Nuts

Nuts are good for us. Yes they contain fats but some are good fats and they help you feel full without any/much carb.

I eat walnuts and they don't raise my glucose levels at all. I just love them as a snack, usually during the course of late evening

Go for it!!!

Nuts are good for their fat content, but they do vary a bit in the amounts of carbs they contain - and too many could mess up your diet or weight loss target (if you have one). Take a look here: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/nuts

edit: p.s. Just noticed this is your first post - Welcome to the forums

Grampy47 said:

As a newbie with type 2 I am confused about whether eating nuts as a snack is a good or bad idea! Health booklet says no, diabetic cookbooks and online say yes. Help please.

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Hi I am Woody

I think that with anything, keeping it in moderation is the key, I am newly diagnosed as diabetic, but think I have been for a year and a half, I am also suffering from high Chloresterol so, to prevent getting another problem, I would also control fat and saturated fat, we need some good and bad fats in our diet as well. But a whole packet in one day is not good Oh how I love Chilli Peanuts

Hold on. I thought 80/90 percent of our cholesterol is manufactured by our liver and only a small percentage comes from diet.

asparagusp said:

Hold on. I thought 80/90 percent of our cholesterol is manufactured by our liver and only a small percentage comes from diet.

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Only to a certain extent, you may be lucky, but it is a silent killer also

http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/goodfood/pages/eat-less-saturated-fat.aspx

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Cholesterol/Pages/Introduction.aspx

I eat nuts in all shapes, sizes, and forms - including nut flours, butters and oils. One of my favourite breakfasts is a little dish of mixed nuts (and sometimes a few seeds) splashed with oil and "roasted " in my microwave.

But it is definitely worth being aware of their carbohydrate content , as this can vary a fair bit with different nuts, so definitely practice moderation - and watch those calories too!! It's probably best to leave well alone any honey roasted or similarly treated/coated nuts.

Robbity

PS There was an interesting thread a while back about cashews which are quite carby, but apparently don't spike as much as expected (possibly due to resistant starch): http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/cashews.96370/

Grampy47 said:

As a newbie with type 2 I am confused about whether eating nuts as a snack is a good or bad idea! Health booklet says no, diabetic cookbooks and online say yes. Help please.

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Hello, welcome, I've tagged the lovely @daisy1 who will give you some good reading for newbies. All questions are welcome and non are stupid. There is a very fiendly, clever bunch of people out there!! Good luck with your journey

Tala_2015 said:

Only to a certain extent, you may be lucky, but it is a silent killer also

http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/goodfood/pages/eat-less-saturated-fat.aspx

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Cholesterol/Pages/Introduction.aspx

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Just to add another opinion into the melting pot, here's another article on Cholesterol....

https://authoritynutrition.com/dietary-cholesterol-does-not-matter/

@Grampy47

Hello and welcome to the forum Here is the basic information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask more questions when you need to and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you'll find well over 220,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.

There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a free 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic.

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

Tala_2015 said:

Only to a certain extent, you may be lucky, but it is a silent killer also

http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/goodfood/pages/eat-less-saturated-fat.aspx

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Cholesterol/Pages/Introduction.aspx

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I'm afraid I discount almost everything that the NHS says about cholesterol. It is based on decades of misinformation after the whole Cholesterol Myth was started in the 60s. Most NHS staff just spout the guideline total cholesterol levels and try and force feed us statins if we are a smidge higher than the number they want. They should be looking at cholesterol ratios, not total figure, and they should be noticing the Triglycerides far more than the LDL. But they don't seem to have the knowledge to do that.

There is a great deal of far better, more recent research available, that actually relies on things like evidence, and studies, and so on.

Here is the best intro vid I have seen so far, that actually explains the new thinking and why the old thinking is just plain incorrect.
If you are interested, the speaker (Ken Sikaris, an EXPERT on cholesterol) has other lectures available on You Tube, and there are now a lot of different books on the subject.

Brunneria said:

I'm afraid I discount almost everything that the NHS says about cholesterol. It is based on decades of misinformation after the whole Cholesterol Myth was started in the 60s. Most NHS staff just spout the guideline total cholesterol levels and try and force feed us statins if we are a smidge higher than the number they want. They should be looking at cholesterol ratios, not total figure, and they should be noticing the Triglycerides far more than the LDL. But they don't seem to have the knowledge to do that.

There is a great deal of far better, more recent research available, that actually relies on things like evidence, and studies, and so on.

