Diet For Diabetes

Carefully planning meal is a simple and effective strategy for management of various aspects of Diabetes.  Knowing the best food for some one with diabetes can help  promote good health.

Introduction

In Ayurveda, poor digestion is considered to be the primary cause of diabetes. Following a proper diet  can keep your blood sugar under control. According to Ayurveda  there are mainly two types of diabetic persons "Sthula (obese) and  Krisha (lean) 

Both having different etiology and both requiring different diet and lifestyle intervention.

So the contemporary  rule of Diet in Diabetes says about only calorie deficit or cutting down on carbohydrates. However in Ayurveda, too many no's like no to that, no to this may  not imply to  all patients, in general, but is based on the pattern according to the individual constitution.

Obese diabetic  : A sthula madhumehi person's diet should be Apatarpana calorie deficit .While Krisha Madhumehi lean diabetic person's diet should be Santarpanaguna. nourishing.

Diabetic diet means eating the healthy food in lesser/ moderate amounts with increased frequency. One should concentrate on taking whole food like  whole grains, whole fruits,  and vegetables rather than  going to juices other dehydrated form or any exotic forms.

A diabetic diet  advocates going with small frequent meals like three main meals - Breakfast, lunch and Dinner along with two small  breaks in mid morning and mid evening. Complex carbohydrates, fiber rich fruits and vegetables, whole proteins and good fats are advised.

Complex carbohydrates like millet, whole wheat, whole barley, quinoa, red rice, whole greens, vegetables and nuts will provide steady  or constant energy unlike simple carbohydrates.

30% Cereals+70% Greens

                                            "Bitter & Astringent taste reduces inflammation".

A typical diabetic meal plate  should constitute of any cereal based dishes 30% other 70% is vegetables, pulses and greens. End the meal with  the medicated buttermilk.(spiced with ginger,cumin and coriander leaves.

Medicated Buttermilk

Remember a diabetic diet need not be 100% sugar free. Balance is the key.

Ayurvedic classics recommend the following to be included in Diabetic diet :

Grains : Yava (barley)-Hordeum vulgare, Gudhuma (Wheat) - Triticumsativum, Shastika shali (rice) -Orryza sativa, Kodrava (grain variety, kodo millet)- Pospolum scrobiculatum, Uddalaka, Shyamaka, Bajara.

Pulses : Chana (Bengal gram) - Cicerarietinum,Adhaki (toor dal) - Cajanus cajan, Mudga (green gram) - Phaseolus aureus, Kulattha (Horse gram) - Dolichos biflorus.

Vegetables (Bitter & Astringent) : Methika (fenugreek)- Trigonella foenum, Potola (pionted gourd), Trisanthus dioica, Karela (bitter gourd)-  Momordicacharantia, Tanduleyaka (choulayee_-Amaranthus spinosus, Vastukam (bathus), Shobhanjana (drumstick) - Moriga oleifera, Korkotaka-  Momordicadioica, Rosona (garlic) - Allium sativum,Kadali (raw banana) - Musa paradisiaca.

Gavar phalli or Cluster beans.

Fruits : Jambu (jamun)- Eugenia jambolana, Talaphala-Borassus flabellifer, Amalki (goose berry) Emblica officinalis, Kapittha (monkey fruit)- Limonea acidissima , Dadima (pomegranate) - Punica granatum, Tinduka- Disospyros embrayoptesis.

Limonea acidissima,कबीट

Barley

• Barley should constitute the principle ingredient of diet of the patient suffering from Diabetes.
• Obese Diabetes patient should take barley mixed with honey.
• One tablespoon of barley is soaked in Triphala kashaya and is kept over night. It is mixed with honey. This is a nourishing (Tarpana) diet for lean Diabetic patients.

Old Rice

Old rice cooked  and mixed with the soup of green gram etc and preparation of Triphala rice: Add 1 tsf of Triphala churana to 150 ml of water and soak raw red rice/ barley/ any millet (75 gm) for 1-2 hours and cook rice and consume it  for your lunch & dinner.

