Managing type 2 diabetes starts at the grocery store. Every food choice either raises your blood sugar or keeps it steady.
Fill your cart with these:
Eggs, chicken, canned tuna or salmon, Greek yogurt, and cottage cheese are all high in protein and have almost no effect on blood sugar. Build every meal around one of them.
Non-starchy vegetables — spinach, broccoli, zucchini, bell peppers, asparagus, mushrooms — can fill half your plate without meaningfully raising blood sugar.
Berries are the best fruit choice — low in sugar, high in fiber, rich in compounds that protect blood vessels.
Lentils, black beans, and chickpeas digest slowly and have very low blood sugar impact. They're also high in protein and fiber.
Avocados help blunt blood sugar spikes when eaten alongside carbs.
Extra-virgin olive oil improves insulin sensitivity over time.
Leave these at the store:
Sugary drinks of any kind. White bread, white rice, most breakfast cereals. Flavored yogurt — most have 20–25 grams of added sugar per serving.
Important: If you take insulin or a sulfonylurea medication, talk to your doctor before significantly changing your diet. Cutting carbs while on these drugs can cause dangerously low blood sugar.