Are carbs worse than sugar???

[jiggle]

Hi everyone
I'm new to diabetes and i'm getting very confused with some of the topics on here, but i'm learning while i'm reading! Can someone please explain to me why i get high readings 2 hrs after food when i've eaten carbs but i'm not so bad after i've eaten sweet foods. I'm at the point where i am testing every food type i eat and its happening all the time. Bread, potatoes, pasta and rice are a big NO but a biscuit, slice of cheesecake doesn't seem to be too bad. Typical reading 2hrs after carbs are up to 180 but after sugar it can be back down to around 130 2hrs after eating. I was under the impression that all sweet things are a big no no. I suppose whats good for one is not good for another...keep on testing is the answer maybe?

I'm a new member so i'm hoping to learn loads on here about my newly diagnosed Type 2.

Thankyou to everybody in anticipation!

Edit.
For the benefit of Members :
180 mg/dl = 10 mmol/l
130 mg/dl = 7.2 mmol/l

 

[anniep]

welcome aboard

Sorry I don't understand the measurements 180 and 130 but make the following suggestions -

Maybe it has to do with the amount of carbs you are eating? a biscuit isn't so much, but a portiion potatoes/rice/pasta may be much bigger. Have you tried weighing the pasta and potatoes, you may be surprised at how little you can eat and keep the carb count down.

Or maybe the biscuit/cakes are spiking earlier that 2 hours and you are missing the highest point?

Others may be along soon with other suggestions.

 

[noblehead]

jiggle,

Not all carbs are equal, try googling 'simple and complex carbs' for a full explanation. The reason why your blood glucose is spiking less after eating a biscuit as opposed to eating pasta is all down to portion size; a biscuit may contain 10-15g of carbs as where a bowl of pasta may contain 60-80g of carbs-so it's inevitable the higher amount of carbs are going to impact more on your bg than a lower value.

Nigel

 

[hallii]

You have to look at the carbs content on the packet, then weigh your portion. Then you can work out the carbs you eat.

Some sweet tasing foods may have sweeteners and not be as sugary as you think, also, if you eat sugary stuff with fats it slows the absorption down, as does eating it with lots of non sugary food.

I bet if you weigh some sugar and calculate the carbs in it then eat it, and then weigh some wholemeal bread to exactly the same carb content and eat it, the sugar will hit your bloodstream faster and give a higher peak reading than the bread.

I am being theoretical here, don't actually eat the sugar!

This is why you will read so many times " eat to your meter" and "test around your food".
You have to weigh it, calculate the carbs content and then see how it affects your BGs.

If you can eat some sugary food and not get high Bgs after 1 and 2 hours then that is OK for you, but might not be for others.

H

You might have discovered a low carb sugar of course, in which case tell us what it is and we will all have some

 

[sugarless sue]

Sugar is a simple carbohydrate, it is absorbed quickly into the body, hence why it is used to treat a hypo. Therefore the 'spike' or raised blood sugar will be within an hour, so you would have to test at an hour to get the full effect of that meal.

Bread, pototoes, pasta etc are complex carbohydrate which means they are more slowly absorbed into the body. Their full effect will be at two or even three or four hours depending on what you eat, how it is cooked and what you ate it with.

As you say, keep on testing and writing down what you eat and the results you get.

As for low carb sugar ? Why not try Splenda....Granulated has half a gram of carbs per teaspoon.

 

[jiggle]

Apologies for giving the readings for BG the way i did....will have to learn the other!
Thankyou for the feedback.....guess i need to weigh everything i eat! Never thought it would come to me having to weigh the food i eat! Oh well, many years ahead of me, better get used to it!

 

[sugarless sue]

Don't worry, once you have weighed out a portion and see how big it is you will not have to weigh it every time! Within a week or two you will have built up a 'safe' menu and will only have to weigh things when it is something new.

It is good practice to weigh foods out every so often so that you can check that the portion size has not 'expanded' in your memory though ! :lol: