Holiday Time: What Foods Should I Avoid If I Am Diabetic?

Before you were diagnosed with diabetes, you looked forward to your mom’s annual holiday dessert – the divine, triple-layered, red-velvet cake with the cream cheese frosting that melted in your mouth. Scrumptious!

Now that you have diabetes, red velvet cake is nowhere near the top of the list of foods for a diabetic to eat. Instead, you must stay mindful of the foods you put in your body, because what you eat is a big part of your self-management, diabetic diet plan. It’s also important to make better choices by sticking to foods that are both good for you and your blood glucose level. In other words, if you know a certain food will spike your blood sugar, it’s best to stay away from it or at least learn how to eat in moderation. 

What kind of foods should you eat with type 2 diabetes?

Well, it’s critical that you eat healthy carbohydrates such as whole fruits, nutrient-rich grains, low-fat dairy, vegetables, beans, peas and lentils, just to name a few. You want to also incorporate fiber-rich foods like nuts, wheat bran and low-fat proteins such as chicken breast and lean turkey.

Now, keeping normal-range, blood sugar levels doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy sweets from time to time, too. But most often, foods with sugar are also high in calories, saturated fat and carbohydrates, and lack essential vitamins and minerals. Below are some potential “trouble” foods that you’ll need to avoid or talk to your dietician about if you want to fit them into your diabetic food grocery list for the holidays.

Cakes and Desserts
Now there are healthy ways to make cakes, pies, cookies and goodies, but the good majority of the ones at holiday parties aren’t made that way. They’re often stirred up with butter, margarine and shortenings, all ingredients you need to limit in your diet. Angel food cake, however, is not too bad.

Rolls (made with white flour)
White bread has a high-glycemic index, which raises your blood sugar faster and higher than a roll made of whole wheat. If there are no whole-wheat options, lose the roll.

Fried Chicken
The fact that it’s dipped in boiling oil says it all.  According the Mayo Clinic, no more than 7 percent of your daily calories should come from saturated fat. Keep that in mind as you survey a holiday buffet table.

Gravy
We know. What is turkey without gravy? The problem is, the base of gravy is often a high-sodium chicken broth, white flour, butter or some combination of those ingredients that aren’t nutritious. Plus, one tablespoon of gravy could cost you about 60 calories. If you can’t drizzle very lightly, go without.

Candied Yams
Yams alone are healthy for you. Add the word “candy,” and you’ve also added a lot of sugar. Forget the syrupy sauce, and opt for a small baked yam with a dash of cinnamon and a low-calorie sweetener instead.

Stuffing
Depending on the recipe, one cup of stuffing is estimated at 400 calories. And it often contains real butter or margarine, high-fat broth from the turkey, and either cornbread made with shortening, whole milk or cream or stuffing made with bread that is high in calories.

Sweet Drinks
If you drank water with your holiday meals, you may be able to afford to eat something else yummy in moderation. Most punches and juices are loaded with sugar. Instead of drinking your calories and carbs, guzzle a glass of H20. 

This is not a complete list by any means. There are plenty of holiday foods that, if eaten excessively, could be bad for your diabetes. The key to healthy eating is moderation and balance. Discuss with your dietician how to strategically eat the foods you want this season and enjoy.