Portion Control = Blood Sugar Control

The portions, quality and timing of meals greatly affect how our body controls blood sugar (blood glucose). In this diet plan, we will focus on the portioning of meals for better blood sugar control.

When we eat, our body digests food to release energy in various forms, one of them being glucose. We mostly get glucose from energy-giving foods (carbohydrates) such as breads, ugali, potatoes, chapati, mandazi and rice. Serving large amounts of energy-giving foods on our plate means our body gets large amounts of glucose in the blood. This in turn will lead to poor blood sugar control.

This is why we’re asking you to control the portions of food you eat, by serving a plate as follows:

¼ plate of a high fibre energy-giving food (high fibre carbohydrate) - whole grains, cereals, wholemeal flour products like ugali wa kusaga or brown chapati flour, cassava or arrow roots.
¼ plate of a body-building food (protein) - lean meats, chicken, fish, beans, milk, eggs, or nuts and nut products.
½ plate of a protective food (vitamins & minerals) - vegetables and fruits like apple, tangerine and avocado.

If you do this, you will be eating a smaller amount of carbohydrates and a larger amount of fibre from unprocessed carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables. The fibre in these foods helps to slow down digestion and this regulates the amount of blood sugar released.

So how can you get started? Try to create a habit of eating healthy portions of all food groups each day. Here’s an example of how you can do this in a daily meal plan:

Breakfast (7 am)	1 cup of low-fat milk or 1 cup diluted milk (plain, tea or coffee) 2 to 3 slices of wholemeal bread 1 egg or 1 tablespoon peanut butter 1 medium piece of fruit
Snack (10 am)	2 tablespoons of nuts
Lunch (1 pm)	Ugali (size of your closed fist) Lean beef cubes (3 pieces, each the size of a small matchbox) 2 handfuls of cooked leafy green vegetables
Snack (4 pm)	1 medium piece of fruit
Dinner (7 pm)	Rice (size of your closed fist) Beans stew (½ cup) 1 handful of raw vegetables

The portions, quality and timing of meals greatly affect how our body controls blood sugar (blood glucose). In this diet plan, we will focus on the portioning of meals for better blood sugar control.

This is why we’re asking you to control the portions of food you eat, by serving a plate as follows:

So how can you get started? Try to create a habit of eating healthy portions of all food groups each day. Here’s an example of how you can do this in a daily meal plan:

Breakfast (7 am)

1 cup of low-fat milk or 1 cup diluted milk (plain, tea or coffee)

2 to 3 slices of wholemeal bread

1 egg or 1 tablespoon peanut butter

1 medium piece of fruit

Snack (10 am)

2 tablespoons of nuts

Lunch (1 pm)

Ugali (size of your closed fist)

Lean beef cubes (3 pieces, each the size of a small matchbox)

2 handfuls of cooked leafy green vegetables

Snack (4 pm)

1 medium piece of fruit

Dinner (7 pm)

Rice (size of your closed fist)

Beans stew (½ cup)

1 handful of raw vegetables