Two major dietary taboos for people with high blood sugar: controlling their diet and avoiding sugary foods.

Dietary Recommendations and Restrictions for Patients with Hyperglycemia

Avoid Uncontrolled Diet: Dietary control is crucial for diabetic patients.

Appropriate dietary control can reduce the burden on pancreatic beta cells and is a primary treatment method for elderly, obese, and atypical type 2 diabetes patients. Type 1 diabetes and severe type 2 diabetes patients, in addition to medication, should strictly control their diet. The purpose of dietary control is:

(1) Maintaining a normal weight. For obese individuals, limiting total calorie intake will lead to weight loss. For underweight individuals, increasing calorie intake will lead to weight gain, thereby enhancing resistance to various infectious diseases.

(2) Reducing the burden on the pancreas, bringing blood glucose, urine glucose, and blood lipids closer to normal, thus preventing or delaying the development of cardiovascular and other complications.

(3) Maintaining health, ensuring normal growth and development in children, and maintaining normal labor capacity in adults.

Avoid Uncontrolled Consumption of Sugary Foods: Diabetes, as the name suggests, is closely related to "sugar." How to control sugar intake has become a primary concern for diabetic patients. According to a recent report in Taiwan's “Common Health” magazine, nutritionists have summarized it simply as follows:

(1) Eat less staple food. In fact, besides staple foods like rice and noodles, other foods that affect blood sugar levels include red beans, mung beans, Job's tears, potatoes, taro, fruits, and milk. The best way for diabetic patients to determine how much of these foods they should eat each day is to consult a nutritionist at the hospital and have them create a nutritional plan for you.

(2) Control your intake of sweets and learn to substitute foods. For example, if you eat one popsicle, reduce your staple food intake by half a bowl.

(3) Determine the cause of elevated blood sugar: is it due to overeating or reduced physical activity? If not, eat as much as you normally would. If blood sugar doesn't decrease, discuss adjusting your medication dosage with your doctor and develop a regular eating habit to facilitate appropriate medication dosage.

(4) Many folk remedies claim to lower blood sugar, such as yam and Job's tears. Some of these are not scientifically proven, so don't believe them easily.

(5) Furthermore, it's not necessary to cook meals separately at home. If the patient is not used to the food, family members should help them start with the easiest things, or encourage them to change their eating habits by regularly checking their blood sugar and blood lipid levels.