of a cup of cooked rice, or a small tortilla.

Vegetables: Vegetables are healthy foods for everyone, even diabetics. They are preferred in their raw form, but can also be consumed after being cooked. Vegetables are packed with vitamins, fiber and minerals and are very low in calorie which makes them easy to fit into any eating plan. Typically, you should consume three to five servings every day of bright vegetables like carrots, eggplant, tomatoes, spinach and broccoli. A serving of vegetables translates to roughly a half cup of cooked vegetables, or a full cup of raw vegetables. If you prefer to drink vegetable juice instead, note that a half cup qualifies as a full serving of vegetables.

Fruits: Fruit, like vegetables, is extremely healthy for everyone including diabetics. It can give you energy, fiber, minerals and vitamins, so you should consume around 2 to 4 servings of fruit per day. Examples of single servings of fruit include single small pears or apples, a half cup of orange or apple juice, a single small banana, or half of a large one, or a quarter cup of raisins or other dried fruit. Fruits are preferred raw, or as juice when no sugar has been added.

Dairy Foods: People with diabetes can benefit greatly from low-fat and fat-free dairy products. Both milk and yogurt give energy, calcium, vitamin A and protein among other essential vitamins and minerals. Fat-free milk is preferred, and should be consumed daily. It has less saturated fat, total fat and cholesterol than regular milk. You should plan on consuming between two and three servings of dairy per day, unless you are pregnant in which case you should plan on consuming twice that amount. An average serving translates to roughly a cup of plain yogurt that is fat free, or a cup of low-fat or non-fat milk.

Meats & Proteins: This group contains meat like beef, pork, chicken and turkey, in addition to eggs, nuts and soy products like tofu and soy milk. You should plan on eating only small amounts of several of these foods each day. They provide us with protein, which helps to build tissue and muscles in addition to giving essential nutrients and vitamins. You should plan on consuming between two and three servings daily. A serving size is generally two to three ounces of a meat like fish or chicken, three to four ounces of tofu, or an ounce of cheese.