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how low is low carb?

F

face990

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Hi its been a long time since i last posted.
I would like to know how low people class as low carb?

I am a type 1 and have been advised by my doctor to go low carb as it is a better diet for diabetics.
So how many grams daily of carbs do you class as low carb.
Also does anyone have any expeience of bulking up using a low carb diet as this is my ultimate aim.
 
Barry Groves reckons that most diabetics can tolerate no more than 60 grams a day. I try to stay under that, but as a prune addict I do go over it when I start into them, and my bg has gone into between 5 & 6.

Some people can eat one thing which others can't and some can eat more carbs than me and I can eat more than others. The best thing to do is to test after eating and find out what works for you.

Test, test and test is the best way.

Cheers
Ailz
 
ailz said:
Barry Groves reckons that most diabetics can tolerate no more than 60 grams a day.
Click to expand...
With respect Ailz Barry Groves who ever he is doesnt know what he is talking about, I rarely if ever eat less than 70g a day and usually a lot more than that and I am perfectly well controlled and am able to maintain the weight loss I achieved.

Low carb means different things to different people the only way to know what is right for you is to test before and after meals and if your bg levels are much higher after meals then you need to cut out more catbs. Some will need to stick to a very low carb diet others will be able to eat more.
 
Ah he's talking about good bg and losing weight, that could be the difference Sid. He's someone who was in the RAF for years and went on a low carb diet in the 50s or 60s (can't remember which) and after leaving the RAF did a lot of research into why it worked. He works on 60 for weight loss - but admits that his knowledge of diabetics is from reading other studies.

Cheers
Ailz.
 

Have a read of this and you will be as confused as I am.
There is a reference to the poll conducted here in the first post.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=21040&hilit=poll+how+many

Can't help you with the bulking up, I am too skinny and have a job to put on weight. :lol: :lol:
 
With all due respect to Sid Bonkers, we are all different and what is a good level of low carb diet WILL depend on the individual . For him it is above 70g , for Barry Groves it is would be below 60g. I would suggest that you try a figure slightly higher and try that, testing for what is acceptable food wise and feel your way down toward the lower Barry groves figure and see what YOU can live with!
In the long term, testing as you go.
What someone else deems a "low carb diet " is not that important, rather achieving a "LOWER CARB diet" is probably more important as you want to live happily on it for life which hopefully will be a long time!
AS to bulking up, perhaps substitute some of that removed carbs in your diet with protein and a little good fats (ducks & runs for cover :shock: )
Good luck in reaching that happy balance!
Fergus
 
FergusCrawford said:
With all due respect to Sid Bonkers, we are all different and what is a good level of low carb diet WILL depend on the individual .
Click to expand...


Errrr, isnt that what I said?
 
Whatever level you decide upon you will have to adjust your insulin accordingly so don't make any drastic reductions overnight. You may find that if you use higher protein levels you will have to use some insulin for the protein (protein causes an insulin release in non ds)
You might be interested in this account of a bodybuilder with T1, though I've just scanned it and it isn't as helpful as some of the other articles.
http://www.runsweet.com/BodyBuilding.html
 

The recommended daily allowance for carbs for males is 300g, if you eat 150g a day in my book (and some other members here) that's already low-carbs because you have reduced the carbs by 50%, in others books that's high carbs because you have reduced the carbs by "only" 50%.

Different people put a different value on the meaning of "low-carb". Some say "low carbing" is around 70-80, some 90-100 and some less then 50g a day. As the others say, it's really up to you to decide how low you want to go. As both your job and your weigh lifting hobby are very demanding and you are on insulin and potentially can go hypo, probably best to ask your Doctor how low he advices you to go.
 
I'm newly diagnosed with Type 2, not been able to see an nurse or dietician yet, but am looking the low carb diet. I need to lose a LOT of weight, BMI is 40+, I haven't got a BG monitor so can't test, reading was 22 after a GTT last week. How low should I go, I was looking at 60, but tracking my eating carefully, it seems a bit on the tight side. Would it hurt if I went up to 70?

Sorry for the questions, but I really am feeling my way on the dark here.
 
