Lack of low carb options in stores!!

[AloeSvea]

Thanks @retrogamer, for bringing this topic up in a thread. I've thought about this a lot too, and wondered what was going on supermarket-level. But while I was wondering since 10 years ago when I was diagnosed, the food producers and manufacturers have caught up in Australia and NZ (Australia owns one of our duopoly/cartel supermarket chains, so we get Aus products) (It isn't me calling it a cartel - it's from a government sponsored investigation and report!). Anyhow, during this time period the amount of low-carb and keto products has mushroomed, and I am very grateful for it.

I spend a lot of my life cooking from scratch as a LCHF eater, and I love the fact I can buy low carb bread and crackers pretty easily now. With quite a bit of choice. The no-grainola being marketed as keto, I am with @lovinglife on this - I wonder as I have enthusiatically eaten some of it, as incredibly expensive as it is, I wonder how keto it really is. I have wondered about more than one keto product if their carb count is actually correct. And how stupid would I be if I say, which I would like to be true - well, I just have to trust them?

I think it's vaguely amusing that 'low-carb' didn't cut it big time for marketing, but the way more intense 'in reality as a WOE keto' label did!

I know in my life I have gently (OK - bluntly!) said to folks attempting a keto way of eating that it's about the food and drink, and I don't understand how a pill marked 'keto supplement' can do anything. And costs a LOT. But there you are.

And about the cost. It's a lot, for sure. Those bread and crackers - wo ho! I try and rotate their purchase, save it for when I really need a break from baking and attendant dishers, so one week - mainly dairy, meat, fish and veg. The next week - keto products, and so on. NZ food prices are extortionate, considering we are a food producing country big time. I just see it, and talk to my friends about it, that my huge food bill considering it's just me, is the price I am paying for keeping alive and off kidney dialysis and the CV ward a bit longer. It is absolutely a big price though.

 

[jpscloud]

I sometimes eye up "keto" products on Amazon (and on Ocado) but besides the outrageous prices and possibility of undeclared ingredients like seed oils etc., I'm put off when I remember that food companies are in the business of selling us things we can't stop eating.

I wonder if when they test their prospective keto products they find that people don't scoff until they pass out as they would with foods that hit the bliss point so either they don't bother developing them or, more worryingly, perhaps some companies might find ways to make them irresistible with hidden nasty things.

 

[Estragon]

7.2…. And so Friday comes around.

 

[Tony337]

Good morning

I find this post very odd indeed ..........

Please please don't think i'm being rude its just 50 years of injecting insulin has skewed my view on food so when i walk into a supermarket i have a good idea the carb content of all the products i eat before i buy them.

If i have a salad for lunch i know its healthy and i take very little or no insulin.
If i have a bread product or baked potato i know its carb content and have to take insulin to compensate.
Sometimes i miss meals because my levels are great and i'm feeling great.

I really don't need a supermarket to tell me something is low carb they may as well have a low carb section and fill it with lettuces.

Do i sound awful?
I don't mean to its just my view on food is dictated to by carbohydrates exercise and insulin.
Its a fascinating equation and as already pointed out my view on food has been skewed......

I wish you all well

Tony

 

[retrogamer]

Good morning

I find this post very odd indeed ..........

Please please don't think i'm being rude its just 50 years of injecting insulin has skewed my view on food so when i walk into a supermarket i have a good idea the carb content of all the products i eat before i buy them.

If i have a salad for lunch i know its healthy and i take very little or no insulin.
If i have a bread product or baked potato i know its carb content and have to take insulin to compensate.
Sometimes i miss meals because my levels are great and i'm feeling great.

I really don't need a supermarket to tell me something is low carb they may as well have a low carb section and fill it with lettuces.

Do i sound awful?
I don't mean to its just my view on food is dictated to by carbohydrates exercise and insulin.
Its a fascinating equation and as already pointed out my view on food has been skewed......

I wish you all well

Tony

You said it yourself really, you have 50 years experience of dealing with this. For the first time in my entire 53 years on this planet I have had to start reading nutritional information on everything I buy since last September. I have been rather shocked at the high levels of carbohydrates in everyday products that I previously considered to be a healthy option. Also the quantity of added sugar in a lot of foods is nothing short of scandalous!!

