2. Make Veggies the Star of Your Bowl
To make your pasta bowl more diabetes-friendly, just add color — from veggies, that is.
Specifically, centering your pasta dish on nonstarchy, naturally low-calorie vegetables increases the amount of food and adds vitamins and minerals, Smithson says.
“Nonstarchy vegetables are very high in fiber and have few carbohydrates, which means less effect on blood sugar,” says Anderson-Haynes. She recommends filling roughly half of your plate or bowl with options like kale, collard greens, arugula, broccoli, asparagus, cucumber, spinach, carrots, or mushrooms.
3. Skip Creamy Sauce in Favor of an Oil- or Tomato-Based Sauce
Like other “white” foods to swap out of your diet (think: white bread, white rice, and yes, white pasta), ditch white sauce when preparing a more diabetes-friendly meal.
As Anderson-Haynes notes, traditional cream-based sauces tend to have more saturated fat and sodium than other options. “People with diabetes have a higher risk of heart disease, so it’s imperative to choose heart-healthy foods low in sodium and fat,” she says. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), foods high in saturated fat can raise cholesterol levels in the blood, which may increase your risk of heart disease and stroke. Meanwhile, getting excess sodium in your diet can increase the risk ofhigh blood pressure — one of the major risk factors for heart disease, notes the AHA.
Smithson suggests choosing sauces with an olive oil and fresh garlic base, both of which offer potential heart-health benefits.
Olive oil, for example, contains a type of healthy fat known as monounsaturated fat. This type of fat may help lower cholesterol, a waxy substance that’s beneficial in small amounts, when traded in for less healthy fat sources like butter, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
These effects are supported by research. For example, a study of nearly 100,000 healthy men and women found that replacing 1 tablespoon (tbsp) of butter or margarine with an equal amount of olive oil correlated with a 5 to 7 percent lower risk of heart disease after four years. (While drawn from a large pool of participants, the study relied on self-reported questionnaires, which may leave room for error.)
Meanwhile, research suggests that allicin, a natural compound with antioxidant properties that’s found in garlic, may positively affect blood sugar levels. A review of research found that a supplement form of the herb significantly reduced fasting blood glucose within one to two weeks. Researchers examined nine randomized controlled trials with a total of 768 people living with type 2 diabetes who took between 0.05 g and 1.5 g of garlic. Most trials included fewer than 80 participants and lasted only 12 weeks. That said, the research looked at the daily use of garlic supplements, finding improved blood sugar control in two weeks, as well as in 24 weeks in people with type 2 diabetes. Whether similar results apply to raw garlic eaten with the occasional bowl of pasta remains to be seen.
Remember: Olive oil provides healthy fats, but it’s still high in calories (124 calories per tbsp), so practice portion control. Use half a cup of olive oil and 4 to 5 garlic cloves per pound of cooked pasta, Smithson suggests. Portion the sauce equally among each serving of pasta (generally one-third of a cup of cooked noodles is 1 serving, according to Smithson).
Red pasta sauces like marinara or classic tomato are other great options, “as they are lower in overall fat and calories” than cream-based sauces, says Jana Mowrer, RDN, MPH, CDCES, a nutritionistbased in Fresno, California. Just stick with a serving size that’s one-half to three-quarters of a cup, she adds.
When buying a packaged red sauce, choose a jar that contains no added sugar and, ideally, no more than 15 g of carbs and 140 milligrams (mg) of sodium per half-cup serving, Mowrer says.
4. Experiment With Veggie Noodles
If you can’t handle wheat, or you’d like to slash the carbs in your pasta dish even more, try crafting noodles out of vegetables. If you don’t have a spiralizer or mandoline — two kitchen tools used to spiralize produce by hand — you can use a vegetable peeler. Simply place the peeled veggie strips in boiling water for 20 seconds, and then transfer the “noodles” into a bowl of ice, Smithson says. “For ease of preparation, it’s fine to purchase spiralized veggie noodles,” she adds.
