{"id":942448,"date":"2026-05-06T22:13:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T22:13:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/942448\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T22:13:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T22:13:21","slug":"how-this-dietitian-packs-fibre-into-her-balanced-diet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/942448\/","title":{"rendered":"How this dietitian packs fibre into her balanced diet"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Illustration by Kat Frick Miller<\/p>\n

As a registered dietitian, Lucy Zhang believes in a balanced diet. But over the course of our conversation about how she eats, one macronutrient kept coming up: fibre.<\/p>\n

\u201cSoluble fibre is very beneficial for lowering LDL cholesterol and keeping you satiated,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s why, with her clients at Beyond Diabetes Nutrition<\/a> \u2013 the online practice she launched in the throes of the pandemic \u2013 she emphasizes building meals around three pillars: protein, healthy fats and more fibre. <\/p>\n

She says each helps slow digestion, leading to a more stable blood-sugar response and steadier energy, crucial for clients concerned about diabetes. <\/p>\n

Most of Zhang\u2019s clients are similar to her: professionals in their mid-30s to 50s with a family history of diabetes, looking to make lifestyle changes to reduce their risk.<\/p>\n

How four roommates save money by grocery shopping together<\/a><\/p>\n

Her own interest in diabetes education began in middle school when a family trip to China piqued her curiosity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to visit my grandma and found out she couldn\u2019t eat fruit any more because of diabetes,\u201d Zhang says.<\/p>\n

The moment stayed with her. She remembered how much her grandmother loved fruit, and how it had suddenly been taken off the table.<\/p>\n

In her practice, she focuses on helping clients keep meals blood-sugar friendly without sacrificing foods they enjoy, such as fruit. At most meals, that means a balanced plate: one-quarter carbohydrates, one-quarter protein and half non-starchy vegetables. <\/p>\n

Relying on some routine meals makes things easy for busy professionals, she says. Most days, Zhang opts for a high-fibre, high-protein salad bowl for lunch: chicken or ground beef, fibre-rich carbs such as beans, edamame, lentils or sweet potato and a generous amount of greens for bulk and volume. <\/p>\n

She regularly consumes chia seeds, ground flax, oats, barley and legumes, which she says are some of the best sources of soluble fibre.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause I do have my own family history, I am very aware and mindful of my routine,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n

She also draws on research showing that the order in which you eat matters. Starting with fibre- and protein-rich foods before carbohydrates can help stave off blood-sugar swings and slow insulin spikes<\/a>, allowing people with a predisposition to diabetes to still enjoy their fruit.<\/p>\n

How a former city slicker learned to embrace the farm life and eat more plants<\/a><\/p>\n

How I save money on groceries: <\/b>I browse flyers on my phone to plan out my groceries for the week and compare prices between three grocery stores: No Frills, Food Basics and Bestco Food Market. I purchase meat, eggs and bread in bulk once a month from Costco. <\/p>\n

How I splurge on groceries:<\/b> My husband and I love doing date nights at home every month. We pick a cuisine and make it a three-course meal. We recently had an Italian night and made caprese salad with fresh burrata, grilled peaches and prosciutto, splurged on fresh pasta as our second and a homemade panna cotta for dessert.<\/p>\n

The hardest shopping habit to keep up: <\/b>Tackling balanced lunches on a busy weekday. If I\u2019m throwing something together last minute, I don\u2019t find it very satiating. I have to be intentional, so I make my lunches three days ahead of time so they\u2019re ready to go throughout the week.<\/p>\n

How we\u2019ve changed my eating habits recently: <\/b>I\u2019m doing a lot more ingredient prepping and freezing. On Sundays I wash, prep and freeze my vegetables so they\u2019re ready to eat. <\/p>\n

Five items always in our cart:<\/b><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Chewy Protein Bar \u2013 Kirkland \u2013 $19.99 for a box of 42: <\/b>Each bar has enough protein and fibre to make it blood-sugar friendly and filling. <\/li>\n
  2. Canned pinto beans \u2013 Unico \u2013 $1.69 per can: <\/b>Canned beans and lentils make a regular rotation in my grocery shopping. Cost-wise, they\u2019re more than buying dry, but these are easier.<\/li>\n
  3. Multigrain rye sourdough bread \u2013 Stonemill \u2013 $8.79 for three loaves: <\/b>I love this toast because it combines the benefits of being a whole grain bread with being a sourdough, both of which make it a blood-sugar friendly option. <\/li>\n
  4. Smooth peanut butter \u2013 Kraft \u2013 $4.49: <\/b>Most people are surprised that as a dietitian, Kraft is my favourite peanut butter. But when you compare protein and carbohydrates to the all-natural stuff, the difference is negligent. I enjoy the taste of this so much more, so I choose this. <\/li>\n
  5. Raspberries \u2013 Driscoll \u2013 $2.88 for a half pint:<\/b> I always wait for a sale to purchase raspberries, because they\u2019re expensive. One cup of raspberries provides about 30 per cent of my daily fibre needs, and I find it\u2019s the tastiest way to get my fibre in. I planted a raspberry bush last year, I\u2019m hoping to be able to harvest them for myself this year. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Illustration by Kat Frick Miller As a registered dietitian, Lucy Zhang believes in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":942449,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4318],"tags":[105,24789,4434,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-942448","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-noastack","10":"tag-nutrition","11":"tag-uk","12":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116529935743341416","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/942448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=942448"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/942448\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/942449"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=942448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=942448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=942448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}