How to Juice With Diabetes
If you are diabetic, be aware of how many carbohydrates you drink anytime you have juice, and adjust your medication or exercise accordingly to avoid spikes in blood glucose levels (BGL). The best kind of juice is the one you make yourself. Fruit juices are higher in carbs and thus spike BGL more than most vegetable juices, although there are exceptions, like carrots and beets.
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Things You'll Need
- Juicer
- Blender
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Ginger
- Garlic
- Onion
- Carb charts
- Flax seed meal
- Oat bran
- Nuts
Instructions
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Choose your juice and make it
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Check your blood sugar level before juicing. If it is high, fruit juice is not the best choice. A vegetable juice might work better. Consider that a 4 ounce orange juice, typically four oranges, contains 15 carbohydrates. Four ounces is a gulp. Usually we drink 8 or 12 ounces at a time. Adjust your medication and exercise accordingly to compensate.
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Chose the fruit you like and find out how many carbs you'll be taking in. Whenever possible use organic, clean fruits and use the peel, which adds fiber. The more fiber, the more balanced the impact on your BGL. Adding a tablespoon of flax seed meal increases the juice's fiber content. To minimize the impact on your BGL, add filtered water to the juice in your blender. Whole ginger adds spice and fiber, and it benefits your immune system.
If your BGL is low, drinking fruit juice is a good way to correct it.
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Juice vegetables to make the most beneficial juice for diabetes. Leafy greens like kale, collard and mustard greens are high in fiber and very low in carbohydrates. Ginger adds spice and cleansing power to your juice. If you don't like to eat vegetables and salads, this kind of juice is perfect to add the nutritional value of vegetables to your diet.
Cucumbers are a good source of juice and low in carbs. Keep the peel to increase the fiber content.
Add garlic and/or onion if you like them. Onion helps lowering BGL, and garlic strengthens your immune system.
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Combine vegetables and fruits. Vegetables are a good source of fiber; fruits taste good. Combine the two and you have a healthy juice beneficial for diabetes.
For example, juice together 1 cup of chopped kale (7 carbs), one whole cucumber (11 carbs), one medium size whole apple (17 carbs), 1/8 cup sliced ginger (2 carbs) and 1 tbsp. of flaxseed meal (2 carbs) for a total of 39 carbs. Add almonds or other nuts to make the juice more of a meal, with protein and fiber content.
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Tips & Warnings
You can add flaxseed meal, oat bran, seeds and nuts to add taste, fiber and protein and reduce the impact on your BGL. Get creative.
Be aware of the impact that drinking juice has on your BGL and adjust your exercise and medication accordingly.
