Diabetes Health Center

Carbohydrate counting is a skill that can help you plan your diet to manage type 2 diabetes and control your blood sugar. This technique helps you determine the amount of sugar and starch (carbohydrate) in the foods you eat so you can spread carbohydrate throughout the day, preventing high blood sugar after meals. Carbohydrate counting gives you the flexibility to eat what you want and increases your sense of control and confidence in managing your diabetes.

Key points

• Carbohydrate is the nutrient that most affects your blood sugar.
• Carbohydrate counting helps you keep your blood sugar at your target level.
• You should consult a registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator to help you master carbohydrate counting and plan meals.

More information about diabetes can be found in these topics:

• Type 1 Diabetes
• Type 1 Diabetes: Recently Diagnosed
• Type 1 Diabetes: Children Living With the Disease
• Type 1 Diabetes: Living With the Disease
• Type 1 Diabetes: Living With Complications
• Type 2 Diabetes
• Type 2 Diabetes: Recently Diagnosed
• Type 2 Diabetes: Living With the Disease
• Type 2 Diabetes: Living With Complications
• Type 2 Diabetes in Children

Carbohydrate counting is the recommended method of meal planning for people who have diabetes. Carbohydrate counting involves adding up the amount of carbohydrate in your food. Spreading carbohydrate throughout the day helps prevent high blood sugar after eating, because carbohydrate affects your blood sugar more than other nutrients. All forms of carbohydrate increase your blood sugar. Foods that contain carbohydrate include:

• Fruits and vegetables.
• Milk and yogurt.
• Starchy foods (such as breads, cereals, dry beans, and vegetables such as potatoes and corn).
• Sugary foods (such as candy and cakes).

Foods that contain sugar usually have more total carbohydrate in a serving than foods that contain starch. Contrary to what you may have heard, you can eat foods that contain sugar when you have diabetes. But if foods that are high in sugar make up a large part of your diet, you are probably not eating enough of other more nutritious foods.

You can use artificial sweeteners (such as Splenda or NutraSweet) that do not contain sugar and that contain no calories. You also may eat foods that contain sugar alcohols, a type of sweetener sometimes used in foods labeled "sugar-free," such as candies, cookies, and soft drinks. For meal planning, sugar alcohols are thought of as carbohydrates. But they do not affect blood sugar very much. They do contain some calories, but less than sugar. Eating more than 20 grams (g) a day of mannitol or 50 g a day of sorbitol may cause diarrhea.

Carbohydrate counting helps you know how much carbohydrate you are eating. The more carbohydrate you eat at one time, the higher your blood sugar level will rise. You also can count carbohydrate grams if you take insulin. For more information on carbohydrate counting when you use insulin, see:

Diabetes: Counting carbs if you use insulin.

Spreading carbohydrate throughout the day can help keep your blood sugar levels within your target range, preventing low or high blood sugar. Both low and high blood sugar levels can cause emergencies. Over time, high blood sugar levels can damage many body tissues and organs. If you have gestational diabetes, high blood sugar levels can increase your risk for complications that can affect your health as well as your baby's health.

Here are some ways to help you count the carbohydrate content of your food and spread the amount throughout the day.

Eat regularly

Eat 4 to 6 smaller meals and snacks throughout the day to spread your intake of food, especially high-carbohydrate food, throughout the day. Plan several meals at a time. Plan to double some recipes and freeze the leftovers for other meals. Reuse menu plans.

Count carbohydrate

Count carbohydrate and eat a balanced diet by:

• Talking with a registered dietitian. A registered dietitian can help you plan the amount of carbohydrate to include in each meal and snack.
• Eating standard portions of carbohydrate foods. Each serving size or standard portion contains about 15 grams of carbohydrate. You don't have to weigh and measure your food. But that may be helpful when you are first learning what makes up a standard portion.
• Counting either grams or servings of carbohydrate. A dietitian or certified diabetes educator will help you plan how much carbohydrate to include in each meal and snacks, including sweets.
• Eating standard portions of foods that contain protein. Foods that contain protein (meat and cheese) are an important part of a balanced diet.
• Limiting saturated fat. A balanced diet includes a limited amount of healthy fat. Talk with a registered dietitian about how much fat you need in your diet.

Other helpful suggestions

Here are some other suggestions that will help you count carbohydrate:

• Read food labels for carbohydrate content. Be sure to notice the serving size shown on the package.
• Check your blood sugar level. If you do this before and 1 hour after eating, you will be able to see how food affects your blood sugar level.
• Use a food record(What is a PDF document?) to keep track of what you eat and your blood sugar results. At each regular visit with your dietitian or certified diabetes educator, or whenever you think your meal plan needs adjusting, you can review your food record.
• Get more help. The American Diabetes Association offers booklets to help people learn how to count carbohydrate, measure and weigh food, and read food labels. See the Where to Go From Here section below for the address and phone number of the American Diabetes Association. Also, you will need to talk with a registered dietitian or a certified diabetes educator to build a plan that fits your needs.

Now that you have read this information, you are ready to plan regular meals and snacks and calculate the amount of carbohydrate in your diet.

Talk with your doctor, registered dietitian, or certified diabetes educator.

If you have questions about this information, take it with you when you visit your registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator. You may want to mark areas or make notes in the margins of the pages where you have questions.

If you need help with carbohydrate counting or meal planning, ask to speak with a registered dietitian. If you have been writing in a food record, take it with you.

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