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Dietician Sheela Seharawat

How to control your taste buds over sweet dishes if you’re diabetic

In today’s world of fast and easy foods, almost every processed food that we pickup has atleast some element of sugar in it. We can see its consequences with rise in cases of obesity, diabetes and heart ailments, and all of these are related somehow and somewhere with increased consumption of sugar. Consuming sugar in any form somehow temporarily elevates the levels of certain neurotransmitters in our bodies. Neurotransmitters are "feel-good" chemicals that makes us temporarily feel high and happy eating something.

It is perfectly natural to enjoy sweet food. Sweet foods certainly acts as a reward systems in our brains, and, for most of us, sweet food also has a positive impact on our mood, at least for a short-term. Sugar triggers a surge of opioids and dopamine, the two feel-good brain chemicals (neurotransmitters) that can cause you to get hooked on to the sweet stuff. But the good news here is that by some simple diet and lifestyle tweaks it can help you keep your sugar habits in check.

Beat your sugar craving having diabetes
Having diabetes doesn’t mean that it is the end for our sweet treats. But if you have frequent cravings for food high in sugar and fat, submitting it in every time can wreak havoc on your blood glucose and our conditions. Instead, follow these smart steps to satisfy your sweet tooth without causing harm to our health.
Eat smaller servings
Unlike most other foods, desserts pack more carbohydrates each bite we take and going overboard can make situations worse. Carbohydrates are easy sources that our body breaks down into sugar for energy needs. Apart from desserts alone, if planned carefully we can substitute and limit other carbohydrate containing foods like bread, tortillas, or cereals.
Don’t eat desserts alone as it surges the blood sugar levels instantly. Instead have it with other foods which will also raise the levels but slowly and steadily. While buying and having chocolate, choose dark chocolate as it is higher in cocoa and less in sugar than normal milk chocolates. Dark chocolate also have healthy antioxidants that helps control blood pressure and protects your heart.

Go sugar-free
When you get sugar surges and nothing is in hand, instead of cakes, candies and sodas pick up options made with sugar-free or low-calorie sweeteners. Using these sweetener that includes a aspartame, saccharin, and sucralose—there are diet drinks, light yogurt, frozen desserts, and baked goods, among other products. You can also buy sachets to stir into coffee or sprinkle on fruit.
Remember that artificial sweeteners punch up your food with 100 times the sweetening power of sugar and hence you only need just a small amount as they have fewer carbohydrates and calories than sugar. Also artificial sweeteners may be easier to fit into your meal plan. However, the foods that contain them often have a fair amount of calories and carbs, so always read labels to ensure you’re staying with your daily limits.

Get control over your emotional eating
It is true that not all cravings from physical hunger, but it may be because of emotional outbursts. Get to control on emotional eating by tracking when you eat and how you feel. Try to identify situations and sentiments that cause cravings to arise and then make a list of other activities that can divert your mind and fulfil your needs. Say for example, taking a walk occupies your mind, and yoga stretches can ease tension. Food cravings is a learned behaviour and you can train your mind to control them, by making smarter choices. Get rid of boredoms, copping stress, and even dealing with negative feelings alike fear and jealousy. Sometimes a simple act like drinking a glass of water extinguishes the craving.

Substitute it with naturally sweet foods
The next time you have intense urges for sugar, reach out for the fruits in the basket instead the jar of cookies. Apart it’s all natural sweet flavor, fruits provides an array of nutrients without much fat, sodium, or cholesterol.
Fruit does have carbohydrates, alike simple sugar fructose. So, you’ll still need to fit the nature’s bounty into your meal plans. Start by choosing whole fruit more often than juice. The skin and flesh contain fiber, which not only fills you up but also reduces risk for heart diseases, and helps control your blood glucose and thereby diabetes.

Some key tips for diabetics to take control of their sweet tooth
When you have intense cravings for sugar, reach for naturally sweetened fruit.
Plan well in ahead, you can substitute a small portion of dessert with carb-containing foods, like breads or cereals.
Always remember that some cravings are results of boredom, stress, or negative feelings.
When nothing in hand and cake or soda will do, look for options using artificial or low-calorie sweeteners.

Diabetes doesn’t mean that you punish yourself and call it self-discipline. Giving yourself some treats, but in small amounts, actually helps you eat less. Just a few bites can be just as satisfying as a big helping. It keeps diabetics from that sense of missing out on good things that we often feel with diabetes.