Complications (6)
- Amputation and diabetes: How to protect your feet
- Liver problems
- Dehydration
- see all in Complications
Lifestyle and home remedies (19)
- Diabetes and menopause: A twin challenge
- Insulin and weight gain: Keep the pounds off
- Diabetes management: How lifestyle, daily routine affect blood sugar
- see all in Lifestyle and home remedies
Prevention (2)
- Couponing and other frugal food shopping tips
- Diabetes prevention: 5 tips for taking control
Tests and diagnosis (3)
- A1C test
- Glucose tolerance test
- Glucose challenge test
Treatments and drugs (8)
- Blood glucose meter: How to choose
- Insulin and weight gain: Keep the pounds off
- Erectile dysfunction and diabetes: Take control today
- see all in Treatments and drugs
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Your diabetes diet: Exchange lists
Your diabetes eating plan can help you control your blood sugar level. Use diabetes exchange lists to make sure you're getting a proper mix of calories, carbohydrates and other nutrients.
The recommended diabetes eating plan is naturally rich in nutrients and low in fat and calories. Following your eating plan can help you keep your blood sugar level within your target range — and it doesn't need to be a struggle. Start by meeting with a registered dietitian to learn about the diabetes exchange system.
How the diabetes exchange system works
In the exchange system, foods are grouped into basic types — starches, fruits, milk, meat, sweets, fats and free foods. Within each group, you'll see how much you can eat of various foods for the same amount of calories, carbohydrates and other nutrients. You can exchange or trade foods within a group because they're similar in nutrient content and the manner in which they affect your blood sugar.
Your dietitian will recommend a certain number of daily exchanges from each food group based on your individual needs. Together you'll decide the best way to spread the exchanges throughout the day. This will help you keep your blood sugar level within your target range.
The diabetic exchange system is an easy way to begin counting carbohydrates. Each serving in the starch, fruit and milk group contains about the same amount of carbohydrates — about 15 grams a serving — and may also be considered as one carbohydrate choice.
Use the following exchange lists — adapted from material provided by the American Diabetes Association and the American Dietetic Association — to help you choose appropriate portion sizes and ensure variety in your meal plan.
- Diabetes meal plan recipes
- Diabetes diet: Create your healthy-eating plan
- Exchange list: Starches
- Exchange list: Fruits
- Exchange list: Milk and yogurt
- Exchange list: Sweets, desserts and other carbohydrates
- Exchange list: Nonstarchy vegetables
- Exchange list: Meat and meat substitutes
- Exchange list: Fats
- Exchange list: Free foods
- Daly A, et al. Choose Your Foods: Exchange Lists for Diabetes. Alexandria, Va.: American Diabetes Association and American Dietetic Association; 2008.
Find Mayo Clinic on