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

Good carbs/bad carbs

J

jeanser

Member
Messages
11
Location
Bristol
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Choosing the right food can be confusing can't it? Before being diagnosed T2 diabetic I used to eat loads of fruit, on the basis that food didn't get any healthier - after all, we're being told to eat minimum 5 a day fruit and veg aren't we? Plus lots of fruit juice - has to be better than fizzy drinks thought I - how wrong can you be?? I also have a penchant for roasted parsnips but these seem to rank right behind potatoes in the 'bad' ranks

So it's a constant learning curve. Now I've embarked on the low carb diet and I'm very enthused by it - after a dodgy first week, the next 2 + weeks have been much better, I've lost weight, and feel a bit more energetic. But the demon carbs turn up in the most unlikely places! I've been eating grapefruit for breakfast - 25 g carbs for a whole one (I only have a half each day, but it's still a shock to find more carbs in this than a LIDL high protein roll, according to the online data). Apple 20g (I've given those up in favour of satsumas at 6g apiece); aubergine 25 g - OK if you scrape most of the flesh out and fill with minced beef etc. A large tin of baked beans - 50g! Is that because sugar has been added to the sauce? It's all a bit counter-intuitive.

So my question for today is, from the perspective of a low-carb diet, are there such things as good carbs and bad carbs? Is it better to consume 25g carbs from item A than from item B? Any advice would be very welcome. I've managed to hit the carbs back across the board except for porridge, which I have every day, and I rate a portion including full fat milk at 50g, but as it's slow release I reckon it's OK and it keeps me going for ages. Including that I generally keep my daily carb count between 120-150g
 
Are you testing?
The best thing is for you to use a meter and test your personal blood glucose reactions to individual foods and meals that you have often. This is often a remarkable learning curve!

For me, my body seems to have very different reactions to some foods (grains and those containing gluten) and much lesser reactions to starchy veg. While things like the aubergine you mention wouldn't affect my blood glucose at all.

I would strongly recommend that you test your reaction to the porridge (apologies if you have already done this). I know that porridge is often recommended as a slow release carb suitable for diabetics, but I, and a fair few others here on the forum find that it sends our blood glucose sky high. So always worth testing several times.
 
Hi @jeanser ..
Managing and controlling your diabetes through exercise, diet and testing your Blood Glucose seems to be the best way forward for many people. For me, committing to an LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) lifestyle and testing 3-5 times a day seems to be working and you'll find that there is a wealth of info, relevant advice and positive support about LCHF on the forum ..

I guess that you have seen the info from @ daisy1 (she sent it to you about 4 weeks ago in a post replying to your first thread) So, I would suggest that you read up on the Low Carb Program in the information that she has sent. You might also find the discussion on the Low Carb Diet forum helpful .. and the following Diet Doctor websites ...
Low Carb Intro and Information
Low Carbs in 60 Seconds
These sites will give you all the info that you need on what (and what not) to eat on Low Carb

Not sure whether you are testing yet but if not, I strongly recommend that you get yourself a meter and start .. it's the only way that you can find out about the effects of different foods on your BG levels. I suggest that you try the website at:
https://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/
for the SD Codefree meter, which costs £12.98 (you don't pay VAT) or:
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-blood-glucose-meter/
who distribute the TEE 2 meter, which is free.
Hope this helps
 
jeanser said:
aubergine 25 g - OK if you scrape most of the flesh out and fill with minced beef etc
Click to expand...
Eh? Waitrose gives aubergine at 2.2g per 100g so its a pretty low carb veg..
And baked beans yes the sauce is tomato and sugar so that is why they are high although beans aren't that great on their own either.
 
At diagnosis
HbA1c 98 : Random BG 12.5 : Weight 106.1k : BMI 34.4 : BP 149/101
Chol 7.10 : HDL 1.29 : LDL 4.86 : TC/HDL ratio 5.5
25 May 2017 1st Annual Review
HbA1c 40 : Random BG 5.2 : Weight 83.4Kg : BMI 27.1 : BP 105/66
Chol 3.60 : HDL 1.66 : LDL 1.64 : Trigs 0.66 : Trigs/HDL 0.34 : TC/HDL 2.17
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meds ... Metformin 2 x 500 (stopped) : 10 mg Atorvastatin (stopped)
LCHF ... Carbs < 30g daily : Seriously carb conscious
Strategy ... 16:8 intermittent fasting : eat 11.00am to 7.00pm
Lifestyle ... Exercise everyday : Walk everywhere : Enjoy everything
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seeking to learn a little more and be a little better every day ...

Wow!! This is amazing!!! Pat yourself on the back !!!
 
Do you like avocado? Very filling for me as my breakfast and keeps me going for hours. Very nice on blood sugar too.

