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| Recommendation | Rationale | Notes |
| Maintain a healthy weight. | Insulin resistance leads to obesity. | Losing as few as 10 pounds can help control type 2 diabetes. |
| Eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day. | Fruits and vegetables may help with diabetes management by regulating blood sugar levels. | Watch serving sizes of potatoes, corn, and other starchy vegetables, which can raise blood sugar levels. |
| Limit sweets. | Simple sugars can increase blood sugar levels. | Carbohydrates, such as pasta, potatoes, and cereals, can also raise blood sugar levels. |
| Replace saturated fats with polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. | Saturated fat increases cholesterol levels in susceptible individuals. | People with diabetes may be more sensitive to dietary cholesterol than the rest of the population is. |
| Eat less than 2,400 mg of salt a day. | Sodium raises blood pressure. | In controlling diabetes, keeping a check on blood pressure is just as important as normalizing blood glucose levels. |
| Increase intake of fiber-rich foods. | Fiber helps maintain an ideal body weight, and obesity is a primary risk factor for diabetes. | Good sources of fiber include whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. |
| Sources: Jaime S. Ruud, RD, research analyst in the department of nutritional science and dietetics at the University of Nebraska and author of Nutrition and the Female Athlete (CRC Press, 1996); American Diabetes Association, www.diabetes.org. | ||