Content
The pungency and spiciness of garlic has long been used in cooking. Due to its saturation with vitamins, essential oils, macro- and microelements, the vegetable is used in folk and official medicine. It is worth finding out whether garlic and type 2 diabetes are compatible and what effect it has on the patient’s body.
Just two cloves a day can protect the heart from cardiomyopathy
Is it possible or not to eat garlic if you have diabetes mellitus type 1, 2?
Patients with diabetes are forced to adhere to a strict diet and eat foods low in carbohydrates. They must constantly monitor and regulate blood counts.
For type 1 diabetes, insulin is taken, which is measured in special units, each of which is equal to 10 g of carbohydrates. Based on their ability to cause a rise in sugar, all products are divided into three groups:
- with a low index - less than 49;
- with average – from 50 to 70 units;
- with high – more than 70.
100 g of garlic contains 30 g of carbohydrates, i.e. its glycemic index is low, and the product can be included in the diet of patients with type 1 diabetes.The plant affects blood glucose levels, helps prevent complications and improve health.
Garlic can also be consumed by diabetics with a non-insulin-dependent form of the disease, in which glucose is poorly absorbed. Often the pathology is accompanied by excess weight gain and the presence of metabolic syndrome. The dietary product is able to regulate carbohydrate metabolism, accelerating fat burning and, as a result, lead to weight loss.
What are the benefits of garlic for diabetes?
In addition to the low carbohydrate content, the plant has a number of other advantages. If you use garlic for type 1 diabetes, you can achieve increased immunity, reduce the risk of seasonal viral infections, and normalize blood pressure.
It is known that the disease is severe and gradually leads to spasms and damage to the walls of blood vessels, the appearance of trophic ulcers, decreased vision and kidney diseases. If you use the product regularly, the spasm is weakened, the lumen expands, and the retinal arteries are strengthened. The diuretic effect of the plant allows you to reduce the load on the kidneys and avoid nephropathy.
Garlic also works great against type 2 diabetes—positive changes occur in the patient’s body:
- The rate of insulin breakdown slows down.
- Weight decreases.
- Atherosclerotic plaques on blood vessels gradually dissolve.
- Sugar levels decrease.
- Vascular walls are strengthened, which reduces the risk of trophic changes.
Garlic has antibacterial, fungicidal and antiviral properties
How to eat garlic correctly if you have diabetes
The vegetable can be consumed in any form - fresh, dried, after heat treatment or in the form of dosage forms - tinctures, infusions, extracts. It is important to adhere to the intake rate, which corresponds to two medium-sized cloves or fifteen drops of plant juice per day. Taking the product can be made not only useful, but also enjoyable if you use some recipes.
Summer salad
You can use the dish for diabetes in the morning, evening or as a snack. Ingredients needed:
- white cabbage – 200 g;
- garlic – 3 cloves;
- cucumbers – 150 g;
- radish – 100 g;
- apples – 1 pc.;
- soy sour cream – 100 g;
- salt.
Preparation procedure:
- Finely chop the vegetables.
- Add grated apple, sour cream, salt to taste.
- To stir thoroughly.
The best salad dressing for diabetics is vegetable oil or lemon juice.
Dietary cottage cheese casserole
For cooking, you can use an oven, multicooker, or microwave.
Ingredients:
- cottage cheese – 200 g;
- garlic – 3 cloves;
- parsley;
- eggs – 2 pcs.;
- honey - 1 tbsp. l.
Preparation procedure:
- Grind the cottage cheese together with honey until smooth.
- Beat the whites and pour the yolks into the curd mixture.
- Add chopped garlic and parsley.
- Place the mixture in the pan and bake for 30 minutes. at a temperature of 200 ⁰С.
After cooking, the dish must be cooled.
For people with diabetes, cottage cheese for casseroles should be low in fat.
Spicy dressing for meat
The recipe is especially good for hot summer time.
Required ingredients:
- garlic – 5 medium-sized cloves;
- kefir – 1 glass;
- dill - 1 bunch.
Preparation procedure:
- The garlic is chopped.
- Dill is finely chopped.
- Mix the ingredients.
- Pour in kefir.
Patients with diabetes can use the dressing for meat as an independent dish.
Baked in the oven
The whole head of garlic is thoroughly washed, dried, the top is cut off, greased with oil and placed in the oven. After 40 min. Baking at 150 ⁰C it becomes soft and ready to eat. You can also cook it in a frying pan (fried garlic should be consumed with caution if you have diabetes), it has the same taste as baked garlic.
Wedges from the oven go well with zucchini or cauliflower
Spiced milk
The drink is consumed daily before dinner. To prepare, add ten drops of garlic to a glass of milk and stir.
You can add turmeric to milk
Diabetes mellitus cannot be cured with garlic, but in combination with traditional methods, using it in food gives good results.
Contraindications and possible harm
Eating garlic for diabetes can cause both benefits and harm. If there are inflammatory processes in the mucous membranes, hot spices can aggravate the situation. The spice is not recommended if diabetic patients have a tendency to form stones or bleed. Contraindications for use are kidney pathologies, hepatitis, gastric and duodenal ulcers, anemia and epilepsy. Otherwise, you may get an exacerbation of the disease.
Pregnant and lactating women should not overuse this spicy vegetable. It is contraindicated in case of individual intolerance.
Conclusion
Garlic and type 2 diabetes are completely compatible concepts, if you follow the norm of consumption and take into account contraindications.Reducing blood sugar and normalizing blood pressure are its main actions, for which it is worth using the plant as an addition to the main therapy.
