Contents:
- Medical Video: Dietary & Health Information : What Foods Can Diabetics Eat?
- Diabetes patients and sweet foods
- Can people with diabetes eat chocolate?
- Tips for choosing chocolate for diabetes
Medical Video: Dietary & Health Information : What Foods Can Diabetics Eat?
A diabetic patient (diabetics) has high blood sugar levels. Therefore, a low-sugar diet must be carried out by a diabetes patient. However, on the market there are many chocolate products for diabetes that are sugar free. Or you yourself are a big fan of chocolate? Can chocolate be consumed for diabetic patients? Consider the following review.
Diabetes patients and sweet foods
Insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, should deliver glucose (sugar) in the blood to cells in the body to be processed into energy. However, in diabetic patients, the body is not even producing insulin at all or the function of insulin does not work properly so that glucose obtained from food will not be delivered properly. This causes an increase in the amount of glucose in the bloodstream.
Because insulin is not normal in diabetic patients, sweet foods should be avoided for consumption. If it continues without proper treatment or treatment, diabetes can lead to strokes, heart attacks, kidney damage, and other diseases.
Can people with diabetes eat chocolate?
You can, but not all types of chocolate. Today many chocolate products on the market are sugar free, one of them is dark chocolate or called dark chocolate. Black chocolate is different from milk chocolate (milk chocolate) or white chocolate. Black chocolate has more flavonoids than milk chocolate, while white chocolate has no flavonoids at all.
Reported by Live Strong, a 2005 study published on America Journal Clinical Nutrition found that dark chocolate can improve insulin sensitivity in healthy study participants. Improving insulin sensitivity can help prevent blood sugar from rising. However, the dark chocolate that can be consumed has not undergone a decomposition process of flavonoids which can increase calorie intake and cause weight gain.
The scientists described a review of 21 studies at the American Heart Association meeting in 2011. They linked improved blood vessel health and good cholesterol levels, and decreased bad cholesterol levels, to consuming dark chocolate. They believe that all the relationships above can prevent diabetes. Because dark chocolate, has antioxidant flavonoids that do not increase glucose levels in the blood, unlike chocolate or other sweet snacks.
In addition, in the American Heart Association journal in 2010, researchers also revealed that dark chocolate can help reduce hypertension or high blood pressure in 67 percent of adults in the United States. The content of flavonoids in dark chocolate is beneficial both in the prevention and management of hypertension and dilation of blood vessels when consumed in reasonable amounts.
Tips for choosing chocolate for diabetes
Quoted from the WebMD health site, the following steps can help you choose sugar-free chocolate, such as:
- Even though the gula sugar free ’sign is included on the packaging, check the chocolate composition again. For sugar-free chocolate for diabetics, usually sugar substitutes are maltitol (sugar alcohol). Almost all companies that produce sugar-free chocolate with this ingredient.
- Besides maltitol, there are other sugar substitute ingredients such as sorbitol, xylitol, mannitol, and isomalt. These ingredients help diabetics because some of these ingredients can be absorbed also digested. Some ingredients will be absorbed by the digestive tract slowly, so there is little role for insulin to process blood sugar.
In addition, there are side effects that usually occur in the use of sugar substitute ingredients in the chocolate, such as removing gas or even diarrhea. According to the American Dietetic Association, more than 50 grams of sorbitol or 20 grams of mannitol per day can cause diarrhea.
However, it should be noted that you must first consult with your doctor about sugar-free chocolate to be consumed. Keep limiting the portion of chocolate you consume, so as not to worsen your diabetes condition. Chocolate for sugar-free diabetes does not mean free of saturated fat or calorie free. So, keep the portion of sugar free chocolate you consume.
