low-carb whats it all about

squirrel

Well-Known Member
Messages
51
Hi, been reading some stuff on here over the last week, whats all this low-carb stuff about and where is the best place to start? I take it 8 slices of bread a day aint good from what im reading?
 

fergus

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,439
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Hi squirrel,

In essence, low-carb thinking says that carbohydrates, particularly refined and starchy carbohydrates, in fact contain nothing the body actually needs that cannot be found in other foods. At the same time, they elevate blood sugar in a way that medications cannot compete with. Carbs raise bs significantly, protein a little, and fats not at all. Therefore if carbs are restricted sufficiently, blood sugar levels can become consistently non-diabetic.

Insulin is more and more being recognised as perhaps the most significant bodily hormone not just in diabetes, but heart disease, hypertension, overweight, kidney disease, many cancers and even Altzheimer's Disease. Current official dietary advice does not take account of any of this.

Increasing numbers of diabetics around the world are now discovering that low-carb lifestyles give them a degree of control of their conditions that completely eluded them when following a low fat or low calorie diet. Some organisations (DUK for example) prefer to ignore it while others (ADA) are now greatly reducing their recommended carb intake because they now recognise they were wrong all along.

That's just the start of it......!

fergus
 

Jo123

Well-Known Member
Messages
718
I am very new to this forum and low carbing, having only discovered this since being diagnosed with high fasting blood glucose a couple of weeks ago. I can only say from my experience you must give it a try, I am 50 and feel more energetic than I have done for years, it really is not that difficult, I have just given up all bread, pots, rice, couscous etc and also fruit, except berries but in no way is my diet boring.
Once I got this diagnosis, having researched the internet I concluded this was the only way to go. My mum has type 2 and despite never having habc of 7 always in the 6's has multiple diabetic complications which have effectively disabled her. I have always said to her why do you eat so many carbs,(with my limited knowledge of human biology I knew they would shoot her BG up) she always says that is what she has been told to do!
My fasting BG this morning was 4.5 :D :D which is brilliant, however it was 6.7 hour after unsweetened soy yoghurt and almonds, which was a bit of a blip, but in general mine have been normal readings on the low carb.
I can only reiterate you must try you will not believe how energetic you feel, I don't get indigestion like I used to, the blurred vision has gone, and also my frozen shoulder I have had for 3 months has gone! Loads of good advice on this forum also I went to the library and got some cookery books, even if you aren't into cooking there were lots of good easy ideas I found from these.
 

fergus

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,439
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Well said Jo123!

It isn't at all difficult or restrictive for me either. The relatively few foods which are off limits for me now are vastly outnumbered by the natural delicious foods that much of the nonsensical thinking says should be restricted. I'm well up on the deal the way I see it!

There's little doubt in my mind that pretty soon the dieteticians will have to completely change their thinking if they want to avoid an enormous class-action lawsuit on the basis of the harmful consequences of their current advice.

All the best,

fergus
 

squirrel

Well-Known Member
Messages
51
Hi, thanks for the info, i now have a good idea about it all, the only thing that worries me is finding stuff to eat when at work etc, i usually take lots of sandwiches but i suppose i would need to replace this with chicken or something.
 

Trinkwasser

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,468
Jo123 said:
I am very new to this forum and low carbing, having only discovered this since being diagnosed with high fasting blood glucose a couple of weeks ago. I can only say from my experience you must give it a try, I am 50 and feel more energetic than I have done for years, it really is not that difficult, I have just given up all bread, pots, rice, couscous etc and also fruit, except berries but in no way is my diet boring.
Once I got this diagnosis, having researched the internet I concluded this was the only way to go. My mum has type 2 and despite never having habc of 7 always in the 6's has multiple diabetic complications which have effectively disabled her. I have always said to her why do you eat so many carbs,(with my limited knowledge of human biology I knew they would shoot her BG up) she always says that is what she has been told to do!
My fasting BG this morning was 4.5 :D :D which is brilliant, however it was 6.7 hour after unsweetened soy yoghurt and almonds, which was a bit of a blip, but in general mine have been normal readings on the low carb.
I can only reiterate you must try you will not believe how energetic you feel, I don't get indigestion like I used to, the blurred vision has gone, and also my frozen shoulder I have had for 3 months has gone! Loads of good advice on this forum also I went to the library and got some cookery books, even if you aren't into cooking there were lots of good easy ideas I found from these.


You should post this in the Success Stories thread!
 

Trinkwasser

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,468
squirrel said:
Hi, thanks for the info, i now have a good idea about it all, the only thing that worries me is finding stuff to eat when at work etc, i usually take lots of sandwiches but i suppose i would need to replace this with chicken or something.

