Fried rice

Fats tend to cause a delay in rise in blood glucose when compared with carbs alone, so the delayed response is normal.

Short term increase in blood glucose will have limited impact on your HbA1c value as its sort of a 3 month average.

Depending on your will power you might find it difficult to go back to being good

Deleted my first post because I was going to get mobbed, so I’ll rephrase. It won’t have much effect on your HbA1c on the odd occasion but it will probably incrementally make your diabetes worse. You doubled your blood glucose, which I’m sure you don’t need telling. But really HBA1c is not the best metric. TIR Time in Range is far more important. A1c is just a way of cheating without your doctor finding out

Jim Lahey said:

A1c is just a way of cheating without your doctor finding out

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I definitely agree with that. I see a few posts about people 'being good' in the 2 weeks before an hb1ac test and I always think what's the point of that? Your GP might say 'well done' but if you know for the preceding 10 weeks you ate carbs for England and you know it raised your glucose to levels you didn't want, then you're only fooling yourself. We're all different but that's never been my style, I know what's been going on between every hb1ac test and I'm either happy with it or not...the GP?, I don't care to be honest.

SwissT2 said:

Hi everyone, I hope you are all well,

I recently was confronted with a large bowl of beef fried rice, it was one of these occasions when it’s something I can’t get out of. I was only diagnosed 6 weeks ago but this was the first time I’d broken the rules since then. My understanding is that fried rice is perhaps the worst thing you can eat if you have diabetes. I monitored my bg levels but it led to a strange pattern, normally meals take 1 hour or less to peak bg levels but this took 3 hours. Readings below.


Before eating 3.9

+ 1 hour 6.6

+ 2 hours 7.7

+ 3 hours 8.2

+ 4 hours 6.0

Next morning 4.9


The readings didn’t go astronomical as I’d expected but perhaps it’s the area under the curve that indicates the glucose exposure so it was still a big hit.

Is it normal to have a delayed peak like that? Should I be measuring 3 hours post-meal instead of 2?


Another question, what do people think of letting it go once in a while and forgetting the rules? Can a single peak make a difference to your A1c or long-term health if not too frequent? I’ll be visiting friends in November, 3 months after diagnosis, if my A1c is good by then I‘d like to take a holiday from it all (apart from meds) for a couple of days, is this considered dangerous behaviour?

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If your system deals really badly with carbs, which evidently it does, it’s never going to be a smart move to eat buns. Conforming to social norms in terms of eating what those around you are eating, out of politeness or just wanting not to look odd, is a powerful force. We are social animals. But with practice and planning it is possible to avoid many of the ‘go on, have a slice of my lovely birthday cake’ hazards. It’s a matter of practice and confidence as much as anything. And as you start to feel better and healthier, that really helps.

Food choices are not always logical. If you put your hand in a fire, you would never do it again. If you break down your question, it is basically trying to understand if you will have any lasting problem touching the fire.

I see foods that are demonstrably bad for me as a no go. I do note that there might be a correlation between those of us who experienced diabetic complications and the strictness of our position. I could be wrong, but I have a feeling asymptomatic diabetics might be more liberal with how far they might go.

SwissT2 said:

Hi everyone, I hope you are all well,

I recently was confronted with a large bowl of beef fried rice, it was one of these occasions when it’s something I can’t get out of. I was only diagnosed 6 weeks ago but this was the first time I’d broken the rules since then. My understanding is that fried rice is perhaps the worst thing you can eat if you have diabetes. I monitored my bg levels but it led to a strange pattern, normally meals take 1 hour or less to peak bg levels but this took 3 hours. Readings below.


Before eating 3.9

+ 1 hour 6.6

+ 2 hours 7.7

+ 3 hours 8.2

+ 4 hours 6.0

Next morning 4.9


The readings didn’t go astronomical as I’d expected but perhaps it’s the area under the curve that indicates the glucose exposure so it was still a big hit.

Is it normal to have a delayed peak like that? Should I be measuring 3 hours post-meal instead of 2?


Another question, what do people think of letting it go once in a while and forgetting the rules? Can a single peak make a difference to your A1c or long-term health if not too frequent? I’ll be visiting friends in November, 3 months after diagnosis, if my A1c is good by then I‘d like to take a holiday from it all (apart from meds) for a couple of days, is this considered dangerous behaviour?

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Spikes can be delayed, especially with carby, fatty foods. (It's also called The Pizza Effect!). On average you're good at 2 hours, but if you eat something from the carby & fatty cathegory, best to check again an hour or so later.

Prolonged high blood sugars do damage, generally. Little peaks that are incidental, well... They do add up eventually... But this is all up to you! I've been in the normal range so long, a "peak" of 6,5 or higher will already make me feel miserable. (Flushed, racing heart, panicky, wobbly in the knees, crawling skin). And there's the risk of carb creep, (allowing more and more), or re-booting your carb cravings. Carbs demand more carbs, after all. So it depends wholly on you. Can you have a one-off and stick with it being a one-off, and not feel too awful afterwards? Time'll have to tell. But just so you know, many of us make allowances once or twice a year anyway... The holidays, a special birthday or some such. You decide what you can handle and what partaking in a meal is worth to you.

JoKalsbeek said:

I've been in the normal range so long, a "peak" of 6,5 or higher will already make me feel miserable.

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@JoKalsbeek, so do you never tend to go about 6.5 at any time? That would be a challenge for me, even eating low-carb. I'm often in the 6s an hour after eating. I wonder if I should be aiming lower?

SwissT2 said:

Thanks to all above for your advice, I'm still a newbie at all this of course and it's good to get some context and weight to the various items of information and guidance that are out there. I guess it's a choice between keeping up good habits versus being sorry later. I've been 'good' so far but that has entailed keeping away from social situations where it could be put to the test. 'Practice and confidence' is something I'll need to work on.
Good luck to everyone.