For us newbies to the game I personally am extremely grateful to places like this, without which I would never have guessed that high carb foods are the problem. I would have simply looked for reduced sugar options. Upon learning that carbs were the issue, I literally spent hours roaming the aisles at several supermarkets reading every label possible, finding very little that was suitable for me.

I'm not quite as strict now as I was a few months ago as I have lost a great deal of weight and exercise more but I still avoid the worst carby foods, potato, pasta etc. I occasionally have bread but I only have the small loaves like nimble rather than standard sized bread and I limit the quantity. Most weeks I end up throwing half away or freezing it because I don't use it all.

Anyway, you don't sound awful, you simply have vastly more experience than many of us.

 

[AloeSvea]

Good morning

I find this post very odd indeed ..........

Please please don't think i'm being rude its just 50 years of injecting insulin has skewed my view on food so when i walk into a supermarket i have a good idea the carb content of all the products i eat before i buy them.

If i have a salad for lunch i know its healthy and i take very little or no insulin.
If i have a bread product or baked potato i know its carb content and have to take insulin to compensate.
Sometimes i miss meals because my levels are great and i'm feeling great.

I really don't need a supermarket to tell me something is low carb they may as well have a low carb section and fill it with lettuces.

Do i sound awful?
I don't mean to its just my view on food is dictated to by carbohydrates exercise and insulin.
Its a fascinating equation and as already pointed out my view on food has been skewed......

I wish you all well

Tony

Um. I'm being super polite here, I hope!

You don't sound awful - just not seeing it from a person's viewpoint who actually has quite a different disease to yours, and if it's insulin resistance based - quite a different treatment than a T1.

For 75% of people with the blanket term 'diabetes' - T2 is largely a dietary disease. (The degrees of damage and how the disease can play out has many varieties of course.) (In my research combining the type 1s and insulin dependent T2s, comes to about 25% of diabetes sufferers.) Remember - insulin resistance based diabetes is when your body creates too much insulin of its own, not too little.

I had a giggle at the idea buying a lettuce was what we are discussing with low-carb products at the supermarket. According to my understanding, we're discussing things like low-carb treats, low-carb crackers and breads (ie baked with low-carb flours, spedificaly almond flour. Coconut flour can be good but it isn't as low as almond flour. the price is hugely more than wheat flour). Low carb and keto chutneys. Jams even. Easy to prepare food made in factories. (Extremely hard to find those products.) Low carb sweets and chocolates, desserts - the whole kit and caboodle.

Making dinners and dishes of lovely food from scratch is a skill and very time consuming. This is part of the ridiculous to me word for it - 'lifestyle'. And boy is it a lifestyle. Being able to have a break from the kitchen and the dishes, and great care taken at the supermarket reading carb contents of food, by buying commercially produced food for us can be marvellous. Which is how we all felt when food became processed and commercialised big time. Along with takeaway food outlets. If you come to understand why people want to buy food easy to prepare at home or ready to eat, that is not lettuce, you will have come a long way in understanding much of our troubles, and I mean our species, not those with different kinds of diabetes, with food and health.

 

[retrogamer]

According to my understanding, we're discussing things like low-carb treats, low-carb crackers and breads (ie baked with low-carb flours, spedificaly almond flour.

This is precisely why I started the thread, I understand that we can buy fresh veg, meats and other raw ingredients to create a culinary masterpiece but not all of us have the skills of a michelin star chef. Also the additional time to bake, create meals etc is a luxury some of us do not have.

Now I do firmly believe that it would be very simple for a multi million pound company to tweak their bread/biscuit/cake/pasta or whatever you're heart desires, recipe so that carbs are fewer. The biggest problem there is the foods would most likely not be as addictive as the ones loaded with sugar and other nasties that harm us. No addiction = lower profits.

I'm starting to sound like a massive conspiracy theorist now and that's not my intention but as I said at the start, my idea was why don't companies cater for the millions who cannot or even choose not to eat carb heavy foods.

 

[Tony337]

A thousand apologies for missing the point of the thread.
I evidently waded in without much thought.

Although i stand by what i said about carbs and me it was just the way diabetes has affected my thought patterns and not necessarily in a good way.

I'm sorry and if a moderator wants to remove my contribution thats good as i'm not here to annoy people.

