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Is anyone vegetarian and Low Carbs?

willogs

Well-Known Member
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Hi, I have been reading all the low carb info with interest. I was diagnosed last year while pregnant with type 1, I had no issues for about 6 months after having my baby and was then diagnosed again in Feb. At both times the dietian has explained the importance of Carb with my meal, after reading all the info I am confused. I am currently honeymooning with 2 injections a day, 1 at lunch of 2 units of Novorapid and 4 units with my tea. Can you low carb while honeymooning as my own production is very eratic and has anyone done it while following a veggie diet?
 
Thanks for your reply.

How many grams of carbs do you eat? Do you find yourself hungry? Do you get bored? Can you give me an example of a typical day menu wise? Sorry so many questions.
 
Hi willogs,

Quite honestly, I think lowering your carb intake while you're still in your honeymoon period is an excellent idea. The less insulin you ask your pancreas to come up with the more likely it might be to keep producing. It may not last forever, but you may retain some insulin production for a significant time. It can only be a good thing to relieve your pancreas of as much stress as possible.

Your dietician may have stressed the importance of consuming carbs at a meal in order to cover the insulin you are injecting. This is warped logic in that, but for the carbs, you wouldn't need as much insulin! Did he/she discuss the option of less carbohydrate / less insulin?

I'm type 1 also and of course there are risks to low carbing and injecting insulin. There are greater risks in high carbing and injecting insulin, in my view, since the greater the dose, the greater the uncertainty in the outcome.

As for vegetarian low carbing, it's certainly do-able. I do it quite a bit because I was veggie for 16 years before I went low-carb. There's an excellent Rose Elliot book on sale at the moment devoted entirely to vegetarian low carb recipes.

All the best,

fergus
 
I am type 2, when I started low carb (though in those days it wasnt called low carb) I never ever ate any bread, potatoes, pasta, sweet things, rice, no root vegetables and not much fruit but I was never ever hungry, protein keeps you full longer (and that says something because I am a porker and love my food).
In the beginning my bg was in the 20s, I didnt go low carb overnight, I reduced gradually, so was still allowed some potatoes and some sourdough rye bread, not wheat though. I really didnt count carbs back then, just cut out anything starchy, I guess I must have had less than 80g a day or even less.

I lost lots of weight and increased exercise and eventually was able to stop medication altogether and found that all my lifestyle changes somehow helped with insulin resistance because I can tolerate more carbs and even the odd blowout doesnt cause a signifiant rise in bg.
Most of the time I am good though, and for the past few years I have around 130g of carbs, I dont want any more than this, I just got so used to it.

Today I had porridge made with soya milk and sprinkled with cinnamon for breakfast, I wasnt hungry till lunch time.

Lunch I had avocado with mayo (<mixed with finely chopped shallots, chives and parsley) and loads of salad veg, a few cubes of feta cheese

Afternoon I had macadamia nuts and some blueberries to nibble.

Evening I had flash fried fish with broccoli, cauliflower, courgettes and cherry tomatoes sprinkled with sesame seeds. Strawberries and cream.

Sometimes I have an open sandwich instead of the porridge, but never wheat, only sourdough rye bread and just one slice of it or I will have hummus with vegetables.

I had my flaxseed oil and usual supplements and drank about 2ltrs of green tea and water.
 
Forget Rose Elliot, willog! Our very own Chocfish will do the business for you.
Great stuff, Karen.

All the best,

fergus
 
I'm not sure whether I qualify as "low carb" - but I am vegetarian.

From what I've read, it's very difficult (though not impossible) to maintain a varied and interesting diet which is both veggie and very low carb.

I reckon I could probably manage about 100g a day (although normally it's closer to 150g) of carbs.

Here's what I've had today:

Breakfast: 10g bran sticks, 25g muesli, 15g flax/pumpkin/sunflower seed meal, with soya milk. 28g carbs.

Lunch: Large salad of baby spinach, watercress, grated carrot, cucumber, orange pepper, cherry tomatoes & celery, with half a tin of chick peas and a few cubes of Apetina cheese. Handful of walnuts and 50g dried apricots. 35g carbs.

Snack: small apple: 10g carbs

Dinner: small banana (was going hypo before lunch), stir fry of sugar snap peas, broccoli, mushrooms, onion, garlic, with a cheese omelette, followed by a Greek yoghurt with a tin of raspberries in juice, a wallaby bar (seed and nut bar), and a low carb choc ice. 60g carbs.

Several cups of tea with milk: probably 5-10g carbs.

If I wanted to go low carb I suppose I would have to lose the choc ice, swap the tinned raspberries for fresh, and skip the apricots, the wallaby bar, apple and half the banana, but then I would also be skipping a lot of useful nutrients including iron, potassium, lots of vitamins. This would bring the total carbs down by about 50g and might qualify as low carb. I'd get very bored very quickly if I couldn't have any treats though.

I can't stand cream or soya milk in tea: I've tried them!
 
So it certainly does not look impossible. I don't eat fish so thats another thing thats out. I have been in the dilema of health over morals and was not sure how I could do both. I turned veggie when I was younger for moral reasons but think as I have got older it is more about being veggie because thats what I do and not so much for the moral reasons, hope that makes sense. So may be for now I could look at reducing carbs not completely low carbs. Thanks
 
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