As long as they’re not made from squash or sweet potatoes, which are starchy, spirals made from vegetables will be the lowest-carbohydrate option, Smithson says. Plus, veggie noodles are typically lower in calories and offer plenty of vitamins and minerals.
One cup of cooked zucchini spirals, for example, contains only 27 calories and 5 g of carbs, per the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), whereas 1 cup of cooked whole-grain spaghetti noodles from Barilla brand contains 180 calories and 39 g of carbs.
That same portion of zucchini also offers 23.2 mg of vitamin C and 476 mg of potassium, making it an excellent source of both nutrients.
Bell peppers, broccoli, carrots, and beets make for other good low-carb veggie noodle options.
RELATED: 7 Fruits and Veggies You Can Spiralize
5.Practice Portion Control
Being mindful about portion sizes is key for enjoying pasta when you’re managing type 2 diabetes. “The goal is to keep blood sugar levels from spiking too high,” Mowrer says.
Food portions — especially at restaurants — are much larger today than they were 20 years ago, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Multiple studies have found that people eat more food when they’re given bigger servings and that they help themselves to more food when they have larger bowls and serving spoons, as one research article noted. With those expanding portion sizes comes more carbs and calories.
A meta-analysis published in 2021 noted something similar when it found that smaller portion sizes will decrease calorie intake and result in a lower body weight over time.
“It’s important when consuming pasta to include other food groups and practice portion control, aiming for about one-quarter carbs, one-half veggies, and one-quarter lean protein on your plate per meal,” Mowrer says. The CDC recommends using a 9-inch dish (about the length of a business envelope) to take the guesswork out of portion control. Some companies, like Livliga, sell plates and bowls that indicate the ideal amounts of certain foods to eat for a given meal.
The exact number of carbs to aim for depends on factors such as age, gender, activity level, and any medications you’re taking, says Mowrer. Generally, she recommends that people with diabetes aim for 30 to 60 g of carbs per meal. TheAmerican Diabetes Association (ADA) recommends working with a registered dietitian nutritionist or certified diabetes care and education specialist to figure out your carb goal.
6. Feature a Lean Protein
By combining a protein source with a carb-heavy dish like pasta, you can avoid a rapid blood sugar spike (and then a crash), Smithson says. That’s because protein is slower to digest than carbohydrates.
Plus, adding protein will make your pasta more satisfying, which may prevent you from overloading your plate with carbs, Anderson-Haynes says.
Opt for a lean protein source like skinless grilled chicken, ground turkey, or tofu. These foods tend to be lower in saturated fat and sodium than red meat or processed meats like bacon, according to the ADA.
RELATED: The Best and Worst Foods to Eat in a Type 2 Diabetes Diet
7. Go Easy on the Cheese
Pasta and cheese are a dynamic duo. And while people with diabetes don’t need to say goodbye to this yummy ingredient, moderation and choosing the right type are two keys to keeping your bowl healthy.
Executing portion control here may be an adjustment. Believe it or not, a single serving of cheese is only 1 oz, or roughly the length of your thumb from tip to base, according to the CDC. Try your best to opt for this thumb-sized serving, Mowrer advises.
As far as diabetes-friendly cheeses go, choose white ones like mozzarella or Parmesan, which are lower in fat and calories than other options. Mowrer suggests grating them to make the serving sizes go further. One ounce of low-fat, part-skim mozzarella, for example, has 72 calories and 4.5 g of fat (2.9 g saturated fat), according to the USDA.
Limit or avoid fattier cheeses such as ricotta. One-half cup of full-fat ricotta has roughly 186 calories and 12.6 g of fat, including 8 g of saturated fat, per the USDA.
Reduced-fat and nonfat cheeses can also be good options. A part-skim version of ricotta, for example, offers 171 calories and 9.8 g of fat (6 g of saturated fat) per one-half cup.
