Question: A number of people in my family are pre-diabetic. Can you give me some ideas of foods that raise blood sugar levels slowly and might help protect them from diabetes?

Answer: Go for quality carbs, and team them with protein and/or healthy fat. Joy Bauer, a registered dietitian and nutrition expert for the Today show, recommends carbohydrates found mainly in plant foods, including whole grains, brown and wild rice, oats, vegetables, fruits and legumes.

"Studies have shown that eating a diet rich in whole grains and high-fiber foods may reduce the risk of diabetes by between 35 and 42 percent," Bauer says in her new book, Joy Bauer's Food Cures.

Here are her recommendations:

Best foods for high-quality carbs: vegetables, unsweetened fresh or frozen fruit, beans, peas, lentils, brown rice, wild rice, barley, oatmeal, whole-grain cereals, breads and crackers, quinoa, amaranth, wheat berries, millet.

Best foods for soluble fiber: ground psyllium seeds, oat bran, rice bran, oatmeal, barley, lentils, brussels sprouts, peas, kidney, lima, black, navy, or pinto beans, apples, blackberries, pears, oranges, grapefruit, cantaloupe, strawberries, bananas, peaches, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, sweet potatoes, yams, white potatoes, tomatoes, avocado, raspberries, corn, almonds, ground flaxseed, sunflower seeds.

Carb intake should be limited to about 40 percent of your daily food intake, Bauer says, and it's best to eat them together with high-quality protein such as turkey or chicken breast, seafood, veal, pork tenderloin, lean ham or beef, egg whites, fat-free or low-fat dairy products, beans, lentils, split peas, tofu, tempeh, soybeans, nuts or peanut butter.

Here's a recipe that combines high-quality carbs and protein from Joy Bauer's Food Cures.

Hearty Turkey Meat Loaf

Serves 4

1 pound lean ground turkey breast

1 small zucchini, grated

1 cup instant oatmeal

1/2 cup shitake mushrooms, chopped

1/4 cup fat-free milk

1/4 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

2 egg whites

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Salt substitute

Ground black pepper to taste

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

• Coat a 1-quart loaf pan with cooking spray or line with foil.

• In a large bowl, mix all ingredients and season with salt substitute and pepper.

• Press the mixture into a loaf pan and cover with foil.

• Bake 40 minutes.

• Remove foil and bake 5 to 10 minutes longer until the top begins to brown and the center is no longer pink.

• Serve immediately.

Nutritional information per serving: 239 cal., 3 g fat (0 g sat.), 45 mg chol., 20 g carb., 569 mg sodium, 3 g fiber, 33 g pro.

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