Protein foods are an important part of a diabetes meal plan. Learn about your best choices. What Are Lean Protein Good Carbs Healthy Eating. Fish is a healthy, lean protein. Protein and carbohydrates arent negotiable you need both for nutrients and energy. Yet they both pose potential problems. Many proteins are high in saturated fats that cause cardiovascular disease, while unhealthy carbs contribute to diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Choosing lean proteins and good carbs helps ensure you get sufficient nutrition without the downside. Lean Protein Definition. The USDA defines lean meat as having less than 1. The food exchange system defines lean protein as a 1 ounce serving that has 2 to 3 grams of fat. Thats equal to the total fat in the USDAs recommendation but with a smaller serving. The goal is to balance your daily consumption to meet American Heart Association recommendations for fat intake. Limit total fat to 2. Lean Protein Sources. The white meat from chicken and turkey and dark meat without the skin are good choices for lean protein. Fish provides lean protein together with omega 3 fatty acids that lower cholesterol and inhibit inflammation. Cuts of beef that meet the standards for lean meat include sirloin, flank steak, rump roast, top loin, top round and extra lean ground beef. Pork center loin and tenderloin are lean choices. LEAN-PROTEIN_schema-EN(2).png' alt='Lean Protein' title='Lean Protein' />Lean ground beef is a source of highquality protein, and you dont need a lot to get the protein you need. Just 3 ounces delivers 22 grams of protein, along with a healthy dose of iron, zinc and vitamin B12. Target/16569098?wid=520&hei=520&fmt=pjpeg' alt='Lean Protein' title='Lean Protein' />Low fat dairy products also qualify as sources of lean protein. Quinoa is a low fat grain thats a complete protein. Beans and legumes are naturally low fat sources of protein. Depending on the type of bean, 1 cup may have 1. Carbohydrates. All carbohydrates are made from molecules of sugar, but theyre classified according to the number of molecules. Simple carbs, such as sucrose, or table sugar, only have one or two sugar molecules. Complex carbs starches and fiber consist of long chains of sugar molecules. Either type of sugar can be a good carb because the quality depends on whether the food source contains fiber and nutrients. Fiber slows down the rate at which the sugars are absorbed and that keeps blood sugar balanced. Simple sugars are quickly absorbed and cause rapid spikes in blood sugar. Carb Sources. Any high sugar low fiber baked good contains bad carbs. Fruits contain the simple sugar fructose, but most fruits are good carbs because they have fiber, nutrients and phytochemicals. Whole grains are good carbs, but if the grains are processed into white flour or white rice they lose fiber and nutrients and become bad carbs. Beans and vegetables are foods that have fiber, starches and nutrients, so theyre good carbs. One way to distinguish good carbs from bad carbs is through their glycemic score, which indicates their effect on blood sugar. The good carbs, or low glycemic foods, have a score of 5. About the Author. Sandi Busch received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology, then pursued training in nursing and nutrition. She taught families to plan and prepare special diets, worked as a therapeutic support specialist, and now writes about her favorite topics nutrition, food, families and parenting for hospitals and trade magazines. Healthy Ways to Load Up  Readers Digest. Go for ground sirloin, the leanest ground beef. Stockyulia bogdanova. A 3 ounce serving has 1. The next leanest is ground round for 2. Dont forget the eggs. Stockramihalim. Eggs have been much maligned over the years, but the fact is, they are an excellent and inexpensive source of protein and the most nutritionally complete of all protein sources. Smoked Ribs Recipe. One large, hard boiled egg contains 7 grams of protein and has just 2 grams of saturated fat. To avoid the saturated fat altogether, use the egg whites and throw out the yolks. Or you can dress that egg up and get in a serving of veggies by making an omelet and folding in iron and fiber rich spinach. In studies, people who ate eggs and toast for breakfast stayed full longer and ate significantly fewer calories the rest of the day than people who ate a bagel and cream cheese. Eggs do contain a fair amount of cholesterol, but dozens of studies have shown that its saturated fat, not dietary cholesterol, that raises peoples cholesterol the most. Go to the freezer section for frozen edamame. StockElenathewise. These young green soybeans, in or out of their shell, are wonderful as snacks just steam them and add a little salt. You can also add them to soups and salads. Soy has more protein, by volume, than beef, and virtually none of the saturated fat. Content continues below ad. Pick up pork chops or a lean pork loin. StockLavanda. Pork loin is very lean meat and isnt too expensive. Throw a couple of chops on the grill dress them up first with a low calorie garliclime juice marinade, or with chili and garlic powders for a quick dinnereach is just 1. Buy a package of chicken tenderloins. Stockrudisill. Keep them in your freezer for quick meals. Each tenderloin weighs about 1. Tenderloins will marinate quickly and can be used in kebabs or tossed into stir fry dishes. Buy at most two servings of red meat per person per week. StockLisovskaya. Red meat contains saturated fat, and one study found that women with type 2 diabetes who ate more red meat were more likely to develop heart disease than women with diabetes who ate less. Other research showed that the more red meat women ate over almost nine years, the more likely they were to develop type 2 diabetes. Content continues below ad. Skip the bacon and hot dogs. StockMo. Morad. While red meat seems to increase the risk of developing diabetes, processed meats such as bacon and hot dogs seem to increase it even more. Choose turkey or chicken breast at the deli counter. Stockbhofack. 2Lean slices of meat on whole wheat bread topped with mustard and baby spinach leaves make a healthy, low cholesterol lunchthat is, if you select lunch meats that are low in saturated fat. Skip the salamis and bolognas. Good second choices are lean ham and roast beefjust stick to two slices or 1. Get your fill of fish from cans or pouches. StockFotografia. Basica. Salmon is natures heart medicine, but you dont have to cook up a fillet to get more of it into your diet. Canned salmon is a smart choice not only for convenience but for health thats because most canned salmon in the United States is wild caught fish versus farmed fish and therefore may contain fewer contaminants. An added bonus to eating salmon Researchers recently found that people who had the highest levels of omega 3 fatty acids in their blood were 5. Content continues below ad. Buy seafood to stash in the freezer. StockKuvona. Vacuum packed sole, cod, or salmon fillets, which are flash frozen, are the next best thing to fresh fish. Keep some in the freezer and youll always have ingredients for a healthy dinner on hand. You can thaw the fish in the fridge overnight or defrost it under cool running water. Cleaned frozen shrimp is another great buy. Pair it with frozen mixed veggies and you have a stir fry dinner ready to go. Head to the sushi station for a protein packed prepared meal. Stockmerc. 67. Many larger supermarkets have their very own sushi chefs on site, boxing up fresh fish and rice combination plates. If ever you need a quick, prepackaged meal, this is the place to stop Sushi delivers protein and some fiber and is generally low in caloriesone piece of a California roll has just 3. Just steer clear of the soy sauce, which is very high in sodium, or ask for the low sodium kind.