I'm MUCH lower carb than you though. That's the only thing that keeps my blood sugar happy even with injected insulin.

A meter is a must as far as I'm concerned.
 
Yeah I like avocado - often have a half at lunchtime

I understand a lot of peeps on this site use meters and test regularly, however I don't intend to go there right now because I would become obsessive about it and I don't want that. I kind of trust my body to tell me what's going on - I was eating those packaged microporridge thingeys around 10 each morning as a bridge between an early breakfast and lunch, and found that instead of filling me up they made me hungry about 30-40 minutes later, which I now interpret to be a sugar crash. As my learning continues I've stopped eating those! But good old Asda smart price porridge oats, cooked for 5 minutes, seem to work for me. I'm hoping that my next 6 monthly blood test will show some overall improvement (August). If not I'll have to think again, but as mentioned above, this diet after just a few weeks already seems to have had a positive effect so I'm keen to keep going. I'm still on Metformin also so I guess if I came off that it might be sensible to start testing
 
There is little harm in being obsessed with testing. It can be a great motivation, and must be better than working blind - which you are doing at the moment. Your porridge may keep you going all morning, but what is it doing to your blood sugar levels? You have no idea. There are many low carb alternatives that will keep you full all morning. Also, it is common knowledge that we are more insulin resistant in the mornings, so a carb meal for breakfast is likely to spike higher than the same meal in the evening. For this reason I avoid all carbs at breakfast. Personally, even a full fat yogurt with 2 or 3 strawberries spikes me in the morning and keeps me higher than I like all morning, thus impacting on my pre-lunch levels.

I do urge you to buy a meter and experiment yourself with your chosen foods. You will learn so much more quickly without having to wait until your next HbA1c.
 
I'm getting impatient enough waiting for my first HbA1c check since diagnosis. I couldn't bear to not know by my monitoring, that I have a good chance of it being improved. The only down side of monitoring I see is the cost.
 
I can manage porridge, small portion, but with cream, oh the hardship!
 
Hi @jeanser as @Bluetit1802 has stated, perhaps initially an obsessive testing pattern will provide you with a foundation. I found that oats were doing exactly what they are advertised to do i.e. slow release the glucose. For me this gave me a higher HbA1c than I expected as it was keeping my average higher for longer (might be different for you, but I wasn't spiking high, just maintaining circa 6 for longer).

For the last 3 days I have been able to easily do 1 meal a day. The meal I just had was baked stuffed Trout (Waitrose), roasted leeks, garlic, broccoli and Carrots (test if they spike), followed by some nuts and berries. Bottom line without testing I would not know what my body is comfortable with.
 
For me, I can't just select any foods and weigh out the amount of carbs I want - cereals, potatoes, lentils, even seeds put up my blood glucose levels more than the same carbs from other sources.
I can eat a huge salad, lots of green stuff, celery, tomatoes, radishes, cucumber, creamy coleslaw, with a protein source, then in the evening maybe a pork chop with courgette, a few peas, mushrooms or sweet pepper and still not get up to 8mmol/l after meals.
There are also a couple of squares of high cocoa chocolate and coffees with cream.
It feels luxurious, but my blood tests are normal and I am losing weight again.
There are also more than 5 servings of fruit and vege - but not high carb ones. That is, I think, the difference.

PS Although you describe your diet as low carb, and others might agree, there are foods you are eating which would not be on my lists, and the amounts of carbs you eat are twice what I have each day.
If your blood glucose levels are good then you don't need to worry so much, but if they are not going down as you'd like then you could modify your menu to avoid the foods which raise them and still have enjoyable meals.
 
Last edited:

I think your body must be much better than mine at telling you? At diagnosis I was an average of 14mmol I think which means my peeks must have been 20 maybe even more who knows. No symptoms what so ever. Slept well, felt good eating and drinking - not thirsty - no constant visits to the loo. I have been completely and utterly shocked at the impact food can have (as well as stress and no sleep) and would of known none of those things without a meter. Moreover, foods that impact person a do not impact person b - and even the difference of eating times can make a huge difference. No way can I have blueberries in the morning, but in the evening hardly a blip.

I would say - from my own experience - get yourself a meter and know for sure that your body is ok.
 
As said, couldn't be nearly as controlled without a meter

If you're worried about obsessing maybe just start with one meal a day and don't tear after for now.

Bf is usually the worst for all of us and we get the highest spikes unless we stupid eat beyond what we know we can handle.

So the way to do it is test before you eat, one hour after your first bite as well as at the two hour mark. I have a feeling, as do others, that you will find portage to not be as friendly as some other breakfast options.

We are looking to stay steady rather than pop up and drop down fast. Smooth is much easier on the body.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…