Planning Your Gestational Diabetic Diet Menu

Planning Your Gestational Diabetic Diet Menu

If you have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes, one of the important steps in managing your condition is through creating a diet plan specifically tailored for gestational diabetes. You cannot just eat everything that you want without posing some risks to your unborn baby. Eating well is a great way to stay healthy throughout your pregnancy despite your condition. You can consult your dietitian to help you in planning your gestational diabetic diet menu.

Tips on Planning Your Gestational Diabetic Diet Menu

In creating your gestational diabetic diet menu, you need to remember that your goal is to control your blood sugar levels and maintain them within normal range. This is to prevent complications of gestational diabetes from happening to you and your child. Your gestational diabetic diet menu should indicate which foods you are allowed to eat, the amount or portion of these foods that you may eat, and the frequency of eating these foods.

Carbohydrate-rich foods are one of the concerns of a gestational diabetic diet menu. If you have gestational diabetes, you can still eat carbohydrates, provided that they are complex carbohydrates. Also known as good carbs, complex carbohydrates are starchy foods that take a long time to be digested, thus not causing sudden spikes in your blood glucose levels. At least half of your energy should come from these complex carbohydrates, such as bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, and grains. Avoid simple carbohydrates in your gestational diabetic diet menu as they are the culprits in causing sudden blood sugar rises.

It is also important to include a variety of foods in your gestational diabetic diet menu. These include fruits, vegetables, and snacks. Eat moderate-sized meals frequently in order to keep your blood sugar levels steady. This is better than eating three large meals per day, which, once again, can cause sudden spikes in your blood sugar levels.

Avoid saturated fats in your gestational diabetic diet menu since they are generally bad for your health. That being said, use healthy oils, like olive and sunflower oils, for cooking your gestational diabetic diet menu. Trim fats from meat and avoid frying food. Grilling would be a better option in the foods that you choose in your gestational diabetic diet menu.

Gestational Diabetic Diet Menu

Here is a sample gestational diabetic diet menu that you can use for a day. Remember that you should have snacks in between and that you should not skip meals in order to maintain your blood sugar levels within the normal range.

Breakfast

–         ½ cup of oatmeal

–         1 ounce slice of whole grain bread

–         2 egg whites

–         2 tablespoons of avocado

–         12 fluid ounces of non-fat skim milk

Morning Snack

–         ½ cup of corn

–         ½ large grapefruit

–         water

Lunch

–         1/3 cup of rice

–         ½ cup of cooked beans

–         ½ cup of mashed potato

–         2 ounces of cooked fish

–         1 glass of mango juice

Afternoon Snack

–         ¼ large baked potato

–         ¼ cup of low-fat cottage cheese

–         water

Dinner

–         3 ounces of grilled chicken

–         1 cup of green beans

–         17 small grapes

–         ½ cup of pasta

–         1 cup of reduced fat milk

Evening Snack

–         1/3 cup of low-fat frozen yogurt

–         4 crackers with cheese

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