If you are suffering from type-2 diabetes, it is noteworthy that you are also quite possibly at risk for heart disease. The two diseases are not connected other than by virtue of their most likely stemming from the lowest common denominator: poor eating habits, an unhealthy lifestyle, a sedentary occupation, and insufficient exercise. Following a heart healthy, type-2 diabetes diet is not overly difficult, but some are still of the opinion that it requires major sacrifices in taste and convenience to make it happen.

Nothing could be further from the truth! If you can remember that following a heart healthy, type-2 diabetes management diet is not so much a fad diet but instead a bona fide lifestyle change, you will quickly and decisively succeed in opting for healthier nutritional options and making the most of the calories you are ingesting while taxing your body's systemic response the least.

Take for example the myth that heart healthy living requires the abstaining from red meat. Nothing could be further from the truth! As a matter of fact, red meat is vital for the ingestion of iron and other vitamins only found in meat protein and if you fail to eat adequate amounts, you will cheat your body. Instead, the integration of red meat into a heart healthy and type-2 diabetes friendly diet requires you to opt for high quality, lean cuts, preferably from the loin, and then preparing them in such a manner that the fat will drip away from the meat. Broiling is perhaps the best possible way of preparing such a cut of meat.

Poultry and fish are also permitted on your diet, but you will want to keep a close eye on the health warnings associated with the various types of fish which are currently on the market. Shark, halibut, and swordfish are frequently subject to such warnings and failure to listen to them will have the very real potential of causing health problems. Poultry is known to be a healthy choice, but only if the skin is removed prior to ingestion.

While watching your blood glucose levels and also ensuring that your heart health is an integral part of your food choices, keep a close eye on whole grain foods whenever possible. This refers to bread and cereals of course, but also to rice, pasta, and even tortillas! Whenever possible, choose non-processed or minimally altered foods instead of the heavily processed options that may include bleached flour, sugar, sodium, and other preservatives or substances that will wreak havoc with your arterial system as well as your blood glucose levels.

Resist the temptation of the prepackaged overly processed convenience foods that promise a quick turnaround in the kitchen, but pack a powerful punch when it comes to calories, fat content, sodium and carbohydrates. Be wary of eating deserts that promise to be low in fat, because they are usually laden with sugar to make up for the loss of taste that is generally found in the fats contained in foods.