Anyone diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes is often advised to take in a healthful vegetarian diet. To a vegetarian eating plan, it is suggested they add aerobic exercise to improve their overall fitness. According to the journal Nutrients published in October 2016, the combination improves physical fitness and increases the calorie expenditure when compared with a typical diet and aerobic exercise.

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Investigators at the Institute of Clinical and Experimental Medicine in Prague and several other research institutions in the Czech Republic compared 74 people diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. The participants were kept on a maintenance diet minus 500 calories per day: reducing the average calorie intake by 500 calories each day is the amount needed to lose one pound of body weight each week…

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1. After 12 weeks, physical fitness as defined by the amount of oxygen taken in and used was increased by 12 percent in the vegetarian group. No significant change was seen in the typical diet group.
2. The physical performance in the vegetarian group improved by 21 percent, while no improvement in fitness had been observed in the regular diet group.

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From the above information, the scientists concluded vegetarian diets along with aerobic exercise are more effective at improving physical fitness than non-vegetarian diets along with the same type of physical activity. The mitochondria are the powerhouses of the body cells. Following a low-glycemic diet alters the amount of energy expended by the mitochondria. The overall glycemic value of a vegetarian meal is low.

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Vegetarian diets can be full of flavor and variety because there are so many more types of fruits and vegetables than there are meats. An estimated two hundred types of fruits and vegetables provide two hundred flavors along with many different textures and colors. The American Heart Association strongly recommends eating as many fruits and vegetables as possible every day. Some superfoods recommended by the American Diabetes Association include…

• citrus fruits – always good for vitamin C and fiber,
• dark green leafy vegetables – feel free to fill up on kale, spinach and any other of this type,
• beans – try black bean veggie burgers, or add peas to whole grain rice,
• sweet potatoes – starchy, but better than regular potatoes and they provide vitamin A and fiber
• berries – antioxidants, vitamins, and fiber make them ideal, and with a high variety of colors offers a broad range of phytonutrients
• tomatoes – even better cooked than raw: add roasted tomatoes to canned tomato sauce,
• whole grains – go for wheat germ or wheat bran in the whole grains.

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Try making a sandwich with whole wheat bread, olive or grapeseed oil, spinach, tomato, basil, bell pepper, chili pepper, cucumber, parsley, and bean sprouts. Or a sandwich with frozen vegetable crumbles and whole wheat spaghetti and tomato sauce. Enjoy!

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Although managing your disease can be very challenging, Type 2 diabetes is not a condition you must just live with. You can make simple changes to your daily routine and lower both your weight and your blood sugar levels. Hang in there, the longer you do it, the easier it gets.  By Beverleigh H Piepers 

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