We often think of the traditional mealtimes as a 3-a-day routine.  Assuming there is a decent breakfast, the common logic is to follow about 6 hours later with a sizeable lunch accompanied by the usual ‘food-coma’.  There are the usual cravings between meals which we’ve been conditioned to accept as normal.  Furthermore, we’re bombarded with countless ads for quickie supplements and drinks to get past that  low energy/between-meal slump. By the end of the day, we’re still expected to finish with a on-the-large-side dinner, often consisting of the usual meat and potatoes, or if time doesn’t permit, the ever-dreadful fast-food drive-through beckons.

credit

With diabetes however, it’s important to re-evaluate how to view meals and mealtimes diffently than before .  A study published in 2001 in the British Medical Journal explored this issue and despite the 15-minute discussion it evoked, the subject is just as relevant today. It’s difficult to re-think eating habits and bad ones still persist.  The idea of between-meal snacks in fact should be instead thought of as meals, just smaller, with a total of 5 to 6 meals distributed throughout the day. Ideally the suggestion from experts is having a small meal every 2 1/2 to 3 hours. This also has an added benefit of helping you lose weight by keeping you feeling satisfied throughout the day with your body’s blood sugars evened out. You’re much less likely to either binge in a rage of hunger or reach for that candy bar or coke while in the grips of a cold-sweat, nausea-inducing blood sugar drop. Not coincidentally, this same study also showed that eating these multiple smaller meals had a 5% lower overall cholesterol (including the LDL, the bad cholesterol) compared to those eating only one or two meals regardless of calories consumed.

Smaller meals during the day become a kind of "grazing" .

While at first it may seem all your focus is on food all day. It helps however to think of this routine like  ’grazing’ since the calories consumed are done so in smaller quantities but in a more uniform pattern.  The easiest way to do this is slashing each larger meal in half instead of just adding a couple of extra snacks. This way the calories you’re already consuming will result in less blood-sugar highs and lows and keep you sane all with minimal cravings.

Happy grazing!