A key part of managing type 2 diabetes—or preventing prediabetes from getting worse—is sticking to a diet that makes it easy to limit carbohydrates so you can control blood glucose levels. For many years, the most recommended dietary approach for controlling diabetes was the exchange diet.

In the exchange diet, foods are grouped together based on the amount of carbohydrates they contain. The diet allows you to swap one food for another that had a similar “carb count.” This type of diabetes diet is no longer the standard for all people with diabetes. Instead, nutritionists and healthcare providers work to provide nutritional information to help people create personalized meal plans. Even with these new options, though, the exchange diet, or a version of it, is preferred by many people with diabetes.

This article explains how the exchange diet and exchange lists work, current recommendations from the American Diabetes Association, and what you should know before you decide to follow the exchange diet.

What Is the Exchange Diet?

The exchange diet was first introduced in 1950 by the American Dietetic Association (now known as the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics). The list of foods was updated several times.

In 2008, the dietary approach was revised again and renamed “Choose Your Foods.” The new approach focuses on helping people choose from a greater variety of foods. It provides information on portions and includes food exchanges for fats, protein, fruits, and other types of foods. 

For decades, healthcare professionals recommended the exchange diet as the best way for people with diabetes to manage blood sugar. Today, rather than supporting one specific dietary plan, the American Diabetes Association now recommends that healthcare providers work with you to figure out a “patient-centered” approach. In other words, the best diet is one that fits your particular health and lifestyle needs. There’s no one-size-fits-all diet.

Advantages of the Exchange Diet

The updated exchange diet can help you follow the American Diabetes Association’s recommendations. The primary purpose of the “Choose Your Foods” approach is to help you regulate your blood sugar by tracking carbohydrates. But it also helps people with diabetes meet other goals.

ADA Recommendations

The ADA does provide general guidelines, though, that a dietitian or other healthcare provider can use to help you determine an effective meal plan. These recommendations include:

  • Choose from a variety of foods, not just a few “safe” ones. Your diet should include many different types of non-starchy vegetables.
  • Avoid added sugars and processed foods.
  • Choose whole grains instead of refined grains.
  • Create personalized targets for the percentage of calories from carbs, fats, or protein. These will likely fall into a general “healthy” range but should be specific to your needs.
  • Consider weight-loss goals when making a meal plan. Losing weight can improve your blood sugar and help you manage diabetes.
  • Exchange foods to take advantage of health benefits beyond carbohydrate control. For example, if you have cardiovascular disease, look at replacing foods high in saturated fat with those low in saturated fat.

For people with type 1 diabetes, the information on exchange lists can help you plan when and how much food to eat. Eating regulated amounts of food at regulated times makes it easier to keep blood sugar stable.

If you have type 2 diabetes, the exchange lists are an excellent way to help you maintain a healthy weight or to lose weight. It makes it easy to control how many calories and the amount of fat you consume.

Disadvantages of the Exchange Diet

While the exchange lists have been shown to be very helpful to people with diabetes, some find them too restrictive. Also, the counting of carbs and other nutrients can be overwhelming.

The American Diabetes Association recommends a simpler approach for those who find the exchange diet challenging. Called the Diabetes Plate Method, this approach recommends that you physically set up a plate to contain the following:

  • 1/2 non-starchy vegetables1/4 carbohydrates1/4 protein

Using the Exchange Diet

While healthcare providers now embrace a number of diets or meal plans for people with diabetes, the exchange diet continues to be preferred by many people.

The American Diabetes Association makes using the exchange diet easy by publishing the booklet “Choose Your Foods: Food Lists for Diabetes.” The guide focuses on helping you track the carbohydrates in specific foods. It divides foods into six categories:

  • Starches/breadsFruitsMilkVegetablesMeatsFats

Choose Your Foods provides a series of lists. Each list has foods that share a specific amount of carbohydrates. This allows you to switch, or exchange, one food for another without affecting how many carbs you take in. The purpose is to allow people with diabetes to easily plan meals.

Beyond just being a tool to count carbs, though, the diet also aims to help you choose healthier carbohydrates. For instance, it shows how legumes, whole grain or multi-grain foods, and whole fruits are more nutritious than highly processed foods, fruit juices, and sweetened beverages.

To help people with diabetes manage their overall health, the guide includes more than a summary of carbohydrates, Choose Your Foods includes additional nutritional information, including:

How Many Carbs Do You Need?

In carb counting plans such as the exchange diet, each serving is estimated to contain approximately 15 grams of carbohydrates.

  • Number of calories in a serving
  • Whether a food is a good source of fiber
  • Sodium content
  • Tips on getting more vegetables in your diet
  • Guidance on choosing gluten-free foods
  • An eating plan you can use to simplify menu planning

It also contains a glossary with definitions of technical terms so you can better understand all the data.

Not all foods can be easily compared, though. To help you manage more complicated types of food, the exchange diet also breaks out two special types of foods: free foods and combination foods.

