• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Bananas are they bad

  • Thread starter Thread starter AnnieC
  • Start Date Start Date
A

AnnieC

Guest
My husband is possibly T2 or at least almost certainly prediabetic.....just waiting another blood test result...He.is a real banana addict and eats 2 or 3 a day and has done for years. I always understood bananas were not good for diabetes so he should stop eating them but I found this on the web so what do you think

The American Diabetes Association says bananas have the bad reputation of being high in sugar or fattening. However, these fruits are good for diabetes because they are actually low in sugar, which won't raise blood glucose levels. As a low-fat treat, they help diabetics maintain or lose weight. Bananas also contain potassium, which reduces sodium in the body
They also say apples are good to.
 
I am going to have a small banana tomorrow before I walk the dog. I will test before and after and let you know.
 
Do watch out with bananas, I recently started eating them because of mineral deficiencies. It took me from a fasting 4.1 to 4.1 at 1 hour. But in the meantime I actually achieved a 9.7 at 35 mins ! ! and that was with a slightly green banana which is lower in carbs than a ripe one.
 
This is what the American Diabetes Ass says

Bananas vary quite a bit in size, so counting the carbs that they provide can be difficult. Below are some estimates for different sizes.

Extra small banana (6 inches long or less) — 18.5 grams of carbohydrate
Small banana (about 6-6 7/8 inches long) — 23 grams of carbohydrate
Medium banana (7-7 7/8 inches long) — 27 grams of carbohydrate
Large banana (8-8 7/8 inches long) — 31 grams of carbohydrate
Extra large banana (9 inches or longer) — 35 grams of carbohydrate

They are also quick release, meaning the carb content turns to glucose very quickly, which is likely to cause a high spike.

If you are on a low carb diet trying to control blood sugars, bananas are not a good idea. They are nutritious in other ways.

Watch some tennis - see how the players eat bananas between games to give them fast release glucose energy.
 
The things you learn from this forum. I just looked up bananas to find out more about them.

They vary greatly in size so when someone eats "a" banana they have to take that into account when working out the carbs.

The ripeness of a banana has a major effect on its sugar content and GI. Green ones have a large amount of indigestible starch and really ripe ones have loads of sugar. What with one thing and another the GI can be anything from 30 to 70.

I never realised that bananas were so interesting.
 
I love them but they have to be Ripe. Unfortunately they no longer like me. Even a half ripe one spikes me.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Back in 1976 when I was diagnosed. Bananas were in the "bad food circle" along with sweets & cake...
Oh, this sin of it..!
 
As a kid I used to love banana sandwiches with extra sugar on them - T2 hell or what!?
 
I used to love a banana sandwich, or in a crusty roll, but the carbs are huge, so it's just a small to a medium banana on it's own. In my carb counting book (Carbs & Cals),it states :- weight 63g ( without skin) 15 carbs, 85 g( with out skin) 20g, and 128g ( without skin) 30 carb.
 
A banana butty with black currant jam! Heaven!
 
I like them when I eat them, but pay for it afterwards with hours of reflux - so it's easier to just avoid them. I occasionally use mashed banana as a sweetener in baking without a BG rise.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
This is what the American Diabetes Ass says

Bananas vary quite a bit in size, so counting the carbs that they provide can be difficult. Below are some estimates for different sizes.

Extra small banana (6 inches long or less) — 18.5 grams of carbohydrate
Small banana (about 6-6 7/8 inches long) — 23 grams of carbohydrate
Medium banana (7-7 7/8 inches long) — 27 grams of carbohydrate
Large banana (8-8 7/8 inches long) — 31 grams of carbohydrate
Extra large banana (9 inches or longer) — 35 grams of carbohydrate

They are also quick release, meaning the carb content turns to glucose very quickly, which is likely to cause a high spike.

If you are on a low carb diet trying to control blood sugars, bananas are not a good idea. They are nutritious in other ways.

Watch some tennis - see how the players eat bananas between games to give them fast release glucose energy.
Click to expand...
I was told it's not the size of the banana that counts, it's what you do with it.
I guess that means how much of it you eat
 
sorry Annie I didn't test the banana today. I tested my bg before my walk and it was 7.4. I retested and it was 6.1 which was lower but still not great so I thought it wouldn't be a good idea to eat something that might make my bg go sky high. I don't know why it was 7.4. I have stomach pains so maybe that is why it is high or maybe I had too many strawberry and nuts yesterday and that is why my bg is high and I have stomach pains. I tested after my walk and it was 5.8 so coming down. I will test again at 2 hours.
 
Back
Top