It is a common misconception that people with diabetes can only eat bland and boring food. In fact, what matters more for diabetic patients is eating right, which means their diets can also be delicious and full of variety. Here are some suggestions and two recipes for those who want to improve their blood sugar level and maintain good health:

• Eat right. It should be bland and light at times and prepared using less oil, salt, sugar, and low-fat cooking methods like steaming, stewing, baking, and stir-frying with less oil to reduce the loss of nutrients.
• An adult needs about 5 to 8 taels of meat daily. Choose fresh or frozen food over canned or processed food, and it is recommended to peel and remove the fat before cooking to reduce fat intake. Add a small amount of sugar when marinating the meat, but avoid adding excess sugar or starch to thicken the sauce.



• An appropriate amount of sugar can be used for seasoning when preparing diabetic meals. Use sugar substitutes for cakes, desserts, and drinks to replace granulated or Chinese brown sugar or other types of sugar. The sugar substitutes should be added after the dishes or desserts are cooked and removed from the heat.
• Choose low-calorie ingredients and spices such as ginger, onion, celery, herbs, peppercorns, or star anise to increase the food’s aroma. This can also help reduce the amount of salt used.
• Carbohydrates are required for women (40-60 grams) and men (50-80 grams) in every meal. For example, a medium bowl of rice contains 50 grams of carbohydrates, equivalent to two and a half slices of bread or a bowl of noodles (cooked, excluding water content).
• Drink more green tea. The catechins in green tea help reduce the effects of insulin resistance by reducing the absorption of carbohydrates. In addition, green tea contains antioxidants that help boost metabolism and digestion. A healthy digestive system keeps blood sugar levels steady.
• Consuming brewer’s yeast, which is nearly 50% rich in protein, includes 8 essential amino acids that the body cannot synthesize on its own. In their article called “Brewer’s Yeast Improves Glycemic Indices in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus”, Payam Hosseinzadeh and others describe their single-blind study comparing the effects of 9 grams of brewer’s yeast and low-chromium torula yeast in orange juice for 8 weeks in older adults who are healthy and diabetic. The results showed that brewer’s yeast showed improved glucose tolerance, reduced insulin secretion, and lowered cholesterol from brewer’s yeast.

In addition to a healthy diet, regardless of whether you have diabetes, you should take some time to exercise every day. Walking for half an hour a day, swimming, skipping rope, yoga, and other workouts can help control your weight, maintain your health, prevent chronic diseases, and reduce the chance of cancer. So let’s build a healthy lifestyle together!