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Low carb eating

nessa1970

Well-Known Member
Messages
386
Location
New Zealand
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
What is the recommendation for a low carb eating lifestyle. I would think 50 grams a day and under would be maybe??
I put on 18 kg since being on a pump. Not acceptable for me haha and I can’t fit any of my clothes. I started three weeks ago , tho it is a struggle as I crave carbohydrates at least once a day. Hoping as time goes on and my body adjusts it should be ok. Any suggestions would be great. Hope everyone is doing well I haven’t been on here for a few years . So Hi.
 
I think it varies. Some consider under 100 carbs per day low carb, others less than 50 or 20. If your main goal in lowering carbs is weight loss then work your way lower and lower until you achieve a level that brings you results, but be very careful to ensure that you reduce your insulin in the correct measure as you reduce carb consumption so that you can avoid going hypo. You don't want to take too much insulin !
 

Yes 50g is the "rule of thumb." But be aware, at those levels the "hidden carbs" in some vegetables and so on start to add up.

I would suggest trying for ketosis, as this will probably reduce carb cravings. I personally avoid sweeteners because I think they create cravings too. Intermittent fasting tends to be good for cravings as well. But YDMV.
 
Good luck @nessa1970 ! I don't really look at setting a limit with low carb eating, as i know if i go hypo i will crave carbs!! But if cravings are the issue, look at the Harcombe diet. It's inspired by the creators T1D brother. The entire family changed their way of eating to help and support him during his childhood, to a low carb type diet. The first week of the diet is aimed at getting you over various cravings, such as candida which is a yeast in the gut that needs sugar to grow. Hence, carb cravings.
Good luck on your journey! And don't feel discouraged, it's hard for diabetics to lose weight. Any step is a big step
 

At the end of the day you can think of it almost the way a normal non-diabetic or type 2 diabetic person who knows about the endocrine model of obesity (which you are experiencing here now you are on more accurate insulin dosing thanks to a pump) thinks of dieting. Insulinogenic nutrients should be minimised (but not below necessity - protein, whose processing requires insulin, is an essential nutrient at around 1.2g/kg body weight and because you don't have insulin at the alpha cell level to repress glucagon, I have no evidence for my assertion but in my NOT A DOCTOR intuition, this requirement may be higher given the higher rate of gluconeogenesis) and most of the dietary energy should be derived from fat (which is more minimally insulinogenic - you'll still need to account for fat in the extended bolus dosing, but it's hardly as much as, say, 75g of carbohydrates in one go would command). Showing ketones if you do this is normal - you should keep an eye on them, but if you don't feel sick (you're more likely to not feel sick if you're keeping up with your salt) it's maybe less of a big deal.

If you're hypoglycemic, obviously have some glucose (some people find that a gram can bring them up enough to be fully oriented - I would start at 15g and scale down), and I would not count them towards your limit for the day.
 
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I don't limit carbs but do aim to minimise insulin by eating low carb whilst still getting glucose results.
Were you glucose levels v. high before staring on pump and you weren't absorbing your carbs without sufficient insulin? Or this weight gain because your newly adjusted insulin levels are higher or are you just eating more or are you over treating hypos?
Before losing weight for the long term I think you'd do well to ensure your blood sugars are relatively stable on whatever basal dose you have (joy of the pump is that these can be adjusted hourly). Then eating low carb can really help in not being hungry for snacks or larege carb portions and/or the need to correct roller coaster blood sugars.
Do you have a freestyle libre or other cgm? This will give you insiqht across a whole 24 hours.
I realise stable blood sugars even with a pump can be difficult but a good basal rate is an ideal place to start from.
I started with 1 meal then gradually extended until 6/7 days I avoid carbs with exceptions for hypos! On Friday I still let my self have a little chocolate or crisps but I don't crave the junk as much as I did! Bear in mind that the average Western diet is supposed to be around 240g and set yourself a target that you can achieve consistently before going off the deep end would be my best tip.
 
Well it’s been over a month and I’m finding it almost impossible to lose weight, it’s very frustrating. Then for no reason I had my first time having ketones , I didn’t really understand what a high level was actually as I just never get them. I felt nauseous and weak I could barely move and I was so drunk and groggy without being drunk. So luckily I thought to test my ketones because actually I just wanted to sleep . It was 5.0
Anyway my question is I guess , if I don’t know what I did how can I prevent it from happening again... I had just got my hba1c it was 53 and said excellent control. I wasn’t sick no infections etc.
 
