Diabetic Decisions At The Coffeehouse

Do you ever find yourself standing in line at the coffeehouse with a friend wondering what on earth you are going to eat or drink without sending your blood glucose levels soaring?

It’s no secret. All of those fancy blended coffee beverages are typically loaded with sugar, calories, and nothing good for those who are suffering from diabetes.

But if you know how to navigate the menu and plan properly, you can walk out without putting too much of a dent in your diet plan.

Here’s what to consider.

1. When In Doubt, Go Black

The safest bet for sure is to simply opt for a black coffee and then add some sweetener to it yourself. Splenda or stevia are both excellent choices and won’t boost your blood glucose levels at all.

Many coffeehouses also have sugar-free flavored syrups (vanilla or hazelnut, for instance), so you can definitely opt for one of those. There are great ways to add flavor without having it break your calorie bank.

2. Tea Is Always A Good Choice

Next up, you might want to avoid coffee entirely. Tea is often an excellent choice as long as it’s not blended with other ingredients. Green tea in particular is a fantastic option as it contains compounds that will both help to stimulate the metabolic rate as well as serve as antioxidant boosters in the body.

Green tea is naturally calorie-free so it won’t add to your total daily calorie count. If you aren’t a green tea fan, any sort of herbal tea is also a wise choice. Once again, you’ll want to drink it plain or with sugar-free sweetener only.

3. Avoid Blended Beverages, Period

Which brings us to our next point, avoid blended beverages entirely. You may feel like a blended drink is okay since it’s just blended with ice, but usually, there are more ingredients than just ice in that beverage. You’ll have cream, sugar, and sometimes even ice cream, so you’re better off to avoid them.

The only time you can blend safely is if you know exactly what that beverage contains. And keep in mind that coffee blended with just ice usually doesn’t taste the best. So, the delicious coffee concoction you hoped for is likely to disappoint.

4. Ask For Almond Milk – But Check That It’s Unsweetened

If you feel like you need that creamy taste, rather than opt for cow’s milk of any sort, ask if they have unsweetened almond milk. Many coffeehouses will stock this for those who are lactose intolerant or who are allergic to soy milk.

While you may think that just opting for skim milk is a good choice, realize that there are still 10 grams of sugar or more in that cup of skim milk, so it will really add up.

5. Snack On A Veggie Tray

Last but not least, consider snacking on a vegetable tray. If you need something to eat, refrain from going for a donut, muffin, or sandwich. Most often, these are loaded with calories and sugar, and they will not do your diet any good whatsoever.

Instead, snack on a vegetable tray. It’s low in calories as long as you avoid the dip and is going to be an excellent source of antioxidants too.

So, there you have the main things to consider when you’re looking at the coffeehouse menu deciding what you want to eat and drink. There are definitely options to choose from. You just need to be able to sacrifice a bit on taste in an effort to stick to your plan.