Diabetes Diet Chart for Pakistani Patients: What to Eat (With 7-Day Plan)
A good diabetes diet chart for Pakistani patients is built on normal home food: whole wheat roti, daal, sabzi, salad, eggs, chicken, fish and dahi, eaten in controlled portions at regular times. The main rules are to fill half your plate with vegetables, keep roti and rice to measured portions, and cut out sugar, mithai and sweet drinks. Below you will find a daily diet chart, a 7-day plan, and a clear list of foods to eat, limit and avoid.
Written by Dn. Aruba Rashid, certified dietitian (BS Human Nutrition and Dietetics). Updated October 2026.
Key takeaways
- Fill half your plate with sabzi and salad, a quarter with protein and a quarter with roti or rice.
- Eat at regular times, and keep roti and rice to measured portions.
- Cut out sugar, mithai, sweet drinks and maida items like naan and bakery biscuits.
- Fruit like guava, apple and orange is fine in small portions; mango and dates only rarely.
- Never stop or reduce your diabetes medicine without your doctor.
Please note: this is general guidance for adults with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes. If you take insulin or diabetes tablets, do not make big changes to your diet without your doctor, because your blood sugar can drop too low. Type 1 diabetes, pregnancy and kidney disease need a plan made by your doctor or dietitian.
The Diabetes Plate: An Easy Way to Eat Right
You do not need to count every calorie. Use the plate method at lunch and dinner:
- Half the plate: sabzi and salad, such as palak, lauki, tori, bhindi, gobi, karela, kheera and tomato.
- A quarter of the plate: protein, such as daal, chana, eggs, chicken, fish or paneer.
- A quarter of the plate: carbohydrates, such as 1 roti or half a cup of cooked rice.
- On the side: plain dahi or raita without sugar, and water.
This keeps your meal filling while slowing down the rise in blood sugar.
Daily Diabetes Diet Chart (Pakistani)
Eat at roughly the same times every day and do not skip meals, especially if you take medicine for diabetes.
|
Time |
What to Eat |
Pakistani Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Early morning |
Water and a few nuts |
1 glass water + 5–6 soaked almonds |
|
Breakfast |
Whole grain + protein |
1 atta roti or 2 slices brown bread + 1–2 eggs, chai without sugar |
|
Mid-morning |
Small fruit or roasted snack |
1 guava, apple or orange, or a handful of roasted chana |
|
Lunch |
Diabetes plate |
1–2 small atta roti + sabzi + daal or chicken salan + salad + raita |
|
Evening |
Light snack |
Chai without sugar + roasted chana, or kheera and tomato salad |
|
Dinner |
Diabetes plate, lighter |
1 roti or half cup rice + chicken, fish or daal + sabzi + salad |
|
Bedtime (if advised) |
Small protein snack |
Half glass milk without sugar, if your doctor recommends a bedtime snack |
How many roti are right for you depends on your weight, activity and medicine. A dietitian can set exact portions for you.
7-Day Diabetes Diet Plan
Use this as a weekly guide. Keep the same mid-morning and evening snacks as the chart above.
| Day | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Vegetable omelette + 1 atta roti | Daal + lauki sabzi + 1–2 roti + salad | Grilled chicken + sautéed sabzi + 1 roti |
| Day 2 | Daliya cooked in water or milk, no sugar | Chana + salad + 1–2 roti + raita | Fish curry + half cup rice + salad |
| Day 3 | 2 boiled eggs + 2 slices brown bread | Chicken salan + bhindi + 1–2 roti | Daal + palak + 1 roti + salad |
| Day 4 | Besan cheela with vegetables + dahi | Rajma or lobia + salad + 1–2 roti | Chicken karahi (less oil) + 1 roti + salad |
| Day 5 | Vegetable omelette + 1 atta roti | Mixed daal + gobi + 1–2 roti + raita | Grilled fish + sabzi + half cup rice |
| Day 6 | Daliya with a few almonds, no sugar | Chicken + tori sabzi + 1–2 roti + salad | Daal + karela or bhindi + 1 roti |
| Day 7 | 2 boiled eggs + 1 atta roti + kheera | Small portion home-made chicken pulao + large salad + raita | Chicken soup with vegetables + 1 roti |
Want a Diet Plan Made Just for You?
