Blood Sugar and Watermelon

Having high blood sugar levels, especially for an extended period of time, can damage your blood vessels and increase your risk for kidney disease, heart disease, stroke and nerve and vision problems. Watermelon provides you with a number of essential nutrients, including vitamins A and C, but eating watermelon can cause an increase in your blood sugar levels, so diabetics need to take care.

Carbohydrate Content

Many diabetics count carbohydrates to help control their blood sugar level and aim to consume between 45 grams and 65 grams of carbohydrate per meal. A 1 1/4-cup serving of watermelon contains 15 grams of carbohydrates and only 1 gram of dietary fiber, so if you consume watermelon, you need to limit the amount of carbohydrates in the rest of your meal to between 30 grams and 50 grams, depending on your limit per meal.

Glycemic Index

The glycemic index is a scale that goes from 1 to 100 and measures how much different carbohydrate-containing foods affect your blood sugar compared to glucose. The higher the number, the greater the effect of a food on your blood sugar levels. Watermelon is high on the glycemic index, with a glycemic index rating of 72.

Minimizing Effect

The American Diabetes Association recommends that diabetics only consume fruit as part of meals. This is because consuming foods that are high on the glycemic index or high in carbohydrates along with foods that are low on the glycemic index or foods that consist mainly of fat or protein helps minimize the effect of the food on your blood sugar levels.

Considerations

Diabetics need to consume foods that contain carbohydrates, they just need to consume them in consistent amounts spread throughout the day to minimize spikes in blood glucose levels. This includes at least two servings of fruit per day. Watermelon can be a nutritious fruit choice for diabetics, as long as they take the carbohydrates it contains into consideration when planning their meal.