Features of eating melon in diabetes
Those people who are diagnosed with diabetes mellitus need to have information on whether they can eat this or that product. The article answers frequently asked questions whether it is harmful to diabetics and whether sugar increases melon.
Can I eat melon for diabetes?
Diabetes mellitus is a serious disease that requires mandatory nutritional adjustment and the exclusion of a number of foods from the diet. The use of dishes classified as prohibited is fraught with serious complications, deterioration of well-being and the need for long-term rehabilitation.
Therefore, every diabetic should have information about whether or not a product is available to him and what kind of food is allowed with restrictions. Unfortunately, the list of banned includes a number of delicious and healthy vegetables, berries and fruits, as they contain a lot of sugar.
However, they cannot be completely abandoned. Some fruits and vegetables are allowed to be consumed, but in limited quantities. Melon is included in this category - it can be eaten with high blood sugar, but in small doses, preferably counting the amount of carbohydrates eaten.
Did you know? The most expensive melon in the world - Yubari King - is cultivated by the Japanese. She has a very juicy, sweet and tender flesh. Pumpkins of this variety are sold at auctions. The price for 1 piece can reach up to 10 thousand dollars.
Chemical composition
Melon contains almost all known vitamins. 100 g contains about 8% of the daily norm for the human body of vitamin A and beta carotene, 2.7% of vitamin B1, 2.2% of vitamin B2, 4.6% of pantothenic acid, 3% of vitamin B6, 22% of ascorbic acid, 2.4% Vitamin K, 2.5% Vitamin PP.
Choline, folate, vitamin E are also present in small amounts.
The mineral composition of the pumpkin consists of potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, iron, phosphorus, chlorine, cobalt, copper, selenium.
Among the digestible carbohydrates, glucose (1.1 g), sucrose (5.9 g) and fructose (2 g) are contained.
The nutritional value of pumpkin is as follows:
- protein - 0.6 g;
- fats - 0.3 g;
- carbohydrates - 7.4 g;
- dietary fiber - 0.9 g;
- water - 90 g.
Melon properties
The chemical composition, nutritional value and calorie content of pumpkins determines their beneficial and harmful effects on the human body.
Did you know? Melon, unlike most vegetables and fruits, is not able to ripen in a ripped form. Harvested unripe, ripe and juicy, it will not become.
Benefit
- The fruits of the pumpkin culture in question can have the following beneficial effects:
- rid the body of harmful substances;
- produce a diuretic effect;
- strengthen the body's defenses against colds;
- improve your mood;
- establish the activity of the nervous system;
- beneficial effect on blood formation;
- lower blood cholesterol;
- improve memory;
- relieve and prevent depression;
- positively affect the condition of hair, nails, skin;
- normalize the water-salt balance.
Melon is recommended to be introduced into the diet of the following categories of persons:
- having kidney problems, in particular urolithiasis;
- with a diagnosis of gallstone disease;
- low hemoglobin in the blood;
- pregnant
- children after 3 years;
- To old people.
The fruits of melon culture should be introduced for the prevention of atherosclerosis, anemia, heart disease, kidney, liver, nervous disorders.
Harm and contraindications
The fruits of the melon plant can cause harm in the case of uncontrolled eating, eating on an empty stomach, in combination with dairy and sour-milk products.
- They are contraindicated for persons who have such health problems:
- gastrointestinal ulcer;
- bowel disorders;
- chronic colitis.
Features of choosing a melon
In order for melon culture to bring only benefits, it is necessary to use high-quality, properly selected fruits.
When buying, you should give preference to pumpkins, which have the following characteristics:
- pleasant strong aroma;
- weight corresponds to size;
- the skin has no visible damage, spots, dents;
- the tail is completely dry.
Choosing a fruit, you need to knock on its surface. A good pumpkin is one that does not make a dull sound.
Important! Melons must be acquired during the harvest season - i.e. not earlier than August. At other times, fruits are sold that are most likely processed and fed with chemicals, which means they are harmful to the human body.
How to use melon for diabetes
If a person with diabetes eats on the principle of counting bread units (XE), then it will be important for him to know that 100 g of melon should be taken for 1 XE. Such an amount increases blood sugar by 1.5–2 mmol / L. A diabetic is allowed to eat no more than 200 g of melon pulp per day.
- Melon can only be consumed fresh. In dried - its calorie content rises to 341 kcal / 100 g. Melon jam contains 197 kcal / 100 g. Melon seeds - 555 kcal / 100 g.
- When preparing the fetus for eating, a place near the tail is cut from it. The pulp is cut, retreating at least 1 cm from the peel. This is because it is precisely these places that accumulate pesticides and nitrates.
- Experts say that not quite ripe fruits contain less calories and glucose. Therefore, diabetics should give preference to unripened pumpkins.
- It is better to eat melon pulp separately from other products as an independent dessert in the morning.
- Do not drink the eaten pulp with any drinks, even water.
- When eating melon, it is necessary to exclude other foods containing glucose, sucrose, carbohydrates.
- It is advisable to measure the level of glucose in the blood before and after eating at the first time of consumption of melons.
Important! Before introducing melon into the menu, you should consult your doctor.
By the way, the inhabitants of India are growing a kind of bitter melon - momordica, believing that its use prevents the development of diabetes. However, today this fact is not proven by medicine.
