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Atkins Bars, Are They Ok?

Kuromi2

Member
Messages
16
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Just taken myself back to this website after falling heavily off the band waggon a while back. My downfall has always been my sweet tooth, I have been doing the online grocery shopping just now, all geared towards my new diabetic diet. They have low carb atkins chocolate bars etc... and am I right in thinking these are ok for me?? If so ( aside from how expensive they are ) I think I can cope, if not then I am not sure what to do instead. God this is a miserable condition haha!
 
I wish I could give you a more positive experience, but it was a very sad day when I discovered that my favourite sweet atkins bars spiked me (my fave being the nut caramel bar, and second fave chocolate coconut). (I was a bounty bar and pinky - caramel and marshmallow - bar and a nut nougat chocolate bar fan back in pre diagnosis days...).

The only thing you can do is 'eat and meter' really, to find out if and how those sugar substitutes and so on affect you and your blood glucose regulation. I did not go down not fighting! I checked my blood glucose, ah, more than once, hoping desperately that the atkins nut caramel bar really wasn't to blame for my 8.0 or whatever reading, but alas, it came up spiked every time. .

Sugar substitutes, as in the array of them, seem to affect different people in different ways. There really is no substitute for checking it out on your metre.

I am very happy that stevia works for me, and so bake my own stevia sweetened peppermint chocolate chip cookies. And bliss balls rolled in coconut also do the trick. (I have to make them myself though, more is the pity. But I am hoping an up-side of the current diabetes epidemic in the wings will be small-factory made low-carb stevia sweetened goodies will be available. There has to be something positive about the situation?)

I wish you the best of luck when you eat and meter! (Because that nut caramel bar is suuuuuurrre good! .)
 
I buy Aussie Bodies Low Carb / high protein bars, they do not give me any problems with spikes.
 


Haha, thank you, I do hope they aren't terrible because my shop order that arrives tomorrow has lots in! I guess if they do something bad then I will pass them on to my partner who manages to eat anything and remain non-diabetic ..so unfair!!! lol. Can I ask, you say 8 is high, what should I be aiming for? x
 
Hi @Kuromi2 I will tag @daisy1 who will post the new member information for you which will give you the information such as which levels are recommend.
 

Good that you are getting the Daisy info Kuromi. I look forward to reading more of you on the forum .

My partner too is very carbohydrate tolerant. But even he in today's high sugar and insulinemic food environment has what I find a disturbingly high HBA1c (it is 37, so not in the very healthy 20s or low 30s). But we are middle-aged.

For me personally, as someone trying to maintain intermediate hyperglycemic levels (in the 'prediabetic' range), as in - not getting back into the full blown diabetes range - I go for the Jenny Ruhl's target of aiming for nothing higher than 7.8 from food. It's a good realistic goal, imho. (I would love to get into the healthy range HBA1c with my own body, of course, but that may be a very long haul goal, and it may never happen.)

I have quite a restricted diet normally, eating the LCHF/Keto way, and take 'time out' a few times a year, in order to eat 'non-diabetic normally' (ie diabetes supporting! for my body at least) with my family. These family feasts also allow me to watch closely how my body deals with high blood glucose forming food which I don't normally eat. (It's a good excuse too! lol.) I had one of these occasions recently when I baked a 'normal' pumpkin pie and made a traditional Kiwi/Aussie type trifle for our winter solstice feast. There was also cranberry sauce with the turkey. I went as high as 9.1 at my peak (45minutes to an hour after eating). It is very scary when you don't normally go that high from food, due to low-carbing. I am relieved when the next day I test at my usual intermediate hyperglycemic level. (A fasting blood glucose level of 6.4 the next day.) What is longer to get rid of is the increase in my girth due to a bad reaction to wheat and grain products (and to think - me a diabetic?! ho ho ho.)

I didn't eat any Atkins bars during the family feast! . I didn't have to with the trifle and the pumpkin pie.

