Could the confusion over Carb/Fibre be holding back official recognition of Low Carb diets ?

[bamba]

I understand that celluose -main component of dietary fibre, being a polysaccharide and technically a carbohydrate, is counted as a carbohydrate in US food labelling - by as simple fibre in Europe.
Given that leaving fibre out of a diet might well be less than desireable could this potential confusion be part of why "low carb" diets are not receiving "official" recognition ?

 

[first14808]

I.. doubt it. I suspect it's more to do with lobbying, and a reluctance by the powers that be to admit that current diet advice is probably why there's obesity. A high carb diet with low activity is going to add increase weight. A traditional breakfast of porridge with some honey or sugar would be fine if you burned it off, but not if you sit at a desk for work. And a lot of breakfast cereals (especially in the US) and packed with sugar. So a brief sugar rush, then you're left hungry, so snack.

As for labelling, I guess that's more complicated, ie there's 'good' and 'bad' fibre.. And that depends on whether we're carb intolerant or fibre intolerant. So although fibre's carbohydrate, it varies by solubility, and some is indigestible. So I think I prefer the EU approach of listing it as a seperate carb.

 

[rmz80]

Just to complicate things even more some "soluble" fibre is only a source of carbs to some people (but not others) depending on the type of bacteria in your gut breaking this stuff down. I believe babies cannot digest cows milk for the same reason until later in life as they don't have the right bugs on birth. People on antibiotics have the same issue.

 

[Bluetit1802]

It is certainly the reason we are advised to eat wholemeal rather than white, and why I was advised to eat baked beans.

 

[first14808]

Just to complicate things even more some "soluble" fibre is only a source of carbs to some people (but not others) depending on the type of bacteria in your gut breaking this stuff down. I believe babies cannot digest cows milk for the same reason until later in life as they don't have the right bugs on birth. People on antibiotics have the same issue.

This is why I'm thinking CGM's could be invaluable in a 'rate my metabolism/digestion' kind of way. I've learned a lot just by regular sampling and would love to get my mitts on a CGM* for more experiments. Could even benchmark individuals with meal plans to see what foods are tolerated.. But that would be expensive, especially if dieticians were needed to interpret results.

*Ok, and also because I'm a geek. Was pondering stress and liver dumps today, so curious if alarm clocks** trigger the 'fight or flight' glucose dump in response to being rudely awakened.

**And as well as a geek, not a morning person and wish alarm clocks had never been invented

 

[CherryAA]

You can get a good idea of all this with a Libra for just two weeks . Might be worth the 50 pounds !
I found out my morning liver dump is a function of starting to move . Stays low while I'm in bed spikes with the shower !

 

[Bluetit1802]

You can get a good idea of all this with a Libra for just two weeks . Might be worth the 50 pounds !
I found out my morning liver dump is a function of starting to move . Stays low while I'm in bed spikes with the shower !

What does it do to you if you have a shower (or bath) later in the day? Some people on here find a shower/bath raises their levels at any time of day.

 

[CherryAA]

What does it do to you if you have a shower (or bath) later in the day? Some people on here find a shower/bath raises their levels at any time of day.

I haven't noticed, I'll try and look !

I'v got used to being at around 4,- 5;s at all times except for 10ish to 1 ish when I rise quickly to abut 8 then descend back down again. It doesn't seem to matter which actions I take to try and change that- though of course I eat no carbs during that time anyway! ho hum ....

 

[Mr_Pot]

I haven't noticed, I'll try and look !

I'v got used to being at around 4,- 5;s at all times except for 10ish to 1 ish when I rise quickly to abut 8 then descend back down again. It doesn't seem to matter which actions I take to try and change that- though of course I eat no carbs during that time anyway! ho hum ....

Does DP really matter? Your liver is doing what it is supposed to and providing energy when you need it.

 

[Mr_Pot]

Sorry I have gone of topic with my last post.

 

[CherryAA]

Does DP really matter? Your liver is doing what it is supposed to and providing energy when you need it.

Ive decided not to let it worry me - would be nice if it stopped overreacting quite so much, not least because I think that might be connected to stalling - but I am not losing sleep over it.


back on topic - the whole " you need fibre" debate seems linked to you must eat carbs and for that matter a lot of the vitamins . Overall it wouldnt surprise me to find that eventually we realise you only need fibre IF you eat a lot of carbs and you only need for example lots of Vit C IF you eat lot of carbs - ie lots of stuff is needed as an antidote to the stuff we don't need

 

[DavidGrahamJones]

Given that leaving fibre out of a diet might well be less than desireable could this potential confusion be part of why "low carb" diets are not receiving "official" recognition ?

Interesting question. When you say "less than desirable" I'm assuming you're referring to bowel movements. My usual carb intake has been 40 gms per day for the last 4 years and there hasn't been any major problems for me. I think the pre/probiotics have made a difference and even when taking something like codeine, vitamin C powder has helped avert any problems, usually.

Despite low carb diets having been around for centuries (see William Banting mid 19th Century), even the BBC and certainly the newspapers like to call low carb diets as a "fad" or "fashionable", showing a lack of knowledge. If they bothered to do a little research, they'd have a different opinion. It's not for everyone, but that's another story.

Personally, I don't think there's any confusion. I get the impression that those who can advise people on dietary matters look at what is good for most people, just not everyone. They want the one size fits all and will not be looking for alternatives. Just an opinion though.

 

[Fleegle]

The debate on diets goes around forever. Given none of them are new, Low Carb, Keto, Low calorie etc etc then whenever they pop their head up they are considered a fad. I don't think it has any particular relationship to low carb. I don't think that newspapers are more or less mean on low carb than any other diet except high sugar, high fat which they seem to like...

I would love to see a ton of research done. I am sure that whilst we think we do not need carbs and certainly it helps diabetics - carbs have been around as a source of food since the beginning of time (berries as an example or roots) and consumed when other food sources were scares. Of course now the highly refined, carbs with every meal is ludicrous, but my own gut feel is that the body would need to adapt to be low carb and something else would need to work harder if the good old pancreas is working less. That is a fundamental rule in science so I think it would be true here to.

It is the optimal amount of carbs I am most interested in and how you find out.
Note. No need to reply either "you don't need carbs or eat to your meter" I get that.