Tip 1: Eat a Balanced Diet

A balanced diet is important because it helps you keep your glucose within your target levels. A balanced diet also helps to control your weight and helps to prevent diabetic neuropathy, heart disease and stroke.

Sometimes sticking to your diet can be a rough road. Don't give up! The best trick in my opinion, to sticking to your diet is trying new foods. Try to find new foods from all the food groups. If you are not a member of a diabetic support group, join one. You can exchange cooking tips and new recipes with other group members. Plus, being part of a support group is a great confidence builder because you will realize that you have a lot to offer other people in the group.

Always check with your doctor to "fine-tune" your eating plan. Here are some guidelines from the American Diabetes Association:

* Choose nutrient-dense foods from the basic food groups. Try to choose from a variety of these foods.

* Balance your calorie intake with exercise to control your weight.

* Choose fruits, vegetables and whole-grains that are high in fiber. Eat them often.

* Based on a 2,000 calorie diet, eat two cups of fruit per day and two-and a half cups of vegetables.

* Among the grains that you eat, at least half should be whole grains.

* Choose low-fat or non-fat dairy products, lean meat or poultry to decrease trans-fatty acids and saturated fats.

* Substitute monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats (fish, nuts and vegetable oils) for saturated and trans-fat fats.

* choose foods and recipes for cooking that are prepared with little or no caloric sweeteners or sugars.

* Keep your daily sodium intake below 2,300 mg.

* Do not consume great quantities of alcohol. For women, limit yourself to one drink per day, or none. For men, a two drink per day maximum or none.

* Keep active. Adults should get at least 30 minutes of physical activity per day and children, at least 60 minutes.