Because of the particular form of my diabetes, ie with severe insulin resistance (according to the Swedes 15% of total diabetics have this form), I find taking time out from LCHF/Keto for family feasts does not impact my HBA1c at all with me practising compensatory measures at least. Not a jot. Hence me doing it. I also go on longish period no-food fasts after the feasts to compensate, which seems to work for me. (My extended family is just relieved they don't have to eat keto at my table - they don't care to know what I have to do afterwards to keep my good health! And how for most folk to wrap their heads around not eating food at all for a week in order to eat sweet desserts and other high carb treats a few times a year? Better they be innocent.)

I like many others in this forum who eat and meter do find that eating lots of healthy dietary fat in that situation can blunt the effect of the high blood glucose forming food. (And lots of whipped cream with both trifle and pumpkin pie is all good!)

I have tried eating the Atkins bars with cream, but it didn't blunt the after effects of the sugar substitutes, alas. As I said, I am unfortunately the negative word on Atkins low-carb bars . (I am very positive on stevia though! Thank goodness.) (or - thank sweetness!)
 
@Kuromi2

Hello Kuromi2 and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you like and someone will help.

BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you'll find well over 235,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.

There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates
Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic.

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

  • Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why

  • Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
 
Tipetoo said:
I buy Aussie Bodies Low Carb / high protein bars, they do not give me any problems with spikes.
Click to expand...
T

Thank you, thats interesting, thank you will look them up!
 

Hi there, I got my 3 months HBA1C from the Drs receptionist and it was exceptionally high, as expected, at 123.. I took my bloods on my new meter yesterday evening and they were 28 ( yes I know... ugh )... and my over night, first thing in the morning bloods were 14. My new healthier grocery shopping arrived today so let the show commence! My biggest issue really is I am at a bit of a loss because I don't eat meat/fish/milk/cream so the things I will be turning to on a low carb diet are, from what I am thinking literally veg and salad and variations of those.

I think after some consideration I will go back to eating fish, I cant make myself eat meat, and I don't like milk or cream at all so they are out, so pumpkin pie and trifle without the cream sounds much better haha. Interested to find out how my body reacts to this change, I am a born carbaholic, who's favourite foods have always been bread, pasta, rice etc. I was looking at the BBC documentary last night and thought it was interesting to learn that if you cook something, let it go cold and then re-heat it then it turns into a healthier type of carb.. I wonder if that works for pizza too? haha.

Thanks for responding to my post, its very appreciated x
 
Kuromi2 said:
My biggest issue really is I am at a bit of a loss because I don't eat meat/fish/milk/cream so the things I will be turning to on a low carb diet are, from what I am thinking literally veg and salad and variations of those.
Click to expand...
Hi @Kuromi2 I'm not vegetarian so I can't suggest anything except eggs. Some of the vegetarians on the forum may have more ideas.
The other thing you could do if you like Indian food is to look at Indian vegetarian recipes. They have been cooking vegetarian food for thousands of years and their vegetarian food is tasty and filling, though you would have to substitute the rice with cauliflower rice.
There might be Indian vegetarian food takeaway places near you, the food is usually relatively cheap.
 
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I was very excited to read your "let the show commence" @Kuromi2 - that's the spirit!

Breads and baked goods made with almond flour? Pasta substitutes made from konjak root? (My fave substitute.) And 'zoodles' instead of noodles? (Zucchini - Yum!) Homemade sugar-free marinara sauces? There is wonderful food and eating experiences ahead!

My adult daughter is basically on a diabetes prevention diet as a vegetarian (yes, the prevention because of me), and she is delighted for the 'resistant starch' thing with reheated pasta. I am very insulin resistant, so too far gone, if you like, to be able to do the reheated cold pasta for my blood glucose regulation system to take it! But I think it is very good for those who are keeping an eye on a healthy system and want to keep it that way.

As far as low-carb pizza goes - nothing beats the 'fathead pizza' is the general consensus, globally, as far as I can see. . Once I started making it I joined the fan-base, and made so many of them I got sick of it! (The base is as gorgeous as the toppings - hard to get with low-carb otherwise. But baked crispy mozzarella and cream cheese - yummy!) You are good with cheese?

I have lived in not very populated countries, and in those there are no low-carb sugar-free substitutes available in the stores or in deliverable distance with online shopping, so I have to cook and bake mine myself. But if you are in the UK or in the US - well - I am envious.

Bon appetite with your new way of low-carb eating!
 
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