Who doesn't love a good Mary Poppins reference? The good news is that reducing your sugar intake can be as fun as watching a Disney movie. Why? Because you'll eat foods you didn't think you could eat while reducing your blood sugar AND try new recipes.

I kicked prediabetes by following these tips, but always talk to your doctor before making diet changes if you have any medical diagnosis or are on a medically prescribed diet.

• Start by tracking your sugars and other nutrients. You don't know what to change until you know what you're eating now. Use an app such as Nutritionix to track your nutrients, especially sugars.
• Avoid foods with more sugar than a candy bar. Six ounces of strawberry yogurt may have 32 grams of sugar, while a Hershey's chocolate bar has 25 grams. Stick to Greek Yogurt, but add half a cup of berries and a teaspoon of local honey. This is about 17 grams of sugar and a perfect breakfast paired with oatmeal.
• Use the diabetic plate method. For lunch and dinner, consider the diabetic plate method: 1/4 protein, 1/4 complex carbohydrates such as pasta, and half veggies.
• Combine protein and carbs, even for snacks. Sugar spikes may be caused by eating a carbohydrate without another food to balance it out.
• Eat homemade guacamole. Guac can be high in salt or be ultra processed. Mix your own by mashing avocado and then adding lime juice, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, chopped onions, and chopped jalepeno to your desired spice and veggie level. Serve as a snack with whole-grain tortilla chips. Make it a meal by adding 4 ounces of lean protein.
• Limit processed foods. The more whole foods you have the better off you are in general. It's also easier to track sugars in single ingredient foods.
• Make half your veggies green choices. Green leafy veggies are often lower in sugar and higher in fiber than other choices. However, other colors provide different nutrients. Choose both, but green veggies in higher quantities.
• Choose lower-sugar fruits. Eat berries, oranges, and apples. Limit mango, as it is low fiber and can come in over 200 calories, depending on size.
• Avoid trusting “healthy” labels and reduce or eliminate juices. When I throw an orange in the blender to make juice, I don't remove the high-fiber pulp. I'll have quite a sugary drink if I blend enough oranges to make a cup. But if I add kale, greek yogurt, and peanut butter, it's a pretty balanced snack or mini-meal. However, processed juices labeled healthy get rid of the fiber and keep all the sugar. A Tropicana juice serving has zero fiber and 23 grams of sugar, similar to a candy bar. BUT candy bars often have fiber. It's labeled healthy because of added vitamins, which may not be allowed in the future because of the movement towards getting nutrients from food. Drink water instead and eat the orange or get a balanced juice or smoothy with veggies.

Easy low-sugar pasta sauce recipe: Boil one cup of cherry tomatoes per serving. Turn the stove off when they reach a bowl. Mash the tomatoes and sprinkle in oregano. Add 0.5 cups of cooked whole grain pasta, a cooked green veggie, and your favorite protein.