Drinks

1. Water boiled with Darbha grass / Kusha (Type of grass.
2. Madhudaka (Warm water mixed with honey.)
3. Triphala Rasa (Juice or Kashaya of Triphala)
4. Buttermilk
5. Soup of Horsegram, Green gram and pigeon pea, goat meat soup.

Do's

• Take 3 main meals with 2 small healthy snacking in between.
• Maintain regularity in meal timings.
• Old red rice, old barley, all older the cereals better it is for body.
• Along with the diet , suitable lifestyle changes such as including regular yoga asanas / any sort of full body exercises, with regular practice of any guided meditation does wonders to the whole body and mind of a diabetes.

Don'ts 

• Avoid skipping meals assuming it will lower your sugar levels.
• Irregular meal timings.
• Intermittent fasting/ taking only 2 meals without consulting your treating physician.
• High calorie diet- non-vegetarian meals, bakery products, dairy products like paneer, cheese, some exotic dishes, newly harvested cereals in diet.
• Following some fad diet without consulting the registered health professionals.
• Do not fall into the trap of restricted diet plans such as zero carbohydrate diet. Our body needs nutrients from every food group. So cutting any of them out will only stop us from enjoying their benefits. So moderation is the key.
• Poorly managed stress.
• Suppression of food cravings like sweet dishes/ any foods will build negative stress in the body, so occasional moderate indulgence does not harm.
• Juices/ gruel from shoots the blood glucose levels.

Home Remedies

Note : Home remedies are helpful in mild to moderate increase in sugar values along with diet and  lifestyle. changes.

• Home remedies to be done in moderation, indulging too much will also have its own adverse effect on the body.
• Triphala mixed with honey.
• Indian Gooseberry juice- 50  ml +1/2 tsf turmeric with 1/2 tsp honey on empty stomach morning.
• Using soaked/sprouted methi seeds 2-3 tsp early in the morning.

Methi Sprouts

• Bitter guard, indian Blackberry (jamun), Indian Gooseberry (amla) and turmeric are few commonly used fruits and vegetables.
• Chewing fresh leaves /taking soaked stem juice of Amritballi (Giloy or Guduchi, Tinospora cardifolia) early in the morning.
• Green Gram + Indian gooseberry-soup (green gram -30gm + fresh Amla 1 or amla stick 6-8 pieces +1/2 tsf haldi + 400ml water- pressure cook. Mesh and add 400 ml of warm water and boil for 5 mins. For taste, add salt, Jeera + pepper powder- 2-3 pinches each

                                            "Exclude : Bread,pasta, sugar, rice, corn, milk."

Ayurveda does not advise absolute restriction of any of  the food substances, rather recommendations are based on the dosha state.For example, in Diabetic patients with vata predominant manifestation, extensive use of various oils has been mentioned.. Another area where modern dietetics contradicts Ayurveda principles is advice of frequent small servings

Frequent intake of food hampers the digestive process and is validated by a recent randomized crossover study, in which it is found that  eating two larger meals a day (breakfast and lunch)  is more effective than six smaller meals in a reduced energy regimen for patients with type 2 diabetes.

Ayurveda makes use of medicated diet, where dietary items are processed with medical herbs to bring about therapeutic effects in the body. One example is dashmoola yavagu which contains rice gruel processed with roots of ten medicinal plants. 

Ayurvedic concept and practice on health, food and nutrition are relatively different from those of bio-medicine and modern nutrition. Systemic investigations can provide new insights into nutritional sciences to provide solutions in contemporary healthcare, for instance, how diet and lifestyle can be modulated to suit  one's constitution (prakruti), age and season. Moreover, prevention and management of lifestyle diseases like diabetes can only be achieved by tailoring the measures to meet the individual demands rather than adopting a generalized strategy.

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