Type 1 How do I stop eating so much sugary and High in carb foods?

bexblu

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19
Type of diabetes
Type 1
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Insulin
I find it super hard to not have carbs. I'm a very fussy eater and eat a lot of junk and I'm trying to clean up my diet, which I already have done massively.. however my sugars are still haywire as I have a lot of carbs and find it hard to calculate for. I also have a high sugar diet and wondering if people have alternatives? Thanks in advance xx
 
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Well done on making a change to your diet.

I can sympathise with your sugary desires. My problem is not so much sweet stuff, just the need to snack constantly. When I can't resist (most of the time), I try to snack on nuts and small chunks of cheese (think of cheese and pineapple on sticks without the pineapple ... and sticks). When I feel a strong chocolate urge, I either eat dark chocolate or something lighter like Aero.

I think it may be possible to retrain your tastebuds to not like such sweet food. I have achieved this with salt and rarely add any to my meals. As a consequence, most ready meals now taste too salty to me. If you have sugar in your tea or coffee you could try gradually reducing the sugar to ease yourself off.

On the junk food side, I try small changes like
- don't eat the batter on the fish
- don't eat my pizza crusts or, if they are available, go for one of the pizzas with a hole and salad in the middle
- have "naked" burgers without the bun

And, I also try to balance out my carby diet with exercise to burn it off. I go to the gym 3 or 4 times a week, walk an average of more than 10,000 steps and day and climb the walls (literally) once a week.

Good luck with your life changes. Sounds as if you want to make improvements which is half of the battle.
 
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Juicyj

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Hi @bexblu The only advice I can give is to stock up on healthier alternatives so it's not as easy to snack on high sugar products, so keep a stock pile of nuts/cheese/olives/fresh veges and keep some chopped up in the fridge. I don't eat sugar now unless I am hypo, simply because I have lost my sweet tooth, but also because early in diagnosis my BG levels were swinging north and south and that didn't help me cope mentally. Try and also distract yourself when you feel you want to snack on something, so like Helen I exercise, which helps me stay sane and active.
 

derry60

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I could not have fish and leave the batter lol..So I will not buy fish from the fish and chip shop,sooo to tempting. I make my own with cod and protein bread crumbs. This does not spike my sugar. Talking of burgers.( I mentioned this on another page here) 2 Quarter Pounders beef burgers on a bed of lettuce and topped them with cheese, pickled sliced gherkins, very little tomato low sugar ketchup and a little burger sauce, oh and onions. I forgot to mention that on the other page. I also had a side of cucumber and spinach..It was really yummy and I did not miss the bun at all.
 
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azure

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Type of diabetes
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I find it super hard to not have carbs. I'm a very fussy eater and eat a lot of junk and I'm trying to clean up my diet, which I already have done massively.. however my sugars are still haywire as I have a lot of carbs and find it hard to calculate for. I also have a high sugar diet and wondering if people have alternatives? Thanks in advance xx

Hi @bexblu :)

You don't have to "not have carbs" (unless you choose not to). Carbs are fine for Type 1s if you count them and bolus appropriately :) You said you're finding calculating them hard. If you can explain a little more, then you'll get some good suggestions to help you. I swear by my digital scales. I also tend to repeat meals exactly so I know what bolus the meal needs without having to count carbs. I also use different ratios for each meal.

I find the best way to eat more healthily is to add more veg to meals. I also like to make sure I have things like oily fish. If you can't resist certain foods, the easiest thing is to not buy them or buy them in small quantities to last X amount of time.

I'm also going to mention my favourite - advance bolusing. It's a fantastic tool to control spikes.

If you haven't done a basal test recently, then that's important too.
 

letstalk1

Well-Known Member
Messages
308
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Other
I just quit eating sugar , high carbs , and got serious about it , it wasnt easy but worth it and the weight loss worth it ,...
Its a life time eating change I decided I had to make and have , the cravings go away your palate changes and then its easy really , I chewed sugarfree gum instead of eating junk or overeating , drink more water , educated myself on all this to understand it and its a daily thing.
 

noblehead

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I find it super hard to not have carbs.

Well don't try, just eat them in moderation and choose healthy carbs wherever possible.

I also have a high sugar diet and wondering if people have alternatives?

If you have a sweet tooth then pop along to Aldi or Lidl and purchase some high cocoa content chocolate, the Aldi brand is called Moser Roth and the Lidl one is called J.D Gross, both stores do a good range with various fillings and offer up good value for money, with the chocolate having a high cocoa content they are much lower in carbs than standard chocolate.
 

catrinann

Newbie
Messages
1
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Just been diagnosed Type 2 and started dieting 2 weeks ago. My diabetic nurse has given me 3 months before I am going to have to face up to going on Metformin. bread is my nemesis. I have decided to try and not eat anything white, sounds daft but cutting out sugar, flour, pasta, rice potatoes. In the first 2 weeks I have lost 8 lbs. I drink my pepsi max, soda water with lots of ice lemon etc to curb my appetite between meals, where I used to reach for a sandwich now I just have a refreshing drink and maybe a little cheese and pickled onion. I haven't studied any diets yet, this seems to work well for me. Very low carb & no sugar (I didn't have a sweet tooth to begin with so not to difficult to go without chocolate etc).

With your burger you could have two breakfast mushrooms instead of the bread roll and make some guacamole to put on top.