In the article “What is a Pre-Diabetic Diet? Here's Everything You Need to Know” on the Eat This, Not That! website, Sarah Garone, NDTR, states, “Pre-diabetes is a more common condition than you might think. Approximately one in three American adults are pre-diabetic—and 90 percent don't even know it. If you've been diagnosed with this condition, you may feel overwhelmed or disappointed, but it may actually be a blessing in disguise. Catching pre-diabetes before it turns into full-blown diabetes and eating a pre-diabetic diet, offers you a window of time to get proactive about prevention.

“Your best defense in the fight to regulate your blood sugar? Your diet. By limiting empty calories, choosing the right carbohydrates and implementing portion control, it's entirely possible to reverse pre-diabetes.”

What is Pre-Diabetes?

“As its name indicates, pre-diabetes is a precursor to full-fledged diabetes. Technically, it's possible to be pre-diabetic prior to developing type 1 diabetes, but more commonly, pre-diabetes refers to an intermediate state between normal blood sugar levels and type 2 diabetes.”

Types of foods to eat

"Focusing on whole, unprocessed foods can go a long way toward keeping diabetes at bay. High-fiber whole grains, low-carb fruits and veggies, lean meats and plant-based protein are all building blocks of a healthy pre-diabetic diet. Some best choices to incorporate include: 

Non-starchy vegetables

• leafy greens
• peppers
• cucumbers
• asparagus
• artichokes
• eggplant
• celery
• broccoli
• cauliflower
• beets
• mushrooms
• onions
• tomatoes

High-fiber, low glycemic fruit 

• apples
• oranges
• strawberries
• mangoes
• plums
• pears
• peaches
• cherries. 

Whole grains

• whole wheat pasta
• quinoa
• barley
• brown rice
• oats
• bulgur
• rye.

Lean protein 

• skinless chicken breast
• turkey
• tilapia
• cod
• crab
• shrimp
• lean ground beef or flank steak
• buffalo
• eggs or egg whites
• tofu
• edamame
• tempeh. 

Beans, legumes, and nuts 

• black beans
• chickpeas
• kidney beans
• cannellini beans
• lentils
• lima beans
• cashews
• peanuts
• almonds
• walnuts.

Types of foods to avoid

"When you're trying to bounce back from pre-diabetes, cutting back on processed foods is key. Too often, packaged convenience foods are loaded with refined sugars and other low-quality carbs. Here are a few specifics to watch out for:

• High-sugar foods: To keep sugar intake low, limit foods like sweetened cereals, granola bars, breakfast pastries, and desserts.
• Empty calorie drinks: Soda, fruit juices, and sweet coffee drinks may be tasty, but they don't satisfy and offer very little nutrition. When you need a sweet fix to drink, try a sparkling water with a splash of juice.
• Refined grains: Why go refined when you could get the fiber and nutrients of whole grains? Take a pass on white breads, pastas, crackers, and rice.
• Alcohol (in excess): Steer clear of happy hour over-indulgence. Excessive alcohol consumption causes inflammation, which many researchers believe is involved in the type 2 diabetes disease process. Keep it moderate with one drink per day for women or two drinks per day for men—or less.

A typical pre-diabetes menu

"A sample day of a healthy pre-diabetic diet could look as follows:

• Breakfast: Strawberry almond oatmeal (1/2 cup rolled oats, ½ cup strawberries, 2 Tbsp. almonds, sprinkle of cinnamon)
• Lunch: Turkey salad wrap (fresh spinach, shredded carrots, diced turkey, avocado slices, 1 Tbsp. citrus vinaigrette); tortilla chips and salsa
• Dinner: Baked fish with lemon and olive oil, garlic-herb quinoa, steamed broccoli
• Afternoon Snack: Peach smoothie (Greek yogurt, frozen peaches, drizzle of honey)
• Dessert: Black bean brownies
• Bedtime Snack: Cheese and whole wheat crackers."

Milk is an enjoyable and nutritious part of the diet of millions of people. Different kinds of milk have particular benefits and downsides. 

While most of us grew up drinking cow milk, it is now understood that many people suffer with cow milk protein allergy and can experience indigestion, flatulence, or stomach pain after drinking cow milk. Cow milk is also high in lactose and people with lactose intolerance often find it hard to digest.

Many people have turned to commercial soy, nut and oat milks, but these have additives to make them into a milk, such as gellan gum, carrageenan (a known inflammatory agent), oils and sugar, so they are not really natural or healthy.

Why is camel milk a useful addition to a pre-diabetic diet?

There's now a 100% natural, real milk (no additives) that you can drink, or use in cooking and baking, in place of other kinds of milk. It's camel milk, and it's packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

Camel milk can be used as part of a pre-diabetic diet as camel milk contains 52 micro unit/milliliter of insulin-like protein (compared to cow milk which only contains 16.32 micro unit/milliliter.)

These insulin-like proteins have a unique property that protects them from the digestive enzymes in the human stomach, making them more available to the body. This means they are better absorbed. Camel milk is also high in zinc, which may also help improve insulin sensitivity.

Drinking at least 500 milliliters (17 fluid ounces) of camel milk each day may help with better insulin utilization and support lower blood sugar levels. 

Never tried camel milk? Now's your chance to try 2 packets of Camelicious camel milk powder for 24% off and free shipping for only $10. Click here for this special offer.

To read the full article on Eat This, Not That! click here.