Did you have high blood glucose along with the ketones?
That would imply too little insulin - which seems contrary to the process of reducing carbs to lose weight, where the danger is too much insulin. That is about the extent of my expertise, and is seems like an unpleasant experience. Did you consult your doctor about it - did you get an explanation?
One suggestion for those on insulin wishing to go low carb is to reduce the carbs gradually and stabilize their blood glucose after each small reduction. It does extend the period before there is any weightloss, as you gradually approach the tipping point where you find the carbohydrate level at which you can lose weight.
 

Hello there @nessa1970 !
To me, this sounds like calorie deficiency. I was in ketotis here, for a little more than half a year, and did obviously not eat enough fats. That meant i got into starvation, and my ketonelevels did also show that. Now and then i had levels up to about 5 mmol/l, and at most, I measured a level of 5.8 mmol/l. So, check your level of fat intake, and also look at your total level of calories you get...
For clarity, I maybe should also mention, that I am going to try to take up my keto way of living again, but at this moment I still have some problems with my new Insulins. "Only" low-carbing at this time...
 
Nessa - Please take care when those ketones go up - especially if accompanied by high blood glucose numbers.

If you are trying to get into ketosis, the higher the number (for ketones) is not necessarily the better option. As the following chart suggests, you're potentially heading for starvation, or if your blood glucose numbers are up to (due to even a "silent" health issue), you could be heading to DKA which is not at all desirable.

In terms of ketosis, as I understand things, just showing ketones at all indicates you're there or thereabouts in ketosis.

This little chart is hosted on many, many websites, but I think it has potential to be very useful:



Take care, @nessa1970 - and if you're feeling unwell, it sounds like you're pushing too hard, one way or another.
 

What about reduced carb intake, and test and keep testing to see what your levels are like, I prefer using the term 'reduced' to 'low' also, exercise, of any kind, can be a big help too.
Good luck and wishing you all the best
 

I don’t understand how I count for fat? I only know how to carb count and try to stick to under 50. I was in icu for the dka and my bs were 16
I was at 8 bs readings prior so I do not see how I could have even gotten a ketone level of that high let alone dka
And I actually put ok 2 kg that I’d lost ... so I’m basically eating not much and not losing weight and now I’m scared to even bother and may as well eat carbs and just get fatter. It’s actually pushing me off...I just want to be back to normal weight not a stick. But I’m scared this dka **** will happen
I hate food....
Passed off
Sorry lol
 

Bs was 16 so not overly high and prior to that reading I was between 6-10
Like I said I had good control. Beyond me
 

Oh thank you for this. I actually wasn’t trying to go into ketosis at all but I think what’s happened is I didn’t do that fat eating part I just ate low carb . Do you think this could be what sent me into dka??
 
nessa1970 said:
Bs was 16 so not overly high and prior to that reading I was between 6-10
Like I said I had good control. Beyond me
Click to expand...

Nessa - Blood sugar of 16 and ketones of 5 is making me very nervous for you.

As I understand it, anything over 13 (I think) + ketones is a big flag for DKA. I will however try tagging some T1s. I have zero desire to be alarminst, but nor do I have any desire whatsoever that you could be heading towards being extremely unwell.

@urbanracer , @Juicyj , @Robinredbreast - if you could scan your eye over this please, I'd be very grateful.
 

Hi, 16 may not be in the danger zone, but to keep a close eye on it and keep testing, but, we are all different in how we react to highs and lows.
Hope you will be okay @nessa1970
 
Hello Nessa,

You need to take care hun - as @DCUKMod has said BG levels of 16 and ketones of 5 is dangerous you will end up in hospital if you're not careful. Please take your correction dose and work on getting this down, if no change contact your local hospital.

Check your blood sugar and ketone levels
Check your blood sugar level if you have symptoms of DKA.

If your blood sugar is 11mmol/L or over and you have a blood or urine ketone testing kit, check your ketone level.

If you do a blood ketone test:

  • lower than 0.6mmol/L is a normal reading
  • 0.6 to 1.5mmol/L means you're at a slightly increased risk of DKA and should test again in a couple of hours
  • 1.6 to 2.9mmol/L means you're at an increased risk of DKA and should contact your diabetes team or GP as soon as possible
  • 3mmol/L or over means you have a very high risk of DKA and should get medical help immediately
If you do a urine ketone test, a result of more than 2+ means there's a high chance you have DKA.
 

Thanks @Juicyj - And thanks for the information. My thoughts at 13 seemed a bit bullish..
 
nessa1970 said:
Bs was 16 so not overly high and prior to that reading I was between 6-10
Like I said I had good control. Beyond me
Click to expand...

@nessa1970

OK. A BS of 16 and ketones up on 5 does not sound too good. I agree with the rest of the messages/people here - be careful with those levels. I'd feel like (something unmentionable), if I had a BSL at 16, so understandable if you don't feel too well either...
Hugs from Finland!
Sorry, have to stop here, but I'll return to this thread later...
 
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