Joyola, have a look on the Low-carb Forum at "Viv's Modified Atkins Diet". If you want a fast weight loss, that will work, and you need never be hungry. I use that diet, after 45 years of yo-yo dieting, and it works for me. It also improves my BG and cholestrol readings. I would call it a very low-carb diet.

If it's too low-carb for you, get yourself a Carb Counter book - 'The Calorie Carb and Fat Bible 2011' is very good; more portable is the one in the Collins Gem series, but it does have some inaccuracies. Then you can check for low-carb fruit and veg, etc, and add to your carb total that way.

There's lots of info on the Low-carb Forum.

Good luck!

Viv 8)
 

Hi Joyola,

Best to get yourself a bg monitor so you can find out which foods you can and cannot eat, without a bg meter it's like whistling in the wind, so either ask your diabetes nurse for one or purchase one from a chemist shop for around £10-£20. The information for newbies written by Ken and Sue on the Greetings and Introduction part of the forum is really great and should get you started, hopefully when you see your dietitian they will advise on portion control and watching those calories to help with your weight issues.

Nigel
 
My daughter t1 age 9 eats about 160g a day carb. Her levels are not brilliant - average bg about 7.6. Diagnosed last Sept she is still too thin.
Is she eating too much carb? There's no way she could eat 60g a day ... nobody has ever told her to eat less, just to calculate the amount she eats for insulin ... do children need more carbs or am I giving her too much?
 
Ginx, I know very little about Type 1 and I am not a dietitian, but if your daughter needs to gain weight to be right for her age and height , you could perhaps increase her protein and fat intake a bit. I wouldn't think she needs less carb while she's growing.

I'm sure someone else who knows more than I do about Type 1 kids' bg levels will be along soon.

Don't worry too much!

Viv 8)

Edited once 'cos I didn't read your post properly the first time :roll:
 

Children need carbohydrates as part of a healthy well balanced diet and certainly 60g a day would be far too little for a growing child, if you have concerned about your daughters food intake and diabetes control then I suggest you speak with her consultant and a dietitian.

Nigel
 
Nigel,

Working with the consultant/dietician is obviously very important but in caring for a diabetic child you do sometimes need to make your own decisions based on the information available.

So the question is , my child wakes with BG of 6.0 in the morning and would like some breakfast
Do I provide

Option A : 30g cereal / slice of toast and see BG hit 15.0 3 hrs later (insulin given 20 mins before food and ratio is correct , as after 6 hours BG back to 6.0) (carb content 40g)

or

Option B : 1 x sausage , 2 x bacon , 2 x egg and see BG remain flat at 6.0 for next 6 hours as only 5g carb.

A difficult choice ?

thanks
Matt
 
Matt,

Go with what you feel best for your child Matt, if your child is hitting 15mmol after 3 hours from eating 40g of carbs then something is amiss with their insulin routine, this is why I suggest members seek a professional opinion on this issue.

Best wishes

Nigel
 
Nigel,

Why is the insulin to blame ?
Surely if high GI carb foods cause peaks after 3 hrs whilst high protein/fat foods do not
It is the food that is at issue not the insulin.

If your BG return to there initial starting point 6 hours after eating I would have thought the insulin dose is correct it is just that it can not match the food release over the first 3 hours.

Any info you have to help stop the 3 hour peaks would be warmly welcomed as it is a lot easier to give someone a quick bowl of rice crispies than get a fry cooked up.

thanks
Matt
 

Matt, the alternative in a adult would then be to go for lower gi carbs, but as I said earlier it is entirely up to you what diet you feed your child, personally I wouldn't want some stranger on a forum telling me what is suitable and healthy for my children when they were little.....hence why I advise members to seek a professional opinion if ever in doubt as this is the best course of action......more so when it comes to the health of their children!

So if you like Ginx have any issues with your child's carbohydrate intake then I suggest you consult their HCP if you haven't done already.

Regards

Nigel
 
Out of interest Nigel which is the issue the insulin or the food ?

You stated my daughters insulin routine is amiss , but then stated an adult should not eat the high GI foods.

this seems to be contradictory.

Weighing up the postivies/negativies of every food is a decision parents of type 1 children do many times a day - if controlling carb leads to better BG control then it a discussion worth having

Anyone know any studies on minimum carb requirements for children ?
 
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