I make my sandwiches with oatcakes and use things like smoked salmon or chicken, along with salad and nuts for snacks. Some people can get away with Ryvita or rice cakes, and nut butters and even Real butter and cheese - high on the protein, moderately high on the fats and low on the carbs is my favourite balance
 

Jo123

Well-Known Member
Messages
718
Trinkwasser said:
Jo123 said:
I am very new to this forum and low carbing, having only discovered this since being diagnosed with high fasting blood glucose a couple of weeks ago. I can only say from my experience you must give it a try, I am 50 and feel more energetic than I have done for years, it really is not that difficult, I have just given up all bread, pots, rice, couscous etc and also fruit, except berries but in no way is my diet boring.
Once I got this diagnosis, having researched the internet I concluded this was the only way to go. My mum has type 2 and despite never having habc of 7 always in the 6's has multiple diabetic complications which have effectively disabled her. I have always said to her why do you eat so many carbs,(with my limited knowledge of human biology I knew they would shoot her BG up) she always says that is what she has been told to do!
My fasting BG this morning was 4.5 :D :D which is brilliant, however it was 6.7 hour after unsweetened soy yoghurt and almonds, which was a bit of a blip, but in general mine have been normal readings on the low carb.
I can only reiterate you must try you will not believe how energetic you feel, I don't get indigestion like I used to, the blurred vision has gone, and also my frozen shoulder I have had for 3 months has gone! Loads of good advice on this forum also I went to the library and got some cookery books, even if you aren't into cooking there were lots of good easy ideas I found from these.


You should post this in the Success Stories thread!

I was planning on posting when I have my repeat blood test at the doctors in a couple of months, he will also be repeating the full lipid panel so I can see what has happened to my blood, which was excellent before! I have to confess this is the one thing I am a little worried about, as after years of going for very low saturated fat (always had plenty of healthy fats), feel very guilty eating cheese and having cream in my coffee!!
 

Trinkwasser

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,468
Jo123 said:
I was planning on posting when I have my repeat blood test at the doctors in a couple of months, he will also be repeating the full lipid panel so I can see what has happened to my blood, which was excellent before! I have to confess this is the one thing I am a little worried about, as after years of going for very low saturated fat (always had plenty of healthy fats), feel very guilty eating cheese and having cream in my coffee!!

Go for it!

I will predict that your HDL will increase substantially and your trigs will plummet, that's almost a given. What happens to your LDL is less clear, some people find it goes down while most find an increase - BUT depending on the other numbers this may not be harmful, in the absence of trigs the molecules are larger fluffier and less atherogenic
 

craig

Member
Messages
6
Hi im new to all this im 30 just found out ive got type two
still dont know what to do i have 3 metaformin a day at the mo
and need to loose weight fast im 15st 10lbs to 16st
on omprozole and simvastatin as well
have not got to the diet doc yet where do i start
ive cut out the sugar in coffee and breakfast
eat nimble bread low fat food veg ect but im not loosing weight
3 weeks in how do i know if im eating right do i have to portion what i eat if so how much
im also worried as i lost my dad 2 years now he also was diabetic it becuase of that he passed
as he did not look after him self
any help would be helpfull thanks
:?
 

sugarless sue

Master
Messages
10,098
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Rude people! Not being able to do the things I want to do.
Hi Craig and welcome to the forum.Tell us a bit about what you do eat.Give us an average days menu for instance.
 

fergus

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,439
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Hi craig, and welcome to the forum.
Standard dietary advice from the NHS is best taken along with something they wouldn't recommend - a large pinch of salt!
The principles behind a successful dietary strategy for diabetics often run counter to the standard dogma.

They will ask you to eat starchy carbohydrates at every meal. We'll tell you that's probably the worst thing you can do, because they are very poor sources of nutrition and deliver too much glucose into your bloodstream. They make normal blood glucose levels extremely difficult to achieve, if not downright impossible.

They will tell you to cut out as much fat as possible because they still believe dietary fat makes you fat. There is absolutely no evidence that this is true. Many fats are essential for health and they have virtually no need for insulin, nor will they raise your blood sugar.

They might ask you not to eat too much protein because they still believe it might be damaging to the kindeys. No evidence for this either. In fact protein is extremely important in a diabetic diet as it contains essential amino acids and your body can turn any excess into glucose, sufficient for all your needs if necessary.

I won't go on, but I'd recommend you check out the Success Stories thread and see the spectacular improvements possible by eating a more logical diet.

All the best, and keep us posted

fergus
 

craig

Member
Messages
6
Hi i start my day with a round of toast with nimbl bread and benicol spread or porridge.
For a snack I usually have an orange/banana or apple.
For dinner veg stew or some chicken with mediteranean veg, salad or some thing like that,
more fruit as a snack.
Some times i have some yoghurt (yeo valley) peach or amoy stir fry straight to wok
but im not the best at recipes and Im struggling for other ideas
and what quantites to use as my diet is limited and boring. It Some times leaves me hungry at night, Im also having difficulty sleeping. I have not had an appointment with dietition at the mo and struggling with what I can and cant have, doctor has only told me to eat starchy foods and look at packets, but I have no clue what I am looking for on these packets!!! Any help would be greatly appreatiated.

Thanks Craig.
 

sixfoot

Well-Known Member
Messages
989
dear craiq , read any of the postings by fergus also there is a load of stuff on the food forum

Good luck
Dave P