• Spread out your meals and snacks throughout the day. Eat 3 meals and 3 or 4 snacks daily, at least 2-3 hours apart. Do not skip meals or snacks.

• Do not let over 8-10 hours pass between your bedtime snack and breakfast.

• Avoid all fruit juices, regular sodas, refined sugars (honey, sugar, molasses, corn sweeteners), and desserts (cakes, cookies, candies, pastries). These items will raise your blood sugar too high and provide little nutrition.

• At breakfast, you may need to avoid milk, fruit and cold cereals. Your hormone levels are high at this time, which may lead to high blood sugar after having those items. Typically, a breakfast with starch and protein is well tolerated.

• In the starch group, choose whole grains such as wheat tortillas, brown rice, whole grain breads, old-fashioned oatmeal, and wheat pasta. Starch should be eaten at every meal, but you need to choose the right Starch Group Portion Sizes.

• Drink a maximum of 1 cup (8 oz.) of milk per meal or snack if it is part of your meal plan. Milk is important for your body since it supplies calcium. However, drinking too much at one time will increase your blood sugar too much. Remember your Milk Group Portion Sizes.

• Limit your fruit intake to 2 to 3 Fruit Group Portion Sizes each day if it is part of your meal plan. Eat only one portion at your meal or snack if it is in your meal plan. Fruit has good nutrients for you, but eating too much at once may raise your blood sugar too high.

• It is safe to use artificial sweeteners such as Equal, NutraSweet, or Splenda in moderation.

• Look closely at nutrition labels (How to Read the Food Label) on packaged foods. Check the "Serving Size" and "Total Carbohydrate" grams of products you are not familiar with. Make sure it fits within your meal plan. Read the ingredient list. Sugar can be called different names. Stay away from foods that have these names listed in the first four ingredients: those ending in -ose (such as sucrose and fructose), corn syrup, and natural sugars such as honey, molasses and brown or raw sugar.

• For those on-the-go women, make sure you plan your meals and snacks the night before. Then bring a cooler with ice to transport your food so it will not spoil.

• Talk to a registered dietitian for more detailed information on your meal plan.

• Meal Tips

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