Nutrition and Diabetes
A meal plan offers guidelines for the type and amount of food a person should eat for each meal.
Most pregnant women need 3 main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and 3 snacks (mid-morning, mid-afternoon and at bedtime) per day throughout their pregnancies.
Understanding carbohydrates
Different foods affect blood sugar in different ways. Foods high in carbohydrates are the body's main source of energy, and tend to raise blood sugar more than other foods. One kind of carb is sugar, found in foods such as fruit, milk and sweets. Another kind is starch, found in foods such as bread, rice, pasta and potatoes.
Dietary recommendations
- Eat 3 small meals and 3 snacks every day for the best blood sugar results.
- Follow the food plan recommended by a registered dietitian or diabetes educator (see examples below).
- Limit the carbohydrates [starch, fruit, milk] eaten according to the meal plan and try to avoid concentrated sweets such as cake, cookies, candy, regular soda and Kool-Aid. NutraSweet (aspartame) is safe to use during pregnancy and should be the substitute for sugar.
- Always read labels on food containers
- select foods that are low in sugar [< 5gm per serving]. Note: each serving of milk or fruit has 11-15 gm of sugar.
- low in fat [< 3 gm per serving]
- high in fiber [> 3 gm per serving] e.g. breads, cereals
- lower in salt [< 200 mg per serving]
- Wait at least 2 to 3 hours between all meals and snacks.
- DO NOT SKIP SNACKS, these are a very important part of the diet plan and will help you keep blood sugars at a normal range.
Sample Meal Plan
- Breakfast 8 a.m. - 2 carbs, 1 meat, 1 fat
- Morning snack 10 a.m. - 2 carbs
- Lunch - 3 carbs, 2 meats, 2 vegetables, 1 fat
- Afternoon snack 3 p.m. - 2 carbs
- Dinner 6 p.m. - 2 carbs, 4 meats, 2 vegetables, 2 fats
- Bedtime snack 9 p.m. - 3 carbs, 1 meat