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Sherri Shafer
Sherri Shafer, RD, CDE, is a senior registered dietitian and a certified diabetes educator at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center. She teaches diabetes self-management workshops and provides nutrition counseling for individuals with type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, and gestational dia-betes. She is also the author of Diabetes Type 2: Complete Food Management Program.
Articles & Books From Sherri Shafer
Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-05-2022
Diabetes is a condition that is largely self-managed. Successful management hinges on discovering how what you eat affects your blood-glucose levels and your overall health and well-being.Carbohydrate foods are digested into glucose, which is the primary fuel used by your brain, muscles, and other tissues and organs.
Article / Updated 06-18-2019
Looking at the Total Carbohydrate amount on food labels is important because carbohydrates digest and eventually turn into glucose, which ends up in the bloodstream. Having diabetes means you should be paying attention to how much carbohydrate you're eating. Food labels help you do just that, but you need to look for the grams of carbohydrate, not the %Daily Value.
Article / Updated 06-06-2017
For decades, people with diabetes were told not to eat sugar. Avoiding sugar won't automatically keep blood-glucose levels in range if there are no controls on the overall carb intake. Skipping the cookie doesn't erase the carbs in the rest of the meal. Managing carbs for diabetes means all carbs in the meal need to be accounted for, not just the dessert.
Article / Updated 06-06-2017
A common misconception about alcohol is that many people assume alcohol turns to sugar, or alcohol will raise their blood-glucose levels. Actually, hard liquor doesn't have any carb, wine is very low in carb, and beer has about as much carb as a piece of bread:
Hard alcohol (distilled spirits) doesn't have any carbs, except for whatever it's mixed with.
Article / Updated 06-06-2017
Carbohydrate requirements can change throughout life. Your carb demands may even change seasonally if your activity levels vary according to the time of year. The following discussion explores situations that may call for making adjustments to your carb intakes.
Changing carb needs throughout the life cycle
Childhood and adolescence are times when dietary needs are constantly changing.
Article / Updated 06-06-2017
Sugar alcohol is a modified form of carbohydrate. Many products that claim to be sugar free are sweetened with a substance known as sugar alcohol (or polyol). Despite the name, sugar alcohol does not have any sugar, and it does not have any alcohol. Hydrogen is added to various forms of carbohydrate and chemical bonds are shifted, and then voilá — you have a new form of carbohydrate known as sugar alcohol.
Article / Updated 06-06-2017
The Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) for Americans minimum for carbohydrate is 130 grams per day, and the suggested carb intake range is calculated at 45–65 percent of caloric targets. Some people with diabetes opt to go somewhat lower, such as 40 percent. Targets should be individualized based on preference and health considerations.
Article / Updated 06-06-2017
Simply put, alcohol impairs glucose regulation. It is important not to drink alcohol on an empty stomach. A mini physiology review may shed some light on why it's so important to have carbs digesting when you have a drink.Blood-glucose levels are at their highest typically one to two hours after eating a mixed meal.
Article / Updated 06-05-2017
Diabetes is a condition of abnormal blood-glucose regulation. Lack of insulin (type 1 diabetes) or ineffective insulin (type 2 diabetes) both lead to elevated blood-glucose levels and a diagnosis of diabetes.Diabetes and diet are intimately intertwined. It's impossible to talk about managing diabetes without discussing food in great detail.
Article / Updated 06-05-2017
Up to 60 percent of an adult's body weight is water, so staying hydrated is critical to good health, especially when you have diabetes. You've probably heard that you should be drinking at least 8 cups of fluid per day. If blood-glucose levels are running above target, you may need more than that.Why? Because when blood-glucose levels are elevated, your kidneys will try to filter out some of the excess glucose, and in doing so they will create more urine.