Sample Exchange List

MENU FOR THE DAY

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snack

1,200 calorie menu includes TOTAL EXCHANGES:
2 Milk
5 Starch/Bread
4 Fruit
5 Meat
2 Fat
2 Vegetable

1 milk exchange
1 starch/bread exchange
1 fruit exchange
1 meat exchange
1 fat exchange
Free foods

1 starch/bread exchange
2 meat exchange
1 vegetable exchange
Free foods

2 starch/bread
exchanges
1 milk exchange
2 meat exchanges
1 fat exchange
1 vegetable exchange
Free foods

1 starch/bread exchange
3 fruit exchanges
Free foods

1,500 calorie menu
ADD these additional exchanges to 1,200 menu:
1 Starch/Bread
1 Fruit
2 Vegetable

1 vegetable exchange

1 fruit exchange
1 starch/bread exchange

1,800 calorie menu
ADD these additional exchanges to 1,500 menu:
1 Fruit
1 Meat
2 Fat

1 meat exchange

2 fat exchanges

1 fruit exchange

Note portion sizes of free foods. Portions beyond these sizes are NOT free!

This is a sample menu plan. That means you have choices. For example, you may want to move a fruit from one meal to another. The point is to try to keep food balanced throughout the day, but you may move an exchange from one meal to another, if desired. Try to use lean and medium fat meats.

If you have special medical considerations, you should also experiment and customize the combination of exchanges to suit you. For the seriously ill, a health care professional's advice may be needed. For example, one diabetic may be able to handle 6 fruits, a second person may not. You need to make choices that work for your situation.