I wish you well

Tony

 

[AloeSvea]

@Tony337, I didn't didn't know if my post would pass muster with moderation also, and, I am really pleased this discussion has been let stand.

We are being very polite and respectful explaining our different experiences with our different types of diabetes and relationship with food and treatment types, and I believe, if I have understood the rules and Forum ethos right? That is essentially the part that is important. Not the difference of experience and opinion itself. So, good on us? (yes! I think.)

This mutually respectul part of forum and Forum discussions, being moderated, is something I really appreciate about these kinds of Forums! And let me just give a thumbs up to the excellent moderation and moderators we have to make this Forum in particular the open and respectful friendly place it is.

And now back to the discussion. I don't think you missed the point of the thread Tony, I just think you didn't understand what it is like having a dietary disease in the way T2 largely is. Join the crowd! Not even medical professionals get it most of the time!

And it goes the other way too of course. I find myself being educated about T1 constantly, including having my posts deleted when I have accidentally contributed to a T1 discussion about food, or even an insulin dependent T2 conversation which is a huge area of my ignorance. I don't mind having to find out about an autoimmune disease in more detail that I would maybe want, as I have loved ones wth autoimmune diseases and it helps me understand their lives a bit more. But I must admit I hear the word 'bolus' and see the dose numbers and I shut off though! Lol. But that's normal. It maybe is like that for you when reading the kind of in depth discussions of food availability and choice that insulin resistant diabetics get into .

That issue, of food, of cooking, and the constantly testing and checking to see how my poor ol diabetic body is handling, or not handling it, is a big part of our lives if treating our T2 with 'diet'. Ditto, what fare is low carb fare in the supermarkets and health food stores for us. I found it nothing less than life transforming. And accounts, imho at least, for how many folks with diabetes don't choose that path to better health. And sugar addiction, I believe, is very real. Dealing with addictions wth our vulnerable human bodies can be a very big deal.

 

[Paul_]

A thousand apologies for missing the point of the thread.
I evidently waded in without much thought.

Although i stand by what i said about carbs and me it was just the way diabetes has affected my thought patterns and not necessarily in a good way.

I'm sorry and if a moderator wants to remove my contribution thats good as i'm not here to annoy people.

I wish you well

Tony

Tony, as a T2 diabetic myself, I am of course authorised to speak on behalf of all T2 diabetics and say we forgive you! More than anything else, this will build up some slack for us when we T2's stray into a T1 thread and offer our "wisdom", which is almost certainly unsuitable for the topic at hand for a T1!

I'm all seriousness though, I think @retrogamer is more specifically enquiring about "convenience" low carb/keto food availability in supermarkets. Sure, there's loads of obvious low carb/keto food for diet managed T2 diabetics, but a) many of these require prepping/cooking, or b) if you're new to diet management of T2, it can be daunting to suddenly have so much convenience with food removed post-diagnosis, and c) online keto and low carb suppliers are expensive, so supermarket supply would naturally reduce prices significantly.

@retrogamer - You might already have these, or possibly the pricing is prohibitive, but just in case here are the low carb / keto online suppliers I use with varying frequency (note - some of these suppliers offer products with varying carb values, check the nutritional info suits your needs before ordering):

https://handcraftedbread.co.uk/low-carb-range/ (rolls and pizza bases are very good, best I've found)

https://carbzone.co.uk/ (low carb pasta and rice products are pretty decent)

https://ketoroma.com/ (good for keto cakes, although contain erythritol just in case that's an issue, but wraps and pastry sheets are also good in my opinion)

Low Carb & Keto Gluten Free Bakery | Deliciously Guilt Free

Deliciously Guilt Free offer keto cakes, brownies and desserts specialising in delicious, healthy treats specially formulated to work with a ketogenic diet.

deliciouslyguiltfree.com

SRSLYLowCarb | Keto & Low Carb Healthy Food and Recipes

SRSLYLowCarb is a home for healthy, Keto and Low Carb friendly foods. Perfect for diabetic-friendly diets. Elevate your health journey with us!

srslylowcarb.com

https://robertsdorset.com/ (really good pork crackling, avoid the fudge obviously )

Edit 1 - for completeness and transparency, I have no affiliation with any of these suppliers, or incentive to recommend them, these are just suppliers I've personally found to be useful and had recommended to me by others here.

