- With Mayo Clinic endocrinologist
Maria Collazo-Clavell, M.D.
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Maria Collazo-Clavell, M.D.
Maria Collazo-Clavell, M.D.
Dr. Maria Collazo-Clavell is board certified in internal medicine, endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism. She's a consultant in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, Metabolism & Nutrition at Mayo Clinic and an associate professor at College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic.
The Aibonito, Puerto Rico, native has been with Mayo Clinic since 1994.
She's a member of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, the American College of Endocrinology, the American Diabetes Association and The Endocrine Society.
Dr. Collazo-Clavell is medical editor of diabetes content on Mayo's health information website and for "Mayo Clinic The Essential Diabetes Book." Her clinical interests include management of type 1 and type 2 diabetes, obesity and nutritional disorders.
Risk factors (1)
- Diabetes: Does alcohol and tobacco use increase my risk?
Symptoms (1)
- The dawn phenomenon: What can you do?
Complications (1)
- Diabetes: How do I help protect my liver?
Treatments and drugs (5)
- Avandia safety concerns: What should I do?
- Diabetes management: Does aspirin therapy prevent heart problems?
- Blood glucose monitors: What factors affect accuracy?
- see all in Treatments and drugs
Lifestyle and home remedies (11)
- Diabetes: Are electric blankets off-limits?
- Vegetarian diet: Can it help me control my diabetes?
- Air pollution and exercise: Is outdoor exercise risky?
- see all in Lifestyle and home remedies
Alternative medicine (1)
- Diabetes treatment: Can cinnamon lower blood sugar?
Prevention (2)
- Healthy heart for life: Avoiding heart disease
- Sodium nitrate in meat: Heart disease risk factor?
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Question
Late-night eating: OK if you have diabetes?
Are late-night snacks a no-no for people who have diabetes?
Answer
from Maria Collazo-Clavell, M.D.
If you have diabetes, late-night snacks aren't necessarily off-limits — but it's important to make wise choices.
Late-night snacks add extra calories, which can lead to weight gain. And if you snack after your evening meal — especially if the foods contain carbohydrates — you may wake up the next morning with a high blood sugar level.
If you're hungry after dinner, choose a "free" food, such as:
- A can of diet soda
- A serving of sugar-free gelatin
- Five baby carrots
- Two saltine crackers
- One vanilla wafer
Or swap the snack for a piece of gum or hard candy. These "free" foods have few, if any, carbohydrates and calories, so they won't contribute to weight gain or increased blood sugar.
If you take insulin or other diabetes medications and must snack before bedtime to prevent low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) during the night, talk to your doctor. He or she may adjust the dose of your medications to prevent the need for a late-night snack.
Next questionDiabetes foods: Is honey a good substitute for sugar?
- Chase WD, et al. Low-fat vs. high-fat bedtime snacks in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Pediatric Diabetes. 2008;9:320.
- Choose your foods: Exchange lists for diabetes. Nutrition Care Manual. American Dietetic Association. http://nutritioncaremanual.org/index.cfm. Accessed Oct. 6, 2010.
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