Here is the best intro vid I have seen so far, that actually explains the new thinking and why the old thinking is just plain incorrect.
If you are interested, the speaker (Ken Sikaris, an EXPERT on cholesterol) has other lectures available on You Tube, and there are now a lot of different books on the subject.

Click to expand...

this is really a very informative video and easy to understand too

Hello @Grampy47 and Welcome to the Forum .

Walnuts are good - just remember not to eat too many - a small handful so as not to detail any weight loss. Any good for increasing the insulin sensitivity of the pancreas. So, win, win!

Welcome to the forum.

Test your BG an hour or so after snacking nuts. I recommend if you limit your nuts snack total carbs to less than 10g. About a handful. The type of nuts matter too. Note that peanut is not actually a nut. It's a legume(related to peas) and not many people know that. Be moderate with Cashews(so I've heard). Even the raw and unsalted cashews are semi processed to remove it's natural toxicity. Thing I find it challenging about nuts is limiting my portion size. They taste so good I tend to binge on them. So be careful there. But I am too skinny and want to gain weight so maybe it might not affect me that much. Here is my recipe for breakfast smoothie. about 20 Almonds, some cherry tomatoes(Yes, it's a fruit not a vegetable), blueberries, one avocado, and One or two leaves of Kale. Blend them well and serve. Tastes good.

Brunneria said:

I'm afraid I discount almost everything that the NHS says about cholesterol. It is based on decades of misinformation after the whole Cholesterol Myth was started in the 60s. Most NHS staff just spout the guideline total cholesterol levels and try and force feed us statins if we are a smidge higher than the number they want. They should be looking at cholesterol ratios, not total figure, and they should be noticing the Triglycerides far more than the LDL. But they don't seem to have the knowledge to do that.

There is a great deal of far better, more recent research available, that actually relies on things like evidence, and studies, and so on.

Here is the best intro vid I have seen so far, that actually explains the new thinking and why the old thinking is just plain incorrect.
If you are interested, the speaker (Ken Sikaris, an EXPERT on cholesterol) has other lectures available on You Tube, and there are now a lot of different books on the subject.

Click to expand...

Hugely interesting and informative video - thank you. First time I have really felt I understand all my readings.

Brunneria said:

I'm afraid I discount almost everything that the NHS says about cholesterol. It is based on decades of misinformation after the whole Cholesterol Myth was started in the 60s. Most NHS staff just spout the guideline total cholesterol levels and try and force feed us statins if we are a smidge higher than the number they want. They should be looking at cholesterol ratios, not total figure, and they should be noticing the Triglycerides far more than the LDL. But they don't seem to have the knowledge to do that.

There is a great deal of far better, more recent research available, that actually relies on things like evidence, and studies, and so on.

Here is the best intro vid I have seen so far, that actually explains the new thinking and why the old thinking is just plain incorrect.
If you are interested, the speaker (Ken Sikaris, an EXPERT on cholesterol) has other lectures available on You Tube, and there are now a lot of different books on the subject.

Click to expand...

Thanks Brunneria, I just try to follow a reasonable diet of foods that are not too high in sat fat, sugar etc and over two years I lost 16kg, my feet feel better without the weight and my heart seems better than it was, I can walk further and faster, my Chlosterol like my blood sugar was off the chart before treatment and diet, my bad fats where way to high, my good fats where way to low, but I have almost controlled my chloresterol. Looking at the video, I see that diet alone is not the key, but if you are prone to to the problems highlighted, then Statins and controll of diet fat, including carbs and probably beer :-( are just things I will need to look into more. I like the idea that diet is not at fault, but sadly I do not think that it is a reason to allow myself to eat too many peanuts on a regular basis Lol

Grampy47 said:

As a newbie with type 2 I am confused about whether eating nuts as a snack is a good or bad idea! Health booklet says no, diabetic cookbooks and online say yes. Help please.

Click to expand...

Walnuts and Almonds are very good for people who have diabetes, I have been told that we should not eat Brazil nuts and not to eat roasted or salted nuts.

Nuts are good for you in reducing blood glucose I usually have either walnuts or almonds about an hour prior to bed, I generally find this reduces my sugar levels on waking up so this morning as an example was 5.1, nuts also have other benefits, pumpkin seeds are said to reduce enlarged prostate in Men, and for those of us men who suffer from continual urination understand we will try anything to stop this debilitating, frustrating problem, Nuts should be a part of daily diet, my Hb1ac went from 54 last year to 42 in July of this year, I fully intend to get below that level by July of next year and Nuts will be helping me personally to achieve that.