Diabetic Meal Plan Chart For Kids

If your child has diabetes, we understand you must be juggling a lot throughout the day. Have you ever thought of having a diabetic meal plan chart to help you and your child through the week? A meal chart will ensure your little one gets a proper nutritious intake aimed to keep the blood sugar level in check. Moreover, it will make the routine more organized for you and your child.

When your child is diabetic, whatever he or she consumes impacts the blood sugar level. Here is everything you need to know at a ground level to make nutritious meals for your child with diabetes and manage the condition well.

Why Create a Diabetic Meal Plan Chart for Your Child

Diabetes is a very common disease these days. It is caused by high blood sugar levels affecting all age groups. Unhealthy food habits in a genetically predisposed child are the main cause behind Diabetes in children. Excessive consumption of junk food, soft drinks, and processed food can lead to diabetes. 

If your child has been diagnosed with diabetes, it is extremely important to stay cautious while making meals for them on a daily basis. Diabetes in children does not require as much of a strict diet as adults. However, it is a smart idea to plan the meals your child has after they are diagnosed with the disease. 

Preparing a Diabetic Meal Plan Chart

Here are a few things that you need to keep in mind while making a meal plan for your child with diabetes:

1. Make a habit of reading food labels. It can be very helpful since it gives you an accurate idea of what your child eats. 
2. Cut down junk food, soft drinks, chips, and other kinds of sugary food that will harm your child’s health.
3. Make sure you keep a track of how much carbohydrate your child consumes on a daily basis. 
4. Do not add food items that have an excessive amount of carbohydrate, fat, and sugar. 
5. Avoid foods like white bread, refined flour, pasta, cookies, pastries, noodles, and other items with processed sugar in them.
6. Make sure you keep a track of your kid’s blood pressure level as well. Children with diabetes tend to have high blood pressure.  
7. Avoid adding extra salt (sodium) in the meals, for it will keep the blood pressure level in check.
8. Your child should always get around 30% calories from healthy fats and around 15%-20% calories from protein.
9. Maintain a carb counting plan right from the beginning. It will help your child have a healthy diet in the future.

Meal Plan for Child with Type 1 Diabetes

Visiting a nutritionist can give you the best food plan for the benefit of your child. However, if you are looking for a ground-level meal plan for your child to help them cope with the new routine, here are a few ideas for you:

1. Breakfast 

Breakfast for your child should be the heaviest in the day. A good breakfast filled with vitamins, calcium, and protein will help them go about the day with a healthy start. For breakfast, you can make them an egg sandwich, fruits with nut butter, or probably sweet potato salad with yoghurt.

Nutritious oatmeal will serve the purpose equally well. As long as breakfast for child with type 1 diabetes is concerned, it is important to keep a balanced breakfast in their plan.

2. Lunch  

For lunch, you can make a chicken sandwich for your kid. Serve it with some healthy yoghurt and fruits. Fruits like apples, cucumbers, grapes, and bananas make sure your child gets the proper level of sugar that is needed. Do not add extra sugar while making their lunch. It will help them keep their blood sugar level on track.

1 cup of low-fat milk can be very helpful in keeping their stomach full for a long time. A bowl filled with salads can be an ideal lunch for child with type 1 diabetes. Make sure the lunch is not too heavy and is nutritious for them. It will keep them from facing bloating issues.

3. Dinner

In the dinner for child with type 1 diabetes, you can include one piece of roasted chicken along with a vegetable soup. You can also serve 2 bread pieces, chicken salad, and some veg soup. Avoid serving any kind of fruits at night.

You can also serve some lasagna along with a vegetable soup at dinner. It will help them avoid bloating issues and yet keep them full for a long time.

Meal Plan for Child with Type 2 Diabetes 

Type 2 diabetes is a bit milder than type 1 diabetes. Therefore, the meal plan can be similar or a little less stricter than the type 1 meal plan. Patients with type 2 diabetes do not respond to insulin effectively. Type 1 diabetes patients, on the other hand, do not produce insulin in the body. It is a more serious case when it comes to children. 

If you are wondering how you can make a nutritious meal plan for child with type 2 diabetes, then although it will be on the same lines as above, some considerations have to be remembered. These are: 

• Do not forget to add fruits and vegetables for diabetes . Beans and lentils are super important. 
• Use brown rice and oatmeal in abundance. It will help your child have a meal filled with the essential vitamins, protein, iron, and fibre.
• Serve whole-grain foods such as whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, and brown bread, to name a few. 
• Remove the skin from the chicken/pork/beef you serve. 

Conclusion

While it is difficult to manage any health issues that concern children, a little planning, foresight, and a positive outlook can certainly help you deal with the situation in a better manner. We hope this article helps you create an effective diabetic meal plan chart for your child. If you have any feedback or other ideas, feel free to share!