STANDARD DIET FOR DIABETIC PATIENT

There are no hard and fast rules to govern such a patient’s daily food requirements. It is height of imprudence to hold diet and the patient responsible for any fluctuations in blood sugar level, for the simple reason that diet is but one of the various factors that cause and precipitate onset of diabetes. Japanese, Germans, Negroes consume carbohydrates in much more quantity than the Indians, but incidence of diabetes is far less in the former and far greater in the latter. To hold excessive use of carbohydrates, as the only contributory cause and main culprit, for causing diabetes, is nullified by the aforesaid example.

It is not possible to prescribe a calorie-based diet for such and every diabetes patient. It is neither feasible nor advisable, for the simple reason that every patient’s life style, food-patterns, amount of labour expended during work-period or quantum and duration of rest, habits of a person, apart from age sex etc. differ. So, a uniform dietary pattern cannot be worked out. For instance, if a diabetic person, working in an office, takes to a field job or traveling job, his calorie intake will naturally vary and such a suddenly changed situation. If he sticks to his physician’s dietary directions, he will, in all probability, fall a prey to hyperglycemia. If reverse is the case, he is liable to suffer from hyperglycemia in such a situation, the patient has to be his own master because in a lowered sugar level,. He may even meet his end if he is not fully aware of crisis management of such odd situations.