General plans are a good start, but your body, routine and health are unique. Dn. Aruba Rashid, certified dietitian, can create a personal plan for you online, anywhere in Pakistan.
Foods to Eat, Limit and Avoid
| Eat more | Eat in measured portions | Avoid or keep for rare occasions |
|---|---|---|
| Green and other non-starchy sabzi: palak, lauki, tori, bhindi, gobi, karela, shimla mirch | Atta roti, rice, daliya, brown bread | Sugar, gur, honey and mithai |
| Salad: kheera, tomato, salad patta, gajar | Daal, chana, rajma, lobia | Cold drinks, packaged juices, sweet lassi |
| Eggs, chicken, fish | Fruit: guava, apple, orange, pear, jamun | Maida items: naan, white bread, bakery biscuits |
| Plain dahi and raita | Milk without sugar | Halwa puri, samosas, pakoras, jalebi |
| Water, chai or green tea without sugar | Nuts and seeds, a small handful | Large portions of rice, biryani and paratha |
Fruit is healthy, but it has natural sugar. Eat one small fruit at a time, as a snack rather than right after a meal. Fruits like mango, banana, grapes, cheekoo and khajoor raise blood sugar faster, so keep their portions very small.
6 Simple Habits That Help Control Blood Sugar
- Walk for 10–15 minutes after meals. A short walk after lunch and dinner helps lower the rise in blood sugar.
- Do not skip meals. Skipping and then eating a big meal causes sugar to swing up and down.
- Eat salad or sabzi first. Starting with vegetables can slow down how fast sugar enters your blood.
- Use less oil. Weight control improves blood sugar, and oil adds many calories.
- Drink water instead of sweet drinks. One glass of cold drink can contain several teaspoons of sugar.
- Check your sugar as your doctor advises. Keep a simple record so your doctor and dietitian can adjust your plan.
Diabetes is the most common cause of kidney disease in Pakistan. If you have your creatinine report, check your kidney function with our free eGFR calculator, and ask your doctor about a yearly kidney test.
Low-carb and keto diets can affect blood sugar quickly. Read our keto diet plan guide and speak to your doctor before trying it with diabetes medicines.
For steadier morning blood sugar, choose eggs, dahi or besan chilla. See more high protein breakfast ideas.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can diabetic patients eat roti and rice?
Yes, in measured portions. Whole wheat atta roti is a better choice than naan or white bread. Rice is fine in small amounts, about half a cup cooked, eaten with daal, protein and salad.
Can diabetics eat mango or dates?
Yes, but only in very small portions and not every day, for example a few slices of mango or 1–2 dates as a snack. They raise blood sugar quickly, so watch your readings.
Does karela juice cure diabetes?
No. Karela is a healthy vegetable and a good part of a diabetes diet, but it does not replace medicine. Never stop or reduce your diabetes medicine without your doctor.
Is this diet chart suitable for pregnancy?
No. Diabetes during pregnancy needs a plan from your doctor and dietitian, because mother and baby have special needs.
Get a Personal Diabetes Diet Plan
Every diabetic patient is different. Your medicine, weight, sugar readings and routine all change what you should eat. Dn. Aruba Rashid can make a personal diabetes diet plan for you online, anywhere in Pakistan. Book a consultation on WhatsApp.
About the Dietitian
Dn. Aruba Rashid is a certified dietitian and nutritionist with a BS in Human Nutrition and Dietetics from The University of Faisalabad and over 4 years of experience. She creates personalised diet plans for diabetes, PCOS, weight loss, weight gain, thyroid and other health needs, for clients across Pakistan through online consultations. Message her on WhatsApp to book your consultation.
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