Guest Author - Katherine Tomlinson
Diabetes is on the rise in the United States and other western countries. The American Diabetes Association estimates that as many as 17.9 million Americans have been diagnosed with the disease; another five million are undiagnosed and 57 million people are “pre-diabetic,” which means they are at risk for developing the disease.
One of the major risk factors for developing diabetes is being overweight and one of the best ways to combat the condition is managing your intake of sweets. (This is a vast oversimplification, but if you’ve just been diagnosed with diabetes or fear you are at risk, changing your eating habits is a great place to start getting healthy.)
The good news is that you don’t have to give up chocolate, you just have to change the way you consume it. (And you have to be realistic. If you used to start your day with three chocolate donuts and then snack on candy bars during the day and then eat a few brownies at night…those days are over.)
The secret is “flavanols,” compounds naturally present in dark chocolate that have been found to decrease blood pressure and increase insulin response in some studies. Not only that, but dark chocolate also contains anti-oxidants, which are just good for you.
The trick is portion control. Yes, you’ve heard it before and it’s boring to hear it again, but you can pack a surprising chocolate punch in a small snack. For example, stir a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder into a cup of vanilla or berry yogurt for a little lift. Make a cup of cocoa with skim milk and a sweetener like Splenda. Don’t forget to add a dash of cinnamon because cinnamon naturally stabilizes blood sugar.
Another trick is to load on the fiber. Sneaking a bit of extra fiber into a sweet will help slow the “sugar spike” that can send blood glucose soaring. Rather than buying pre-packaged “diet” foods, try your hand at making your own sugar-free and low-sugar recipes. Here’s one to get you started:
No Guilt Brownies
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Prepare an 8x8 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
½ cup sugar substitute (Splenda or Equal)
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Egg substitute equal to 2 eggs
½ cup flour
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
Combine the applesauce, sugar, sugar substitute, egg substitute and vanilla extra.
Stir in the flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa powder. Do not over-mix. Pour into prepared baking pan.
Bake for half an hour in the pre-heated oven, testing at 25 minutes.
The cocoa powder makes these intensely chocolatey and very satisfying. The use of applesauce and egg substitute makes them fat free and vegan.
Note: there is some debate about which is better for baking diabetic goodies—margarine or butter. While butter is a saturated fat, many margarines contain trans fats, which are metabolized by the body just like saturated fats, raising “bad” cholesterol levels and decreasing “good” cholesterol. Look for recipes that substitute ingredients like applesauce for fat, or which use canola or olive oil.
