Diabetes and Fruit
by amun ra ~ June 30th, 2009. Filed under: Healing.Spread The Message:
I wanted to share a recent question I was asked about diabetes and fruit consumption. Please pass this information on to anyone that might benefit. Hello Rene, Thank you, Hi Robbay, Fruits are a valuable food for all of us, including diabetics. They are high in vitamins, phytochemicals, and fiber. The fiber allows the fruit to breakdown in our bodies at the perfect speed. When fruits are juiced and the fiber is removed from the fruit it changes the way the fruit is metabolized in our bodies. This faster assimilation can cause the blood sugar to rise too quickly, therefore diabetics should refrain from drinking fruit juices. That’s where the Vita-Mix becomes an essential part of the diabetic’s kitchen. When making fruit smoothies, the entire fruit, including the fiber is present. In it’s “whole” form, it is a very acceptable part of the diet. Adding greens to your fruit to make a “green smoothie” helps to slow the absorbtion of the fructose and decrease the chances of blood sugar elevations. The only precaution that diabetics need to take when eating fruits are to eat those that have a low glycemic index. The Glycemic Index measures how fast the food is converted to glucose. Those fruits that score a Glycemic Index below 55 are the best ones for diabetics. Here are some examples of the Glycemic Index in specific fruits: Food/Gycemic Index Value Low Glycemic Index food for diabetics are less than 55 You can see by this list, there are plenty of fruits that diabetics can eat. Interesting that you asked about dragon fruit, also know as pitaya fruit. There have been health claims that dragon fruit helps to control glucose blood sugar levels in type 2 diabetes and some with type 1 diabetes. Dragon fruit is also high in dietary fiber and Vitamin C. I normally recommend fresh fruit rather than dried fruit, but since it’s often hard to find the fresh fruit, you may have to purchase the dried variety. Another benefit of eating dried dragon fruit is that the dried fruit has about 10x more Vitamin C than the fresh fruit. Fresh dragon fruit or dried dragon fruit both are great additions to a healthy diet. Fresh dragon fruit is best eaten by cutting the fruit in half and scooping the flesh out. They are a wonderful addition to smoothies, or just eaten by themselves or in a fruit salad. It is also important to pay attention to the way you combine your foods. Fruits should always be eaten alone or only with greens or celery. Fruit should never be combined with fat, this includes avocado, coconut, olive oil, nuts and seeds, etc. Not only does this slow the assimilation of the sugars from the fruit, which is harmful to diabetics, it also causes unnatural fermentation, often causing a candida albicans overgrowth, which is the origin to many negative health issues. Remember, everyone is different in how they assimilate fruit. This also changes as your body becomes healthier. You should monitor your blood sugar level to determine when it is the best time of day for you to eat fruit. The majority of the people that I have worked with find the morning hours to be the best time to consume fruit. They then eat the vegetable, nut and seed dishes for lunch and dinner. This allows for proper food combining, without having to think much about it. If you do east fruit at a meal when you will also be eating vegetables/fat in your food, it’s best to eat the fruit first, about 15-30 minutes before you eat the rest of the meal. I’d like to invite you to check out my website at www.reneoswald.com for more information about the “Transitioning to Living Cuisine” book and to view many FREE health related videos and living food preparation videos. Email me at rene.oswald@att.net if you’d like to receive a free monthly newsletter also. Enjoy the journey!
I have enjoyed viewing your videos and am curious if any of your raw food creations and smoothies are suitable for the Type 2 diabetic? I have been watching closely my diet for many years and have arrived at the place where types of foods and there preparation seem to be my last chance at good control of my blood sugar. I started looking at your videos to see how you used the Vita-Mix Blender and then became very interested in a raw food diet. I use very little meat in my diet now and could easily remove it entirely. I hope you may have some suggestions because I love fruit and vegetables but know that most fruits are too high in natural sugar. I am also looking into Dragon Fruit and Dried Dragon
Fruit. Do you know about it’s use in salads or smoothies.
Robbay
I’m sorry to hear that you have diabetes, but am excited to hear your interest in this lifestyle. I’ve seen many diabetics decrease or stop needing insulin shots completely after adding delicious living foods to their diet. I know many people will benefit from your question. Thanks for asking!
Cherries 22
Grapefruit 25
Prunes 29
Apricots, dried 30
Berries (Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries) 30-40
Apple 38
Peach, canned in juice 38
Pear, fresh 38
Plum 39
Orange, Navel 42
Peach, fresh 42
Pear, canned 43
Grapes 46
Mango 51
Banana 52
Fruit Cocktail 55
Papaya 56
Raisins 56
Apricots, fresh 57
Kiwi 58
Figs, dried 61
Apricots, canned 64
Cantaloupe 65
Pineapple, fresh 66
Watermelon 72
Dates 103
Foods with GI index between 55 and 70 are consider intermediate
High Glycemic Index food have a glycemic index above 70
This is just a chart of the fruits, however most of the other foods that I use in the recipes in our “Transitioning to Living Cuisine” book are low glycemic, such as Nuts—GI of 15-30, Tomatoes—GI of 15 and Green Leafy Vegetables with a GI of 0-15.
Rene Oswald
www.reneoswald.com
Originially posted on lifeit.ning.comRelated Posts
