Tag Archives: meal-plan

Diabetic Diet Do’s and Don’ts: Snacking On The Go

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For most people, going for too long between meals and feeling hungry is little more than a small mild annoyance. But for diabetics, unstable blood sugar can have dire consequences.

According to the DiabeticLifestyle.com, snacking is especially important on a diet for diabetes. The last thing that a diabetic needs is to have to settle for whatever food might be convenient, like a gas station bag of chips or a sugary granola bar. For this reason, diabetics should get in the habit of packing healthy snacks wherever they go.

Do:

  • Go for something that is high in fiber, like fruits and vegetables. Fiber slows digestion, which means a slow, steady release of glucose into the system.
  • Combine healthy whole wheat and protein. Whole grains lower blood sugar while protein stabilizes it. Whole-wheat crackers with peanut butter are quick and delicious.
  • Reach for low-fat dairy. A small yogurt or glass of skim milk packs bone-protecting calcium and stabilizing protein.

Don’t:

  • Don’t choose highly sugary drinks like soda or sweetened fruit juice (unless a blood sugar episode is occurring). These drinks will make blood sugar rocket through the roof.
  • Don’t forget to drink plenty of water. If possible, have a glass with your snack. Dehydration can be especially severe for diabetics.

Of course, no one can plan for every situation. When a diabetic is hypoglycemic and blood sugar becomes dangerously though, they need to up their levels fast. In that case, reach for one of these options:

  • 1-tablespoon sugar (can also be dissolved in water), honey, or syrup
  • ½ cup fruit juice or regular soda that is made with sugar
  • Several hard candies

Snacking plays an important role in a healthy diabetic diet. Diabetics should always consult their doctor about other ways to manage their condition and stay healthy.

Source:

  • “Snacks: A Healthy Necessity in a Diabetic Diet”, DiabeticLifestyle.com
Get more tools for planning healthy meals here. 

“Play with your food!”: Table Games and Family Meal Plans

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Studies show that traditions are critical to family happiness and bonding. In fact, family traditions encourage children’s social development and provide schedule and structure to everyone’s life. According to The Pfaltzgraff Co.’s national survey, comprised of over 1,000 married men and women, the daily ritual of eating together at the dinner table is the most important way to strengthen family ties. That’s why allotting one day a week to a fun dinner with a family meal plan, is a great way to bring the whole family together. Here are some games and family meals to go along with them:

  • Play the Critic: Make your kids your food critics when you’re trying out new recipes. Give a “review card” to your kids to get their opinion on new meal plans or create a thumbs up or thumbs down system. This works great with exotic dishes that you’ve never tried before.
  • Murder Mystery: Create a story of murder and assign everyone as the suspects. You can often find murder mystery plots and clues online to help you create your own murder mystery. This game is great for bigger families with older children.
  • Cooking Games: Cook fun family meals, like Smiley Face Soup (with ritz crackers as the eyes and cheese as the mouth), heart-shaped pizza, or dino-shaped grilled cheese sandwiches. All you have to do is cut out the dinosaur shape with an appropriate cookie cutter and make them green with pesto or mix butter with food coloring and put the dino to the grill. Whichever way you choose, you’ll have a green dino-sandwich ready to be attacked by hungry family members.
  • Guess Those Ingredients: Try to make your kids and husband guess the ingredients you put in a casserole, sauce, or sides. Tally up the points and give the winner a special price!
  • Dress Up to Dinner: Throw a theme night and have everyone dress up in costumes to dinner.  Add some meal theme ideas.  Everyone will have so much fun pretending it’s Halloween every Saturday night. Try matching your outfits to your meal plans. For example, if you’re having a Scooby Doo themed night, prepare Scooby snacks (cookies in the shape of bones) for dessert with a bit of ice cream and chocolate fudge.
  • Board Games for Dessert: If you’re not really the “play with your food type,” skip dessert and play trivia or board games after you’re done with your meal. Even a simple board game will promote family unity and make the whole family feel closer.

With theme nights, dress up, and cooking games your kids will be able to express their creativity, even at meal time. More importantly, after just a couple of fun game nights, you’ll feel closer with your family than ever before.

Meal Plan for Portion Control

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According to the National Heart, Blood, and Lung Institute, we’re eating more than 20 years ago. A lot more. Taking a look at the serving size 20 years ago, bagels used to be 3-inches in diameter, now they’re 6-inches in diameter. Cheeseburgers are now gargantuan and around 300 more calories than hamburgers back in the day. A serving of fries used to be about 2.4 ounces and 210 calories. Now? A serving of fries is about 6.9 ounces, and about 610 calories. If you’ve tried to make a healthy meal plan or a diet meal plan but haven’t lost any weight, you may have portion sizes to blame. Portion control is the key to making a successful healthy meal plan.

Servings of Each Food Group for Your Meal Plan

The key to eating the right portions is memorizing the right serving sizes and the amount of servings of each food group that you should be getting each day. The amount of servings you should eat could differ depending on your age, your exercise level, and your size. There are general servings that you should be getting of each food group, however. For items like bread, cereal, rice, and pasta for example, you should get anywhere from 6-11 servings a day. Fruits, we need about 2-4 servings a day, veggies 3-5, protein sources 2-3, and dairy 2-3, as well. The food pyramid recommends that we eat fats, oils, and sweets sparingly.

Portions of Each Food Group

Now that you know approximately how many servings you should be getting a day, you need to know approximately how much of each food group comprises a serving. The size of servings may surprise you . . .

Grains

One serving of grains could be anywhere from 50 calories for the less caloric grains to around 120 calories for carbohydrates like cereal or graham crackers. Examples include:

  • 1/4 bagel
  • 1/2 hot dog bun
  • 1/2 English muffin
  • 2 rice cakes
  • 3 graham crackers
  • 3/4 cup dry cereal

Fruit

One serving of fruit includes:

  • 2 tbsp raisins
  • 1/2 cup fruit canned
  • 1 1/2 cup watermelon
  • 1 small banana
  • 1 medium apple

Vegetables

Get enough vegetables by eating about 3-5 servings per day. One serving could be:

  • 1 cup of raw veggies or
  • 1/2 cup of cooked veggies

Dairy

Dairy is an important part of anyone’s diet. If you’re vegan or prefer nondairy products, make sure you’re getting your calcium through other foods or vitamins. Serving sizes of dairy could include:

  • 1 cup of skim milk
  • 1 cup yogurt or
  • 2 ounces of low-fat cheese

Protein

Protein helps us build muscle and keeps us fuller for longer. We don’t need as much protein as fruits or vegetables to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Here are some examples of protein serving sizes:

  • 3 ounces of meat, like chicken, sausage, or deli meats
  • 1 tablespoon of peanut butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup of tofu

Keep in mind that there are higher and lower calorie options for each of these food groups, so if you’re trying to watch your figure you should look at the calories, not just the serving sizes. Make healthy choices to limit your caloric intake. For example, instead of peanut butter, you could opt for 1/4 cup of cottage cheese, which offers you a serving of protein with half of the calories. While calories aren’t the only important element of weight loss, it’s often a good idea to keep them in mind when trying to make healthy decisions. With this guide to serving sizes, you’ll be on your way to making your meal plan for optimal health in no time.