With World Diabetes Day taking place tomorrow, a master chef has stepped in to show us what we should be eating.

The statistics on diabetes are alarming. 3.6 million Australians have diabetes, or pre-diabetes, and one of us is diagnosed ever five minutes.

That's 290 people every day, almost 106,000 a year - and sufferers are only getting younger.

• Rowena Wallace's diabetes wake up call
• Diabetes vaccine trial
• What can you do to prevent diabetes?

Diabetics are twice as likely to have heart disease and strokes, but 85 per cent to 90 per cent of sufferers have Type 2 Diabetes, which can be prevented with good diet, exercise and lifestyle.

Leading chef Michael Moore, owner of Sydney's revolving restaurant O Bar, was diagnosed with diabetes at 35. Later a stroke changed his outlook and his food dramatically.

Moore has shared his food discoveries and some delicious and amazingly different recipes in his diabetes cookbook Blood Sugar, which has been a runaway seller - more than 50,000 copies have been sold here and worldwide.

Today Tonight's latest diet stories

• Vegies - broccoli, red tomatoes, sweet potato, corn
• Low fat dairy - skim milk, yoghurt
• Grainy bread
• Oats
• Legumes
• Brown rice

• Butter (saturated fat)
• Mince (cheap mince that's pink and full of fat is bad for Type 2s, good mince is bright red and full of meat)
• Shortbread or packaged biscuits and cake (transfats)
• Salt
• Crisps
• Lollies

More stories from reporter Helen Wellings

Recipes courtesy of Blood Sugar by Michael Moore

STONE GROUND MUESLI HOT CAKES

These are filling and a much healthier way of eating pancakes.

• 60g (2oz) self-raising flour
• 60g (2oz) stone ground whole-wheat flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda/bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 cup whole rolled oats
• 2 tablespoons slivered almond
• 1 tablespoon LSA (ground linseeds, sunflower seeds and almonds)
• 1 tablespoon agave syrup
• 2 eggs
• 250ml (8fl oz) low-fat milk
• cooking spray
• Vanilla yoghurt
• 1 cup low-fat natural yoghurt
• 2 tablespoons agave syrup
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthways
• Raspberry crush
• 1 punnet (150g/5oz) raspberries
• 1 teaspoon agave syrup

• 1 Combine flours, baking soda, oats, almonds and LSA in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. In a separate bowl, whisk together the agave, eggs and milk. Pour this into the dry ingredients. Mix until combined. The batter should be the consistency of double cream. Set aside for 30 minutes.
• 2 Meanwhile, mix yoghurt and agave syrup together. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean and stir into yoghurt. Refrigerate until needed.
• 3 Place half the raspberries into a bowl with the agave and crush with a fork until broken down. Stir in remaining raspberries and set aside.
• 4 Heat a non-stick frying pan and spray with cooking spray. Ladle spoonfuls of pancake batter into pan and cook for about 1 minute, or until bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake. Turn over and cook a further 45–60 seconds. Turn onto a plate and repeat with remaining batter.
• 5 Serve pancakes with raspberry sauce and a spoonful of vanilla yoghurt.

Serves 4-6

BLUEBERRY AND TOFU PROTEIN SHAKE

This is a high protein start to the day, great after a walk or swim.

• 90g (3oz) silken/soft tofu
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1 banana
• 1 tablespoon agave syrup
• 2 tablespoons unprocessed bran
• 2 egg whites (optional)
• 3 cups chilled low-fat milk
• 2 teaspoons chia seeds

• 1 Combine all ingredients except chia seeds into a blender and pulse until smooth. Stir in the chia seeds then serve immediately in large chilled glasses.
• 2 Garnish with some berries.

Serves 4

Chef's note: You can buy chia seeds from health food shops and many supermarkets.

Check out more of Michael Moore's recipes in his new book.

• Australian Diabetes Council - www.australiandiabetescouncil.com
• iBGStar blood sugar apps - www.bgstar.com.au
• Chef Michael Moore - www.michaelmoorechef.com
• O Bar and Dining - www.obardining.com.au