Quinoa for Diabetes is beneficial because it is gluten free and has an extremely low glycemic index making it just about the best whole grain for lowering your blood sugar and your diabetes. It also has one of the highest levels of protein. Because of the high fiber content and amino acids, quinoa aids in better sugar control and better metabolism. Because of this the sugar that gets produced by consuming quinoa is slowly absorbed by your blood.
How Is Quinoa Good for Diabetics?
White and wheat flour can spike your blood sugar whereas quinoa does not. One important not about quinoa is that the antioxidant quercetin that it contains is extremely beneficial for type 2 diabetics.
Quinoa happens to be a very highly nutritious whole grain that is rich in vitamins, fiber, proteins, and minerals.
Research has been done to show that quinoa is useful in controlling blood glucose levels. It also revealed that it aids in the controlling of your appetite level by providing a much better of feeling full.
This is excellent because it is an advantage in losing weight which of course reflects big time on lowering your blood sugar levels. You need normal blood sugars to function properly when you have type 2 diabetes.
Studies were performed on rats who were put on a high fructose diet, who when were added quinoa to their diet decreased their blood glucose levels by 10%. They also lowered their triglyceride levels by another 10% and their cholesterol levels as well by 25%. You want to add quinoa to your salads, and replace rice with quinoa too. You should rinse it several times before you cook it too.
It’s important to note the glycemic index of foods because lower numbers are better for you when it comes to blood sugar and diabetes. The glycemix index is basically a rating about foods and how their carbohydrates affect your blood sugar levels compared to pure glucose. Of course this all is dependent on the amount of fiber in the particular food as well as the sugars too.
Quinoa can be a bit high when it comes to carbohydrates but all is not lost because on the other side of the coin it provides plenty of minerals and vitamins. Magnesium is very important for your bones and helping your body with producing energy and a single cup of quinoa can provide 30% of your daily recommended allowance.
How Quinoa Helps Diabetics
The enzyme in saliva known as amylase takes in the quinoa and breaks it down into sugar. The quinoa gets stirred up together with the acid in your stomach and helps to convert it into hydrochloric acid. At this point the digestive enzymes are taken from your pancreas and breaks down the quinoa into simple sugars. Your blood sugars may increase now, but…
Carbohydrates now begin to enter your small intestine and once again are broken down into additional sugars which get forced into your blood. Now it’s insulin’s turn to gush into your system. Your blood glucose is powered into your circulatory system.
Blood glucose stabilizes your entire body and will not seek any more sugar which will result it your stomach getting that full feeling after a while. It’s at this point that your body feels satisfied with a controlled sugar level and this helps your diabetes. Three cheers for quinoa!
Health Benefits of Quinoa
Fiber
As I said quinoa is very high in fiber. It has insoluble fiber and not soluble fiber but it still offers decent benefits. Soluble fiber helps with reducing sugar levels, increasing your feeling of being full, lowering your cholesterol level, and aiding with weight loss.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants are very beneficial and quinoa is packed with them. Of all cereals and legumes quinoa is the highest in content of antioxidants of all of them. These antioxidants help with many diseases and in particular in fighting the aging process.
Losing Weight
You obviously need to take in less calories than you burn in order to lose weight. There are certain properties in foods that help with this process by decreasing your appetite or boosting your metabolism. Fiber helps with losing weight.
The low glycemic index of quinoa is connected to reducing your caloric intake. Quinoa can be very useful in taking off the pounds. Keeping weight off helps your diabetes and all around health.
Gluten Free
Celiac disease is related to gluten intolerance. But being on a gluten free diet should only be for those who have celiac disease. You won’t be getting the essentials that you need by being on a gluten free diet. It’s missing fiber, riboflavin, folate, calcium, niacin, thiamin, and iron. But quinoa is good ingredient for a gluten free diet.
Amino Acids
Essential amino acids are needed but your body cannot produce them. Any food that does contain amino acids is considered to be a complete protein.Now most plant foods do not contain an essential amino acid known as lysine. But quinoa does contain it and that’s a plus.
One cup of quinoa has eight grams of protein which is a great protein plant based source for people who are vegetarians. Quinoa provides a very healthy balance for you.
Osteoporosis
This has a lot to do with a deficiency in magnesium. Quinoa can be very effective with preventing the deficiency of magnesium. Research was performed and revealed that getting the maximum amount of magnesium can help in preventing osteoporosis. The cause of this deficiency mainly comes from a diet in western civilization consisting of many processed foods which are no good for you.
Check Out the Video Below for More About Quinoa
Iron
Quinoa is a much better tasting option than an iron supplement and can provide the iron you may be missing. One cup of quinoa gives you approximately 15% of your daily recommended allowance which helps your lack of iron and aids in preventing of anemia and helping your muscles and the function of your brain.
Zinc & Your Liver
You should be aware of how important that your liver is. Quinoa provides an excellent benefit of contributing to the function of your liver. One of the mayor issues with liver disease is a lack of zinc. One cup of quinoa provides about 13% of your daily recommended allowance and can be a huge factor in treating liver disease. Zinc is also responsible for problems with your skin as well.