Free Foods

The items listed as “free” foods and beverages contain little to no carbohydrates and fewer than 20 calories per serving. Many are listed without a specified serving size, meaning they can be eaten in any quantity. The foods that do have a specific serving size should be limited to two or three servings, ideally spread out throughout the day to prevent a rise in blood sugar.

Examples of free foods are:

  • Bouillon or broth without fatSugar-free sodaCoffee and tea (plain)Cranberries unsweetened (1/2 cup)Cabbage raw (1 cup)Spinach raw (1 cup)Sugar-free hard candy or gum Sugar substitutes (saccharin, aspartame)

Combination Foods

Combination foods are those that do not fit into a single exchange list because they contain more than one food group. For example:

  • Pizza: A quarter of 10-inch cheese pizza counts as one medium-fat meat, two starches, and one fatMacaroni and cheese: One cup counts as one medium-fat meat, two starches, and two fatsIce cream: 1/2 cup of any flavor counts as one starch and two fatsChili with beans: One cup counts as two medium-fat meats, two starches, two fatsCasserole (homemade): One cup counts as two medium-fat meats, two starches, one fat

Exchange Lists

The lists on the exchange diet show how much of one food is equal to another. These lists cover carbohydrates as well as other important nutrients.

Starch/Bread List

Each of these items represents a single serving of about 15 grams of carbohydrate. Each serving counts as one carbohydrate portion.

  • 1/2 cup cooked cereal1/2 cup pasta1/3 cup brown or white rice1/3 cup beans, peas, or lentils1/2 cup corn1/2 cup green peas or lima beans1 small baked potato (3 ounces)1/2 bagel (1 ounce)1/2 hamburger or hot dog bun (1 ounce)1 slice rye, pumpernickel, white, wheat, or whole wheat bread (1 ounce)3 cups popcorn (no butter or fat)6 saltine-type crackers2 4-inch pancakes2 6-inch taco shells

Meat List

All of these selections have 7 grams of protein. The differences between them will be in the amounts of fat and calories each contains.

  • 1 ounce beef, pork, veal, poultry, or fish2 ounces crab, lobster, scallops, shrimp, clams1/4 cup water-packed tuna or canned salmon2 medium sardines1/4 cottage cheese or ricotta cheese2 Tbsp grated parmesan1 ounce mozzarella, American, blue, cheddar, Monterey Jack, or Swiss cheese1 ounce deli meat1 egg

Vegetable List

Each item listed here contains about 5 grams of carbs, 2 grams of protein, and 25 calories. Unless otherwise noted, the serving size for cooked vegetables or vegetable juice is 1/2 cup and the serving size for raw veggies is 1 cup. These and similar vegetables are generally regarded as non-starchy vegetables.

  • 1/2 artichokeBeans (green, wax, Italian)BeetsBroccoliBrussels sproutsCarrotsCauliflowerSpinach (cooked)EggplantMushrooms (cooked)OnionsPeppers (green)Tomato (1 large)Tomato/vegetable juiceZucchini (cooked)

Fruit List

Unless otherwise noted, the serving size for one fruit is 1/2 cup fresh fruit or fruit juice and 1/4 cup dried fruit.

  • 2-inch apple9-inch banana3/4 cup blueberries12 large cherries1/2 medium grapefruit15 small grapes1 cup papaya1 peach1 1/4 cup strawberries1 1/2 dates1 1/2 dried figs2 Tbsp raisins1/3 cranberry juice cocktail1/3 cup prune juice

Milk List

Regardless of whether whole, low-fat, or skim, the milk and dairy products listed here have 12 grams of carbohydrates each.

  • 1 cup milk (skim, 1%, 2%, whole, or low-fat buttermilk)1/2 cup evaporated skim milk8 ounces plain yogurt

Fat List

Although the foods on this list do not contain carbs, they are high in fat and calories and should be measured carefully.

  • 1/8 medium avocado1 tsp margarine or butter1 Tbsp diet margarine1 tsp mayonnaise6 dry-roasted almonds2 whole walnuts1 tsp oil (corn, olive, safflower, etc.)10 small or 5 large olives1 slice bacon2 Tbsp shredded coconut2 Tbsp sour cream1 Tbsp cream cheese

You can mix, match, and double up on foods however you’d like, as long as you stick to the prescribed number of exchanges and the ideal amount of carb, protein, fat, and calories you should eat each day.

For example, 1/3 cup of rice equals one carb exchange. If you would like to enjoy an entire cup of rice, you would count the cup of rice as three carb exchanges. With this kind of flexibility, using the exchange method can be simple, straightforward, and effective.

Summary

The exchange diet has been used for decades to help people with diabetes choose foods that will help them keep their carb intake within a specific range. Using the exchange lists, you can swap one food for another. It requires you to keep portions within a set limit, though, and some people find the diet is too restrictive or difficult to track.

Today, the exchange diet is only one of a number of meal planning methods that healthcare providers say could help people with diabetes. The goal now is to help people put together a personalized diet.