Introduction: As people's living standards improve, the food they eat has become increasingly diverse. This has also led to many people developing various diseases, among which diabetes is a common and frequently occurring illness, causing great inconvenience to many people. In addition to taking medication as prescribed, diabetic patients can eat more home-cooked dishes like bitter melon and onions in their daily diet to help control diabetes.
1. Bitter Melon
Bitter melon has tender flesh, a cold nature, and a bitter taste. It is rich in various nutrients, especially vitamin C, whose content ranks highest among all melons. Pharmacological tests have found that the momordicoside in bitter melon has a significant hypoglycemic effect. It not only has an insulin-like effect, earning it the name "plant insulin," but also stimulates the release of insulin. In one trial, using momordicoside preparations orally for treating type 2 diabetes, the total effective rate reached 78.3%. Therefore, diabetic patients who regularly include bitter melon in their diet can help control blood sugar.
Bitter Melon and Bell Peppers
2. Onion
Onions are sweet, tender, and white. They contain prostaglandin A and sulfur-containing amino acids, which help dilate blood vessels, lower blood pressure and blood lipids, and prevent arteriosclerosis, making them beneficial for preventing diabetic complications.
3. Cucumber
Cucumbers are crisp, sweet, and have a sugar content of only 1.6%. Diabetic patients can eat them as a fruit substitute and obtain vitamin C, carotene, fiber, and minerals. Cucumbers also contain malic acid, which can inhibit the conversion of carbohydrates into fat in the body. Therefore, diabetic patients who are overweight or have high blood pressure and high blood lipids should eat more cucumbers.
Cucumber Juice
4. Lettuce
Lettuce has very low sugar and fat content. It contains insulin activators, which are beneficial for diabetic patients. As a high-fiber food, it can delay the digestion of food and the absorption of glucose in the intestines of diabetic patients, helping to control postprandial blood sugar.
5. Tremella Mushroom
Tremella mushroom is mild in nature and sweet in taste. It has the effects of nourishing yin, moistening dryness, and promoting the production of body fluids to nourish the stomach. It is not only nutritious but also has high medicinal value, earning it the reputation of "the pearl among mushrooms." Tremella mushroom has low thermal energy and is rich in dietary fiber, which helps to slow the rise of blood sugar in diabetic patients. Recent research has reported that tremella mushroom contains a high amount of tremella polysaccharide, which affects the hypoglycemic activity of insulin.
Papaya and Tremella Mushroom Stewed Pork Ribs