Q: Please suggest a low calorie, fibre-rich diet for a non insulin diabetic.

A:The diet for NIDDM (Type 2) is to be individualised based on a number of factors that include calorie needs. Unlike in the past, these days we rely more on Glycaemic Index (GI) and less on carbohydrate content. The GI for pure glucose is 100 (on a scale of 1 to 100). The GI for various food items is: soya beans (18), kidney beans (27), lentils (29), chick peas (33), black-eyed beans (42), spinach (15), lettuce (15) etc. Thus spinach is much better than black-eyed beans due to its lower GI. Please consult a dietician for your individual requirement.