Control Your Sugar Level

by Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC | Nov 17, 2024 | Food Allergies and Special Diets

Control your Sugar Level: The Best Bread for People with Diabetes

Eating balanced and organic food is one of the best ways to keep your diabetes in control naturally.

If you are new to diabetes, people might advise you against having bread because bread is high in carbohydrate.

But bread is a staple food in most households in the US.  So, if you are wondering what you can have instead of bread, the answer is you DON’T HAVE to switch.

People with diabetes can have bread without any fear, if your doctor permits and more importantly, if it is the right kind of bread.

So, what types of bread are best for people with diabetes? What should you look for when you are buying bread from stores?

Today we will talk about the types of bread that normalize your blood sugar naturally. We will also share tips to choose the best bread for diabetics.

Food and Glycemic Index

Carbohydrate is essential for human health development. However, it also contributes to the elevated sugar level in the blood for it easily breaks down to sugar.

On the other hand, good carbohydrates that are low in glycemic index or GI are the best foods that keep the blood sugar level as well as other issues, such as weight gain, heart diseases, etc., under control without external medication.

What is the Glycemic Index?    

GI is a way to measure the foods that increase or decrease your blood sugar levels, i.e. glucose according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

The GI reference point is scored between 1 and 100. The lower the score the better the GI. Foods that do not contain carbs, such as meats, do not have a score.

White bread scores around 71.

Therefore, people with diabetes are advised against eating white bread.

The best foods for people with diabetes have a low-glycemic score (<55). These foods include pumpernickel bread, whole fruits, non-starchy vegetables, such as cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, and cucumber, legumes, beans, and pulses, corn, yam, steel-cut oatmeal, and millet.

Other foods that contain medium-glycemic index (55 to 69) include quick oats, wheat bread, couscous, brown rice, Basmati rice, wild rice, and pita bread.

Foods with high-glycemic-index (>69) that people with diabetes ought to avoid:

–          Potatoes

–          Bananas

–          Popcorn

–          White rice

–          Macaroni

–          Breakfast cereals

–          All refined foods

–          Processed foods

–          Pineapple

–          Cooking oil

How to Choose Low GI Breads?

You must consider certain things, such as the nutritional factors when purchasing your bread.

The more processed a food is, the higher is the carb or GI level.

Therefore, we suggest you opt for whole meal or stone-ground bread to control your sugar level.

Now not all stores sell this kind of bread. So, if you need alternatives, make sure you read the labels of the bread packages and check the nutritional facts, such as calories, carbohydrates, fiber, fat, and sodium level.

–          Calories: If you plan to eat two bread slices, keep the calories <90 per slice.

–          Carbohydrate: The amount of carbs a person can have depends upon your meal plan, your weight-loss aim, and your health condition. However, a bread that has carbs between 15 and 20 gm or less (including sugar content) per slice is recommended.

–          Fat: People with diabetes should aim at having foods that are low in saturated and trans fats, and high in healthy or unsaturated fat. Plain bread without nuts and seeds do not contain many fats However, if you must choose something with fat, make sure the bread has zero grams trans-fat and less than 1.5 grams of saturated fat.

–          Fiber: Fiber is an essential nutrient for people with diabetes and obesity. It has many benefits, such as slowing down the processing of sugar in the blood. It also decreases appetite or hunger, keeps you full and energetic for a long time, regulates your bowel movements, and minimizes cholesterol level. Make sure the fiber content is highest or at least three grams per serving.

–          Sodium: Sodium can increase blood pressure and therefore, diabetic people must completely minimize eating food with high sodium levels. Ensure that each slice of bread has less than 150 mg sodium, for example.

Bread that Keeps Your Diabetes in Control

If you are baking bread at home, you can include ingredients like flaxseeds, chia seeds, nuts, wheat bran, oats, and millet.

You can replace these ingredients with your regular flour in 1: 4 ratios (1/2 cup ingredient vs. 1 1/2 cup flour).

Bread that you can include in your diet includes:

–          Whole-wheat bread or brown bread

–          Multi-grain bread

–          Gluten-free bread

–          Organic bread

–          Sprouted bread (Contains no flour and is made out of sprouting grains, beans, and seeds)

–          Sourdough bread

–          Tortillas

Unless your doctor specifies, it is not necessary to stop eating bread. Make sure your bread is GI low, sugar-free, trans-fat free, and whole grain.

Author Bio:

Henna is a proficient writer who firmly believes in the age-old remedies and holistic medicine as a primary cure for several diseases. After graduating she embarked on a journey to find the truth about holistic and natural remedies.

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