Fruits For Diabetes



Most fruits can be eaten by diabetic patients They are low on fats and highly rich in nutrients and vitamins and have a positive effect on the unusual rise in the blood glucose levels.

However, one should avoid fruit juices and fruit concentrates, because they contain lot of sugar and many fruits are required to make one glass of juice. Moreover, fruit juices do not provide a person with the dietary fibre.

• Choose whole fruits more often than juices. They have more fibre.
• Choose fruits and fruit juices without added sweeteners or syrups.
• Eat lots of citrus fruit such as oranges, sweet lime, grapefruit, or olives.

You can choose from any of the fruits available in the market. Each one has some benefit or the other.

Although diabetics can have any fruit, but they should preferably avoid mango, custard apple, grapes, chikoo, bananas as they have a high sugar content. There are three fruits in particular that are especially beneficial for diabetic patients - apple, grapefruit and jambul (jamun).

Apple
One the most popular fruit, apples have a high pectin content and are very beneficial to diabetic patients. Pectin is found in the rind and in the pulp, and acts as a detoxifier of the body by supplying an excessive amount of galacturonic acid. This helps remove harmful waste from the bloodstream and can lower a diabetic’s insulin requirements by up to or even more than 35%. Besides being rich in pectin, apples are also rich in Vitamin B1. Vitamin B1 prevents the damage of the brain cells that can occur due to diabetic acidosis.

Grapefruit
Grapefruit – a citrus fruit with a typical, refreshing flavour has several medicinal properties that helps one fight diabetes – can bring down the blood glucose level within a time span of just three days. However, just a diet of grapefruit is not enough. One needs to take more of vegetables and fruits rather than a diet rich in fats.

Nutritionists recommend that anyone suffering from high blood sugar levels should be consuming at least three servings of grapefruit every day. Grapefruit can also be used as a preventative measure against high blood sugar levels, especially when used in conjunction with a low fat, low-sugar, low-starch diet. Diabetic patients should experience a change in less than three months.