 Show Whole-grain cereal with nonfat milk is heart-healthy choice for people with diabetes. Image Credit: supermimicry/iStock/Getty Images The risk of heart disease is two to four times greater for people with diabetes. High blood cholesterol levels also increase your risk of heart disease. A healthy diet that includes nutritious foods in moderate amounts can help you control your blood sugars for diabetes and reduce your blood cholesterol levels. Diet BasicsTo control your blood sugars, you need to control the amount of carbohydrate-containing food, fruit, starch, yogurt and milk, you eat at each meal. The amount you need depends on your blood sugar goals and calorie needs. The American Diabetes Association says most people can start with 45 to 60 g carbohydrate per meal. To help lower blood cholesterol levels, you need to include foods high in fiber and limit the amount of saturated fats and trans fats in your diet. In addition to high-fiber foods, eat whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Choose lean cuts of meat and low-fat and nonfat dairy foods to limit your intake of saturated fat. Trans fats are primarily found in baked goods. BreakfastTo help control your blood sugars, try to eat at the same time each day. Eating regularly and consistently will also help control hunger for weight management. Maintaining a healthy weight can also help you keep both blood sugars and cholesterol levels under control. A heart-healthy breakfast for diabetes includes 1 cup hot cooked oatmeal with 2 tbsp. of raisins and 1 cup nonfat milk. Or, you can try two slices of whole wheat toast with 1 1/2 tsp. peanut butter, 1 1/4 cup of fresh strawberries and 6 oz. nonfat sugar-free yogurt. LunchIncluding foods high in soluble fiber, such as pears and oranges, helps to lower blood cholesterol levels and slows digestion to allow for a slower release of sugar into the bloodstream. A lunch meal that may help lower blood cholesterol levels includes 3 oz. of grilled tuna on top of 2 cups mixed greens with seven walnut halves chopped and 1 tbsp. low-fat salad dressing, served with a large pear and 10 whole grain crackers. Another lunch meal may include a small whole wheat pita stuffed with 1/4 cup hummus, served with a small orange and 1 cup baby carrots. DinnerFoods high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, tuna and walnuts, can also help improve blood cholesterol levels. For dinner, try 3 oz. broiled salmon served with 1 cup brown rice and 1 cup steamed broccoli. Another heart-healthy dinner meal for diabetes may include 3 oz. of roasted turkey breast with a 6 oz. baked sweet potato, 1 cup roasted brussels sprouts and a 1 oz. whole wheat dinner roll. Mary Jenkins is 51 and lives in Kanab, Utah. Last December, before starting her new diet, she weighed 225 pounds. She has since lost 50 pounds—and the weight is still coming off. This is her story. I was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, so I lived off a Southern-fried diet for most of my life. As a result, I had extremely high blood pressure for over 30 years. I tried every eating plan out there to get it under control: low-carb diets, high-protein diets—all that stuff. None of it worked for me. I was still obese, and my cholesterol levels didn’t improve. (Discover the ONE simple, natural solution that can help you reverse chronic inflammation and heal more than 45 diseases. Try The Whole Body Cure today!) Then two years ago, my doctor ordered an A1C test. He had a hunch I may have type 2 diabetes as a result of my weight. My score was a seven, which meant his suspicions were correct. (A normal A1C level is below 5.7. ) It got worse: Because I’ve had high blood pressure for so long, he said I could have long-term organ damage now that I also had diabetes. You’d think at that point, he would have sat me down and talked to me about how I could improve my diet, but he didn’t. He just said something like, “Watch your carbs and exercise.” That was it. So I basically kept living as I had before. MORE: 15 Common Risk Factors Of Type 2 Diabetes My motivation MORE: 4 Steps To Reverse Diabetes Naturally I thought my doctor would praise my progress, too, but at my next appointment, which was this past December, he told me that my blood pressure was still too high. He said, “If you don’t make drastic diet changes, I’m going to send you to a nephrologist because your kidney function is very poor.” That terrified me. I lost my pastor to kidney disease, and I knew it was a terrible affliction. So I Googled 'What do you eat to improve kidney function?’