Snacking Smart With Diabetes: 5 Healthy Treats for Every Craving
Updated February 14, 2023.
Handling cravings seems to be the hardest part of following a weight loss diet, and it becomes even harder if you're diabetic. However, what helps reduce cravings is smart snacking, or choosing nutrient-rich snacks that don't spike your blood sugar or make you gain weight.
The healthiest snacks for diabetics are low in calories and have little or no carbs to minimize the changes to your blood sugar levels. With this in mind, we've compiled a list of five sweet and salty healthy snacks to satisfy your cravings.
1. Treat Yourself to Yogurt With Berries
Thick, creamy Greek yogurt topped with berries of your choice makes an excellent sweet snack for diabetics because these ingredients offer the following benefits:
- Berries: The antioxidants in berries can reduce inflammation and prevent damage to pancreatic cells that produce the insulin needed for blood sugar regulation.
- Yogurt: The probiotics in yogurt help lower blood sugar and metabolize sugary foods, helping manage your blood sugar levels.
» Consuming dairy with diabetes: learn if you can still have cheese
2. Stock Up on Fiber With Avocado
Since they contain plenty of healthy fats and fiber, both of which prevent blood sugar levels from spiking after a meal, adding avocados to your diet helps manage blood sugar and avoid diabetes complications.
What's more, avocado is a versatile fruit that you can consume in any way you like—you can make avocado smoothies, eat sliced avocados, or pair an avocado dip like guacamole with veggies of your choice. However, avocados are high in calories, so remember to limit your serving size.
3. Have a Sweet Treat With Sliced Apples and Peanut Butter
This snack is one of our favorites because it has it all—the creaminess of the peanut butter, the occasional bite of nuts, and the crunch of crisp apples make an overall satisfying treat. Apples are a great choice for a healthy sweet snack because they contain:
- Vitamin B: Diabetics taking metformin tend to be deficient in B vitamins, especially vitamin B12. So, supplementing with vitamin B that's present in apples can lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.
- Vitamin C: In a study published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism, type 2 diabetics who took vitamin C supplements for 4 months were found to have lower post-meal blood sugar levels.
- Potassium: Low levels of potassium can impair the production of insulin, which can lead to high blood sugar. So, it's important for diabetics to include plenty of potassium-rich foods like apples in their diet.
Apart from making the snack more delicious, peanut butter also makes it even healthier because it contains:
- Magnesium: Magnesium deficiencies are associated with the development of diabetes. However, peanut butter is rich in magnesium, which helps improve blood sugar.
- Vitamin E: The antioxidant properties of vitamin E protect pancreatic cells from damage, helping regulate insulin production and the formation of red blood cells for optimal health.
The combination of the benefits offered by these high-fiber ingredients helps manage blood sugar in diabetics and provides an antioxidant boost. On top of being delicious, this snack is versatile too—if you're out of apples, you can substitute with other fruits like bananas or pears. And if you don't like peanut butter, you can swap it for another nutty butter like almond or cashew butter and get similar health benefits.
4. Enjoy a Nutritious Snack With Almonds
Apart from being convenient to eat on the go, almonds are a powerhouse of protein, vitamins, minerals, and fiber, making a handful of almonds a very nutritious snack. The combination of fiber, protein, and healthy fats makes almonds an ideal snack for diabetics because these elements help improve blood sugar control and balance insulin levels.
However, they're high in calories, so make sure to have just a handful of almonds for a snack. Limiting your portion size is key here to prevent weight gain.
» Need to improve insulin resistance? Add these herbs to your diet
5. Get a Vitamin Boost With Veggies and Hummus
The combination of vegetables and hummus offers you plenty of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. From carrots to celery, cauliflower, bell peppers, and broccoli, you can experiment with different types of vegetables to combine with hummus according to your preferences.
Hummus is made from chickpeas and tahini (sesame seed paste), so it's rich in protein and healthy fats. Combined with the fiber in veggies, hummus is beneficial for blood sugar control, making it the ideal snack option for diabetics. Unlike sugary snacks or foods with refined flour, this snack also aids weight loss by maintaining stable blood sugar levels and encouraging fat burning.
» Considering the keto diet? Experts weigh in on its effectiveness for diabetics
Supercharge Your Smart Snacking With Trim Down Club
Although managing diabetes and achieving weight loss are no easy tasks, the right guidance and support make it much easier. By incorporating the healthy snacks on our list into your diet, you'll be able to satisfy your food cravings without spiking insulin or gaining weight.
For more smart snacking ideas tailored according to your needs and preferences, you can get a customized and flexible meal plan with Trim Down Club. To get started, take Trim Down Club's quick diabetes quiz and enjoy delicious, diabetes-friendly snacks.
