Skip Navigation

Display Mode:

  • Choose Default Style
  • Choose High Contrast
PAMF California South Asian Health Care
  • South Asian Home
  • About PRANA
  • PAMF Home
  • Risk Factors
  • Health Concerns
  • Healthy Choices
  • Support & Resources
  • Research Studies
Section TitleHealthy Choices
  • Nutrition
    • Balance Your Meals
    • Eat Smaller Portions
    • Emphasize Healthy Carbohydrates
    • Eat Lean Protein
    • Limit Fat, Oil and Salt
    Main content

    Carbohydrate Tips

    • Consume moderate amounts of unrefined carbohydrates (whole fruit, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, cooked-dried beans) and balance them with protein and fat.

    • Cut down on white rice. Don't rinse the grains. Rinsing removes the enriched vitamins.

    • Healthier substitutions would be:
      • Cracked wheat, whole wheat couscous, barley, quinoa, millet or amaranth

      • Use cooked beans, corn, potatoes and hard-fleshed squash as your starch
    • Whole grain products that are refined (made from flours) but nutritious are:
      • Whole wheat chapatti or roti, besan pancakes, whole wheat bread or pasta, whole grain crackers
    • Eat starches that have been fried or prepared with generous amounts of oil sparingly:
      • Vada, samosa, paratha, sev, pakora, laddoo, plantain chips, namkeen or chevda mix, puri, kachori, motichoor, laddu/ladoo
    • Limit intake of starches that have been prepared with generous amounts of sugar:
      • Halwa, gulabjammun, cookies, cake, puddings, jalebi, pheerni, burfi, ras malai, imarti
    • Eat fruit as a dessert and snack every day:
      • Small-sized fruit the size of a tennis ball or about 4 oz total weight
    • Create lower sugar versions of favorite recipes using sugar substitutes.

    • Avoid sugary beverages: juice, soda, sweet lassi, sweet tea or coffee

      • Coconut water (juice from a young coconut) is highly nutritious but high in sugar too. Limit if diabetic or watching weight.
    • Limit items made with white rice or white rice flour:
      • Idli, dosa
    • Eat generous portions of non-starchy vegetables:
      • Cauliflower, green beans, peppers/capsicum, greens, broccoli, carrots, celery, summer squash (thin skinned), tomatoes, onion, cabbage, karela, etc.
    • See some of our recipes for healthy ideas of your favorites:
      • Grains, "Sorting Them Out" (slide show)

      • How to Prepare Bulk Grains

      • Recipes


    Back to top
    couple and food
    Free nutrition guide, American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPIO)

    Information about gestational diabetes

    Last reviewed: 2012
    • Site Map
    • Website Feedback

    © 2013 Palo Alto Medical Foundation. All rights reserved. Sutter Health is a registered trademark of Sutter Health®, Reg. U.S. Patent. & Trademark office. Serving communities in Fremont, Palo Alto, San Jose, Mountain View & Santa Cruz.