. I found information on the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, which is the diet recommended by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute for lowering blood pressure. In 30 years, no one had talked to me about a dietary approach to lowering my blood pressure. I started reading about it, and I thought, if it didn’t work, no harm no foul. I decided to start my new diet on January first, because everyone else starts their goals then, right? My diet & exercise routine On the DASH website, I also found and printed out this shopping list that provides a list of foods that fit into the diet. I took it with me to the grocery store and stocked up on everything I needed—which took me three long hours. (Thinking back on that now, it’s actually a bit humorous. Shopping is far easier for me now that I’ve been eating this way for nearly a year.) I bought lots of healthy grains, fruits and vegetables, and low-fat yogurt. I cut out cow’s milk and started using almond milk instead. I switched from processed peanut butter to natural almond butter. I also started preparing most of my food myself, which is something I hadn’t done before. I’d always eaten out or bought ready-to-eat stuff. I found new things that I liked, and many were things I’d never eaten before. For example, I’d never had steel-cut oatmeal. As a Southern gal, I’d only had grits. I started eating strawberries and raspberries. I had never had asparagus or Brussels sprouts, but I started adding them to my shopping cart. I also began buying fresh meat and making grilled chicken or pork with cauliflower rice. (Which, by the way, is so good!) Try one of these crazy delicious cauliflower rice recipes: MORE: I Took A Walk Before Every Meal For A Month To See If It Would Help Me Lose Weight. Here’s What Happened. I also started walking. Every two hours, I would walk for 10 or 20 minutes or even an hour. It didn’t really matter how long, it was just to get up out of my chair and move. I’d already proven I could hike and do more challenging forms of exercise, so walking seemed like a smaller task that would help me get healthier. The reward Two months later I had another appointment. I found out that I had lost an additional 20 pounds. He also shared the most amazing news with me: I didn’t have diabetes anymore! My A1C was 5.3, down from 7. My blood pressure was also down to 115 over 30—healthy numbers I haven’t seen since I was 21 years old. I felt ecstatic, but also relieved. MORE: 108 Blood-Pressure-Lowering Smoothies Even though my health has improved, I haven’t stopped my medications; that's not what my journey is about. With my long-term blood pressure issues, there’s no way to tell what harm’s already been done, so I need to continue taking them. My doctor is shocked I’ve maintained my good health and weight loss for so long. He told me he doesn’t care if lose another pound; he just doesn’t want me to put weight back on. “You have made too much progress to go back,” he said. And I agree. I want to do everything I can to maintain my newfound health for the rest of my life. How you can improve your diet, too Markham Heid is an experienced health reporter and writer, has contributed to outlets like TIME, Men’s Health, and Everyday Health, and has received reporting awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Maryland, Delaware, and D.C. Press Association. What should I eat for breakfast if I have high cholesterol and diabetes?Start Your Day Right: 8 Healthy Breakfast Ideas to Lower Your Cholesterol. Oatmeal.. Almond milk.. Avocado toast.. Egg white scramble.. Orange juice.. Smoothie.. Smoked salmon.. Bran muffins.. How can I lower my cholesterol and diabetes?Here are a few tips to effectively reduce high blood sugar and cholesterol levels:. Eat healthy fats. To reduce cholesterol levels, many people cut out sources of fat from their diets. ... . Reduce your intake of added. sugars. ... . Consume more vegetables. Increasing your intake of both. ... . Eat mostly whole, nutritious. foods.. What foods should a diabetic with high cholesterol avoid?Having a healthy, balanced diet can help many people manage diabetes symptoms and reduce the risk of complications.. breaded, fried, and high-sodium meats.. processed meats, such as bacon, hot dogs, and deli meats.. ribs and other fatty cuts of meat.. poultry with the skin on.. deep-fried fish.. What happens if you have high cholesterol and diabetes?If you have both diabetes and high cholesterol, you're not alone. The American Heart Association (AHA) states that diabetes often lowers HDL (good) cholesterol levels and raises triglycerides and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Both of these increase the risk for heart disease and stroke.
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What to eat when you have high cholesterol and diabetes
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