Edit 2 - Pro-tip: It's worth checking out some "high protein" products in supermarket ranges, rather than looking for "low carb" or "keto". Not 100% reliable, watch out for maltitol content, but it can deliver some additional options to your searches. For example, a pack of 2 boiled eggs in Tesco are called an "Egg Protein Pot" - with many other examples across all supermarkets. No one seems to want to mention carbs, so "high protein" is apparently sometimes secret code for it in the food industry.

 

[retrogamer]

And now back to the discussion. I don't think you missed the point of the thread Tony, I just think you didn't understand what it is like having a dietary disease in the way T2 largely is. Join the crowd! Not even medical professionals get it most of the time!

I 100% agree, @Tony337 didn't miss the point. In my very short time in this diabetic "club" I have realised there are far more types of diabetes than I knew. All my life I only knew of T1 & T2. Never knew the difference and still don't to be fair.

I'm only a beginner in my T2 journey (little diabetic humour there). I can never claim to be an expert, some people have lived with this condition their whole lives. Me, it's been 9 months and I'm just starting to understand the frustrations that many of you on here have experienced for years. Lack of understanding, lack of support, lack of commercial assistant which this thread is about. I'm still shocked by the level of ignorance about diabetes by medical professionals so what hope have we got?? I still read to this day, posts on various sites implying that we have "done this to ourselves by being fat and greedy" Yes I'm sure some of you out there have heard this exact phrase before! My GP is diabetic and she is about as fat as a pencil!!!

Just yesterday I read a post on Facebook by somebody suggesting to a newly diagnosed T2 that oats for breakfast and jacket potatoes for lunch were a good healthy option! When I said this was bad advice I was accused of attacking the poster!

Too many people do not understand this condition, I refuse to call it an illness because I am not ill. I simply need to live a different dietary lifestyle to others. I just get completely frustrated at the levels of pure ignorance out there, something I myself was guilty of but the difference between me and other people is I didn't comment about something I didn't understand.

 

[retrogamer]

Edit 2 - Pro-tip: It's worth checking out some "high protein" products in supermarket ranges, rather than looking for "low carb" or "keto". Not 100% reliable, watch out for maltitol content, but it can deliver some additional options to your searches. For example, a pack of 2 boiled eggs in Tesco are called an "Egg Protein Pot" - with many other examples across all supermarkets. No one seems to want to mention carbs, so "high protein" is apparently sometimes secret code for it in the food industry.

Thanks for the list of suppliers, I'll take a look at them.

I'm getting used to doing without the bad stuff now, I still occasionally indulge but very rarely, unlike before diagnosis when my meals would consist of almost pure carbs.

I've also spotted that high protein usually means low carb, although not always so it pays to read the nutritional information every time. There can be some surprising little treats out there like some high protein puddings in aldi and other supermarkets, yogurts and even flavoured milk drinks but I've found these to be quite carb heavy if you are strict keto.
Most of these have little effect on my BG readings so at least I can have a treat.

Now if only somebody would invent a high protein chip butty!! My idea of heaven.

 

[AloeSvea]

I got inspired at the thought of yummy keto food from this thread, so went supermarket shopping yesterday and spent NZ$60 very easily on marketed as keto Low carb crackers and bread, chocolate, spreads, no grainola, more coffee. I must be forgetting soemthing. They cost a bomb in other words. Then I spent another forty on Low Carb beer and a bottle dry white (also low carb, very low carb - bless that formentation!) So poorer, but happy when I open my fridge and pantry! Food glorious food! (and drink.)

 

[retrogamer]

I got inspired at the thought of yummy keto food from this thread, so went supermarket shopping yesterday and spent NZ$60 very easily on marketed as keto Low carb crackers and bread, chocolate, spreads, no grainola. I must be forgetting soemthing. They cost a bomb in other words. Then I spent another forty on Low Carb beer and a bottle dry white (also low carb, very low carb - bless that formentation!) So poorer, but happy when I open my fridge and pantry! Food glorious food! (and drink.)

If I move to NZ do you want a lodger??

