1800 Calorie Diet Menu

Diabetes is a very common health problem these days and it requires strict lifestyle changes. Diabetic patients need to control their diet to reduce the symptoms of diabetes. The 1800 calorie diet menu is a special type of diet plan, made for diabetic patients. As the name suggests, this diet plan restricts the calorie intake for a day, to 1800 calories. Before knowing a sample of this diet menu, let us take a look at the importance of this diet plan.

Significance of 1800 Calorie Diet Plan

In diabetes, the insulin level of the patient is very low. Insulin is amongst the most vital hormones produced in our body, that regulates the blood sugar level. Regulation of blood sugar level is nothing but conversion of consumed food into glucose and then utilizing this energy for daily requirements of the body. The food that we eat are the main sources of glucose, specially carbohydrates and fats. In diabetic patients, their body produces very less amount of insulin or does not produce insulin at all. Thus, insulin deficiency leads to increased glucose in the body. Glucose level is nothing but the blood sugar level. Increased blood sugar level leads to a number of health problems and hence, it is necessary that diabetic patients take steps, that will help them to reduce this increased elevated blood sugar in their body.

Foremost thing that needs to be done is, reducing excess consumption of calories. Diet plans like 1800 calorie diet menu, design the meals such, that the diabetic person can consume just 1800 calories in a day. By restricting the amount of calories consumed, the increased blood sugar level can be easily controlled. This diet plan has proved to give effective results and hence, is recommended by physicians and dietitians. But you need to ensure that you are completing the 1800 calories requirements properly. It is necessary that you make yourself aware of the amount of calories present in the food items that you consume. Moreover, you also need to consume healthy sources of calories and not rely on greasy and fatty foods. Carbohydrates being the rich source of glucose, needs to be consumed in controlled manner. It contributes fifty percent of the calories consumed during any 1800 calorie diet plan. Thus, a proper selection of foods is the key to the success of 1800 calorie diet plan. Never starve your body and have regular meals along with mid-day snacks. It is mandatory that you drink 8-10 glasses of water daily. You must exercise for at least 30 minutes on daily basis.

Sample 1800 Calorie Diet Menu

Given below is sample menu for 1800 calorie diet, that will give you an idea on how to design your daily meal plans to consume 1800 calories.

Meals	Food Items	Quantity	Calories
Breakfast	Cooked oatmeal	½ cup	65
	English muffin	½	60
	Orange juice	½ cup	120
	Margarine	1 teaspoon	25
	Skimmed milk	1 cup	90
Morning Snack	Honeydew melon	1 cup	50
Lunch	Turkey sandwich	½	208
	Apple	1 small size	80
	Celery sticks	1 cup	47
	Vegetable beef soup	1 cup	78
Afternoon Snack	Popcorn (No Fat)	2 small	75
Dinner	Lamb chops	2 small	198
	Whole wheat dinner roll	1	50
	Margarine	2 teaspoon	50
	Green beans	½ cup	100
	Skimmed milk	1 cup	90
	Plain cooked noodles	1 cup	213
Bedtime Snack	Graham cracker and peanut butter	1, 2 tablespoons	210

You can take help of a dietitian and your physician, to guide you through your 1800 calorie diet menu. Consulting your physician is recommended, since, it is necessary to ensure whether your body is fit to sustain such a diet plan.