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I used to find social situations difficult. Sometimes saying no appears to be a trigger for people to push to the point of rudeness. I consider myself intolerant to carbs, so I will say I have a food intolerance or something similar.
If others are rude and inconsiderate enough to push you, their input doesn't matter. You are under no obligation to talk about your medical matters.

Practice ways to refuse, and have an idea of substitute food you can order if it's a meal out. For example, you could have the beef without the rice, or leave the rice if others are doing the serving.

It gets easier to avoid foods and pushy people in time. Just keep focused on why you are refusing. Other people don't have to live with the consequences of carbs, you do, so their comments don't matter in the long run.

ZoeinKent said:

@JoKalsbeek, so do you never tend to go about 6.5 at any time? That would be a challenge for me, even eating low-carb. I'm often in the 6s an hour after eating. I wonder if I should be aiming lower?

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Oh, I do go over sometimes! Recently I had a cold, and I ate the age old Dutch cold staple honey licorice to stop the coughing. (It was driving me nuts, and I would've done or eaten ANYTHING!). So between the cold driving me up, and the licorice, I went well over my usual BS. And felt it, but as I felt horrid anyway, it didn't make much of a difference to me. Normally I eat almost zero carbs on carnivore, so I'm usually quite low. 6,5 is well in the normal range still, I'm just on such a ridiculously low carb diet I'll feel a 6,5 or slightly up... If you manage to stay under 8,5 most of the time you're all good, no worries!

SwissT2 said:

Thanks to all above for your advice, I'm still a newbie at all this of course and it's good to get some context and weight to the various items of information and guidance that are out there. I guess it's a choice between keeping up good habits versus being sorry later. I've been 'good' so far but that has entailed keeping away from social situations where it could be put to the test. 'Practice and confidence' is something I'll need to work on.
Good luck to everyone.

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It gets easier with time. I dreaded social situations for a while, but I've shouted the whole T2 thing from the rooftops on my FB: Hence, friends and family know why I eat the way I do, and I'm not just being difficult for the sake of being a special snowflake or anything. (Plus, they can see I lost a quarter of my weight from 5 years ago. They can't argue with the lack of extra chins!). But that's a personal choice. I'm quite open about my ailments because that might mean people I know and love, won't have to go through the same obstacle-course as I have. (Lots of what I have is hereditary or otherwise common, after all.). You might be a more private person, and you disclose what you disclose, as you wish. If people nag about something, you can just say your doc won't allow it and you've been feeling better since you took his advice. That's oblique, but clear enough, and that yeah, even "just this once" will hurt. And you can change the subject straight after.

I have a hand in most family dinners over Christmas; there's plenty of carby stuff I avoid, but ooooh my, I don't leave the table hungry either! (Meat, fish, poultry, my aunt's wonderful devilled eggs, you name it, I gobble it!). At birthday parties, I'm The Auntie with the Camera: I photograph the niece and nephews' cake/cupcakes, and I'll shoot the wrecking of said pastries. I have something to do while others eat, so they don't feel like I'm left out. I do have my hands full, after all, even if I'm not holding a fork and plate.

In restaurants, there's plenty of servers who will happily pass on requests to the kitchen, if you ask nicely. I had some laughing with the things I asked, and sometimes I overshare ("I'm not trying to be difficult, and I really love all sorts of foods, but my diabetes and kidneystones don't."), but so far, well... Sometimes it requires a little explaining when someone's new in the kitchen and is afraid I'll want a discount which won't go over well with their bosses, but when that's cleared up -I'll happily pay for the bread, just don't put it on my plate- it's usually fine. (The Dutch are notorious cheapskates and money's a thing... So it may not be much of an issue there.) I only had one place make me feel unwelcome in the past 5 years of asking for my meals without spuds or rice or bread, and that turned out to be more of a misunderstanding than anything else. (When we paid it seemed they thought I had wanted a discount, which was an assumption on their part... I would've happily paid double if they'd just done what I asked, rather than me leaving both hungry and on the verge of tears! The next place we went to, as I was ravenous, was a balm to the soul, and I added the tip that would've gone to the other place if they'd been a tad friendlier, to theirs. So one absolutely cancelled the other out!). Most of my usual haunts know I tip generously for their efforts, so no-one's spit on my steak yet. Like I said, only once in the past five years.. Make that five and a half. And I do eat out a lot. I'm quirky, overly apologetic and like I said, I overshare, but you don't have to do the last bit. All in all, a restaurant doesn't want to throw perfectly good food out, or waste time preparing it if it goes untouched. If you can head that off by saying you don't want something, or replace it with something else... That'll work, and they'll actually appreciate it.

I've got a bunch of things wrong with me, one of which being social anxiety. I can't tell you how terrified I was of asking for special treatment. But it's been good for my health, and not the horrible experience I expected. You'll be okay. It just takes some getting used to.
Jo

It has to be your own decision, but fighting off the 'just this once' or a 'little won't hurt you' from some of our friends and family is part of controlling our blood sugars. The truth is it does hurt us.
I've been put in some very difficult situations by friends who do this, one of whom I no longer see as a result. The bottom line is they know I am low carb in order to control my blood sugar, and I've even taken my own cauliflower rice or snacks rather than make them do additional dishes, and I know trying to shame me in public into eating carbs has long term consequences if I give in. 1) this will encourage them to do it again and again and 2) as I already have non-diabetic peripheral neuropathy I don't want to add to the nerve damage or risk my eyesight.
If I ever get really backed into a corner by one of them again I'd be tempted to ask, loudly, why they want to kill me.