 

[Paul_]

I'm getting used to doing without the bad stuff now, I still occasionally indulge but very rarely, unlike before diagnosis when my meals would consist of almost pure carbs.

You and me both, my friend! Changing eating habits isn't easy, but here we are and we're doing it, bit by bit. The advantage of the products offered by the suppliers I linked is there's very little "bad stuff" in them. The low carb rolls from handcraftedbread.co.uk for example, they're 1.4g of carbs, 17g protein and 12g of fibre per roll. They're great to scratch that "I want a burger that's not bunless" itch, if you ever have it, plus BBQ season is (hopefully) rapidly approaching!

Now if only somebody would invent a high protein chip butty!! My idea of heaven.

I've conquered many takeaway and restaurant menus in the 10 months since my T2 diagnosis, allowing me to fit them into a keto diet and still lose weight too. Fish and chips is still unconquered - I just don't know what I'd order that would possibly comply with low carb, let alone keto. (Sure, I could order battered fish and leave the batter....if I had any restraint or self-control with deep fried batter! Some would say that's a "me problem", but im still going to hold out for a low carb batter and potato solution before I dare test my resolve by going near a fish and chip shop!)

 

[retrogamer]

They're great to scratch that "I want a burger that's not bunless" itch

I tried heylo breads and to be honest most of it went in the bin. Tasteless and rubbery. I'll give your suggestions a try as I would like a guilt free bread.

Fish and chips is still unconquered

9 months without a decent fish and chips, my 53rd birthday last month and my missus bought me a large cod and chips as a treat (obviously asked first) and as a one off I tucked in. Didn't even care enough to check my BG afterwards.

An occasional treat should be fine for all of us, some may disagree but I want to at least enjoy my life.

 

[Paul_]

I tried heylo breads and to be honest most of it went in the bin. Tasteless and rubbery. I'll give your suggestions a try as I would like a guilt free bread.

For bread I use Livlife, available at Waitrose. It's 3.4g carbs per slice (regular wholemeal bread is 15-25g per slice). High fibre too. Admittedly the slices are small, but that fits with my approach of reducing portion sizes. It tastes good, has the texture of normal bread, and freezes well too. Worth considering, if you have any need for bread, or enjoy cheese on toast.

Hi-lo bread from Sainsbury's also gets an honourable mention. Weighs in at 5g carbs per slice and they're small slices again, but like Livlife it's high fibre and freezes well. Needs some accounting for with low carb meals though if on keto ranges.

 

[JoKalsbeek]

A thousand apologies for missing the point of the thread.
I evidently waded in without much thought.

Although i stand by what i said about carbs and me it was just the way diabetes has affected my thought patterns and not necessarily in a good way.

I'm sorry and if a moderator wants to remove my contribution thats good as i'm not here to annoy people.

I wish you well

Tony

You had a different experience than most people who didn't come into this whole carb-aware-living thing, until much later on in life. Your experience is as valid as any T2's, really... Don't quite see how that'd be annoying, or in need of moderation.

 

[KennyA]

I recently found the "Keto and Low-carb Food Festival" on line.

Keto & Low Carb Festival 2024

KeTO & LOW CARB FESTIVAL The UK's Best Event For Low Sugar, Low Carb, KETO & Meterbolic Health Join us at our next event in LONDON on Sunday, 26th May 2024!

www.keto-festival.co.uk

I haven't really checked it properly yet, and I'm trying not to get giddy. It does look as though there are some people trying to bring small producers together. If so, good news for us. If there's not enough money in it for the supermarkets, that just creates a gap in the market for smaller producers.

 

[Antje77]

I recently found the "Keto and Low-carb Food Festival" on line.

Keto & Low Carb Festival 2024

KeTO & LOW CARB FESTIVAL The UK's Best Event For Low Sugar, Low Carb, KETO & Meterbolic Health Join us at our next event in LONDON on Sunday, 26th May 2024!

www.keto-festival.co.uk

I haven't really checked it properly yet, and I'm trying not to get giddy. It does look as though there are some people trying to bring small producers together. If so, good news for us. If there's not enough money in it for the supermarkets, that just creates a gap in the market for smaller producers.

Goonergal went there in 2022 and was very positive about it! https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/what-have-you-eaten-today-low-carb-forum.75781/post-2516894