If you are still choosing foods based only on their sugar content, you are unduly restricting your food choices. According to today's experts, you should be looking at the total carbohydrate content, which includes the sugars, fibers and other carbohydrates that affect glucose levels.

Your doctor or diabetes educator has no doubt helped you work out a meal plan individualized to your specific calorie needs. How much carbohydrate you should eat in a day depends on your body size and activity levels, and whether you want to gain, lose or maintain your weight. Carbohydrate budgets may range from 45 grams to 75 grams per meal.

The Cleveland Clinic recommends that you eat the same amount of carbohydrate at each meal and not eat all of your daily carbohydrate allowance in one meal.

Next week we'll look at some sample 45-gram and 75-gram carbohydrate meals.

Related information: Diabetes diet | Carbohydrate counter | Food and Exercise Diary

Sources: Carbs count in diabetes. The Cleveland Clinic Heart Advisor, Nov. 2001.