Losing Weight Against Diabetes: How Diet Plans Can Help

Losing weight provides plenty of health benefits, including improving symptoms of diabetes. Find out how you can develop the right weight loss diet for dealing with diabetes.

If you're overweight and suffering from diabetes, one of the best ways to improve your condition is to lose all those extra kilograms. This can mean joining weight loss programs specifically for people with the same health issues as you do. But even making a few changes to your diet can already help you immensely.

Let's explore why weight loss is good for diabetes and how to plan your diet around it.

The Effect of Weight Loss on Diabetes

While losing weight cannot cure diabetes, it increases your chances of going into remission by putting your blood sugar levels under control.

This is because we lose body fat when we lose weight. The less body fat we have, the lower our insulin resistance gets. Insulin is the hormone responsible for letting your body turn sugar into energy. When we can't use insulin or can't produce enough of it, our blood sugar levels spike, eventually leading to diabetes.

Apart from lowering your blood sugar, losing weight also benefits your health in other ways, such as:

• Lowering your blood pressure and cholesterol levels
• Making you more energetic
• Improving your mood
• Putting less stress on joints

Furthermore, if you successfully go into remission with your diabetes, weight loss also minimises the risk of the disease returning.

How to Plan a Diabetes-friendly Weight Loss Diet

When creating a personalised diet plan, you'll want to put more work into losing your body fat so you can produce insulin or respond better to it. This means considering the following factors:

A Balanced Meal is Important

While we do want to reduce our calorie intake to lose weight, we should also ensure that we get enough nutrients. Go for meals and snacks with less sugar and saturated fat.

For instance, if you want to eat dairy, go for unsweetened and low-fat varieties. For proteins, you can eat lean, unprocessed meat and fish. Eggs, nuts, and seeds are excellent sources too.

And contrary to popular belief, fruits aren't off-limits. However, you should have them moderately since many types have a naturally higher sugar content.

Choose Your Carbs Wisely

You're not completely prohibited from eating carbohydrates when you have diabetes, but you do need to choose your sources carefully. Conventional starchy foods such as white rice, potatoes, and pasta can quickly raise blood sugar levels.

Fortunately, you have options that offer better nutritional value and will give you an easier time regulating your blood sugar. These include whole wheat and grains such as brown rice, quinoa, and corn.

Measuring Your Meals

It's also important to measure how much food you eat every meal and schedule your meal times. This helps ensure your blood sugar levels don't spike up or shoot down too quickly.

As a rule of thumb, you'll want to eat the same amount of carbs every meal to stay stable.

How a Weight Loss Program Can Help

Every person's struggle with diabetes is different. The diabetes-friendly diet plans you find online might not work as effectively as you would expect.

For a more personalised diet, consider approaching a weight loss program for help. The reputable ones in Singapore work with professional trainers and nutritionists to develop weight loss plans while considering your condition.

How Much Weight Should You Lose When You're Diabetic?

There's no fixed number on how many kilograms you should shed before you can alleviate your symptoms. However, it's typically advised that you try to lose at least five to ten per cent of your body weight if you have diabetes.

The more weight lost, the easier it gets to regulate your sugar levels.

Conclusion

Developing your own diet or joining a weight loss program is only the first step to battling diabetes. If you're truly set on getting better, follow your plans until you see results. And don't be afraid to ask for help! The more support you have, the sooner you can heal.