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So...Let's Talk Low Carb.

S

sugarless sue

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Rude people! Not being able to do the things I want to do.
This is a great opportunity to talk about low carb,how low,what you eat/don't eat and generally everything to do with low carbing.Everyone who is interested in the subject and wants to learn about it is welcome to participate in this part of the forum.All diabetics should be aware ,at least ,of this option in trying to control their diabetes.It is ,however, not for everyone and certainly requires a great deal of will power to sustain this type of diet.
 
You are right Sue, it isn't for everyone, but everyone can reduce their carb intake by some degree. Sugar isn't needed in the diet, even if it's nice and our brains are hard-wired to like sweet stuff.
Starches are more problematical, because we are constantly bombarded with messages telling us that starchy foods are good for us.
I admit now to eating low carb, 20 - 50 grams per day. I did a rough count and find that 20 is nearer the norm for me.
I have weight issues as well as BGs to control and found I can't lose weight on the amount of medication I was taking. Still my blood pressure is coming down too.
It would be so easy to give up and just take tthe medicine and eat the bread, potatoes, rice and pasta.But I'd have to ask for all those clothes back that I gave away.
 
I find it interesting, but am still sceptical from all you read and hear about the Atkins diet and the fact the Doctor keeps telling me to avoid foods with fat in.

When I had pancreatitus which admittedly was 20 years ago, I had to have a zero fat diet till I was well enough to be operated on. So with this in mind, and I know fat doesn't make you fat, fat must do something if I was told to eat zero fat, zero dairy, and zero alcohol till i had been operated on and was fully recovered?

I shall watch this forum with interest as I've lots to learn and I'm willing to try new things and have cut back on the carbs quite a bit. Having said that I had a home made pie tonight with a crust made of stoneground wholemeal flour and a couple of boiled new pots in the skins with peas and green beans, my test was 6.3 before the meal and 6.3 after 2 hours. I had expected it to be higher.

So confused again :oops: but like I said I'm here to learn from you.
 
One thing I found with carbs that I had *previously* eaten as healthy is that they take longer to make their way through your system ... hence sometimes being called long-term carbs ... anyhow, blathering aside, I tested this a few weeks ago with some complex carbs and although the 2 hours PP reading was a little high but satisfactory, I found that after 4 hours (and no intervening foods) my BG was still rising ... the following morning they were high again (despite fasting) /// so have a think about testing again, perhaps at 4 hours PP and then again either before bed - or just record whether your morning reading is higher than ususal?

xx
 
Funnily enough I had one test strip left, so tested again last night before bed. Reading was 7.8 but I did have a muller light yogurt and a small piece of 70% dark chocolate between meal and bed, maybe I'd have been better leaving till this morning? I'd not thought about a test at 4 hours. When I get some more test strips I'll try again :roll:
 
It's very definitely worth experimenting a lot to start with - and once you understand which foods are your "safe" foods (ie - ones you can eat freely without having an impact on your BG) then you have at least a good base which you can return to :) --- and then you can try different foods and see how your BGs react ... for myself, when I try something new I do a 2 and 4 hour test (without eating in between tests) and if the secind figure is lower then I know I can use the first (2 hr PP) firgure to accurately describe the food's effect :) - but I'm not an HCP and no training other than 2.5 months self stabbing in the finger (LOL) so I'm probably not the best person to be giving advice :)

All the best, J./x
 
I too am quite interested in the Low carb theory.
I have noticed for many years that less carbs gets lower BM results and if i have a hypo , i now eat carbs instead of sugar, as it works much better & doesn't have such a drastic effect on my BM,s( unless its a really bad one and then i eat everything in the cupboard lol)

However me being me i never really thought it through and just went on trusting what i had been taught years ago by the dietitian ...... 250 carbs a day please little girl . My Hba1c has always been too high really, average 9 and i do have complications. I dont think i need to lose any weight at 10.5 stone, and 5 foot 6. But hey losing a few pounds can always make a girl smile.