Cholesterol
You don’t want high cholesterol numbers and heart issues. This is where quinoa comes in. Because of its high fiber content, it is able to stimulate digestion. This needs to have bile acids that consist of cholesterol. As the improved digestion happens, your liver takes cholesterol from your blood and produces additional bile acid which then decreases the amount of your bad cholesterol (LDL).
Your Heart
Lowering your cholesterol is great but there are other ways to help your heart. In studies published it was noted that the seeds from quinoa have a great deal of the flavonoids that have an indirect connection with dying from heart disease.
In studies done in Italy researchers discovered that quinoa produced much lower levels of triglycerides and fatty acid content which are always associated with heart disease.
High Blood Pressure
I love quinoa because it offers so many benefits. It is extremely helpful in lowering your blood pressure. It is the high potassium content in quinoa that helps in lowering your blood pressure.
Potassium is important because it counteracts the effects of salt. The magnesium in quinoa lowers blood pressure by inducing blood vessel dilation. So the combination of potassium and magnesium together is powerful in combating hypertension.
Live Longer
Fiber is amazing and it could actually prolong your life. So having quinoa in your diet is a definite plus and any foods with whole grains will be beneficial for you.
Kidney Stones
And why is potassium so important? It prevents the formation of uric acid stones. Kidney stones are not something you want to experience and sticking to quinoa on a regular basis will help you to avoid them.
Side Effects of Quinoa
The benefits definitely outweigh the side effects by a landslide. Like anything else, there are side effects and allergies to everything.
Stomach
The seeds of quinoa should be rinsed extremely well before they even get to the cooking steps. Otherwise this could really irritate your stomach, so rinse and cook thoroughly. The outer coating of the quinoa seed is important because it keeps pests and insects from destroying them but also this coating can cause stomach irritation as well.
Drug Interactions
Like anything else you might consume, there could be interactions with certain medications that you may be taking. So it’s a very wise decision to discuss everything with your doctor.
Gluten Free
So as I mentioned before quinoa is gluten free so it is safe to consume by anyone who suffers from celiac disease. This is good because celiac patients don’t have as many foods to choice from.
Pregnant & Breast Feeding Women
It isn’t the fact that women should avoid quinoa totally during this time but having excess amounts can lead to problems. So the doctor is the one to make the decision because they are the specialists.
In Conclusion
Quinoa for Diabetes helps to control it. I hope that you learned a great deal about quinoa and what it can do for your diabetes. Whole grains are very good for you and this one is at the top of the list as far as being healthy for you.
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Thank you, Rob, your article is just what I have been looking for as I am getting older and type 2 Diabetes is a big problem in my family. Your illustration’s of Quinoa is brilliant in all aspects, and totally digestible within your content. Do you have any thoughts on eating rice as my wife is from Thailand, and it is always on the table, I will be definitely following your blog, keep up the great content, sincerely, Jack
Hey Jack!
Diabetes does become more of an issue as you get older.
The more things we have to fight diabetes the better.
Quinoa is one of the foods that fights diabetes.
As far as rice goes I would only have brown rice and not white rice.
Thanks for following Jack!
Cheers!
~Rob
I am really going to have to try quinoa because my doctor has been nagging me about my cholesterol and triglyceride levels and, since I love white bread so much, I’ve been told to nix it in favor of healthier options. Additionally, my glucose levels are elevated, placing me in a borderline Type 2 Diabetes range.
Quinoa may be the answer. I am going to try to make my own bread by first making quinoa flour and using it as a replacement for wheat flour in a bread making recipe.
With all the information you have presented, I feel confident that, over the next few months, I can lower my cholesterol, triglyceride, and glucose levels to a range that is acceptable to my doctor.
Thanks, for the info!
Jim
Hey Jim,
Your doctor is right and you should be concerned about high cholesterol and high triglyceride levels.
I used to love white bread too until I switched to wheat bread making it a better choice.
Quinoa is an excellent choice in helping your blood sugar and making your own bread worksheet too.
I hope you’re successful and that your doctor is satisfied as well.
Thanks Jim!
Interesting article about quinoa. I am diabetic and I have never ever tried consuming quinoa before. In fact, this is the first time i have heard about it. Where can you buy this grain and how does it taste. Is it like a substitute for rice or bread? Quinoa does have a lot of health benefits. Is it easy to digest? Does one not get an upset stomach the first time. I have learned a lot from the information you provided here. I might check around and try it myself. Thanks for sharing this valuable information.
Hi Rebecca,
Quinoa is very good for you and it can be used as a substitute for rice or bread if you wish. It’s much healthier than any white food products.
It’s easy to digest and shouldn’t harm your stomach unless you have allergies or consume too much.
Quinoa can help your blood sugar and help to keep those numbers down.
Thank you for sharing your comments!
Surprisingly, my blood sugar isn’t high at all, which amazes me because I eat sugary foods all the time. Seeing this article was a great reminder that I should watch my eating habits before it does become a problem. I’m going to bookmark it and use this site as a source of inspiration. Great post.I think doing it the natural way is better than relying on medicine.
Hey!
I agree. The purpose for me is relying on natural ways to lower your blood sugar and treating diabetes.
Quinoa is very beneficial for your blood sugar and very healthy for you.
Eating sugary foods is a major problem and should be avoided.
Thank you for bookmarking my site and I hope you find more interesting and helpful articles!
Cheers!
~Rob