So i think once i have got my insulin sorted ( changing types at present) i will start cutting a few carbs and see what happens.
 
Hiya Chez, your weight does sound very healthy for your height - there are insulin using T1s and T2 on this site and some of them are very experienced low-carbers ... so it might be worth having a word with one of them if you feel like a little support and maybe some hints and ideas. I know you've had diabetes for a long time and know a trillion times more than me about it - just thought I'd mention that people are out there!! Good luck with reducing the hba1c and BGs - all the best, J/x
 
I shall also be watching this part of the forum with great interest. I'm still struggling to carb count - Isuppose all the help I will be getting from my team will give me a better understanding of what I need to be doing.

I can always roll out the lettuce leaves tho !!


Jimbo
 
I'm not a low carber, I should imagine I eat between 100-200 total in a day. At the moment my bg is pretty good, some spikes now and again, but sometimes I even manage to get into the 4's! yay for me!
My understanding of low carbs is the aim of achieving low non-diabetic levels of bg? Is that possible for type 1's?
How would that work with the law regarding drivers needing to be over 5? One of my gripes is getting to below 5 and then having to up my bg a bit so that I can drive legally.
I most certainly don't need to lose weight, being 5ft 7in and 9st 5lb, in fact I struggle to keep the weight on, do low carbers always lose weight? So many questions!
 
Guys! guys!
there still seems to be some confusion about what carbs are and sparating sugar from carbs. SUGAR IS A CARBOHYDRATE.
look up a piece I entitled Carbohydrate 101( American course style)
It's a simplified explanation of what kind of molecule constitutes a carbohydrate.
 
I eat between 100-200 total in a day.
Click to expand...
If your hbaic is in the 4s or 5s you don't need to cut carbs further than this.

My understanding of low carbs is the aim of achieving low non-diabetic levels of bg? Is that possible for type 1's?
Click to expand...
Yes. It certainly is. Have a look at the sharing success site. Fergus has a hbaic in the mid fours.


How would that work with the law regarding drivers needing to be over 5? One of my gripes is getting to below 5 and then having to up my bg a bit so that I can drive legally.
Click to expand...
A normal range for blood sugars in non diabetics is 3.3-10.4. A normal blood sugar just before meals is 4.6 if you are a healthy, young non diabetic. You can drive with a hbaic in the 4s but it is advisable to "make 4 the floor" to give you some buffer before your brain function and reactions start to diminish (some time lower than 3.5)

You should check your blood sugar before driving and after every hour of driving ( in a layby !)


do low carbers always lose weight?
Click to expand...
Many lose weight effortlessly for the first time in their lives. This sorts itself out. You can increase the fat and protein in your meals if you get too skinny.
 
New to all this low carb and diabetes stuff.

Is low carb the same as Low GI diet,. as I have been reading up on this, and its all my favourite foods that are HIgh GI, so am struggling, as can't live without bread.

T
 
Hi Babycham,
Low GI and Low Carb are completely different I'm on low carb a lot of low GI foods raise my Blood Glucose, a good place to go to find out about low carb is; http://www.dsolve.com/ .

Best of luck
Graham

babycham said:
New to all this low carb and diabetes stuff.

Is low carb the same as Low GI diet,. as I have been reading up on this, and its all my favourite foods that are HIgh GI, so am struggling, as can't live without bread.

T
Click to expand...
 
Cameraman said:
I find it interesting, but am still sceptical from all you read and hear about the Atkins diet and the fact the Doctor keeps telling me to avoid foods with fat in.

When I had pancreatitus which admittedly was 20 years ago, I had to have a zero fat diet till I was well enough to be operated on. So with this in mind, and I know fat doesn't make you fat, fat must do something if I was told to eat zero fat, zero dairy, and zero alcohol till i had been operated on and was fully recovered?
Click to expand...

Fats contain about 9 calories/gram as opposed to carbs and protein which are 4 cals/gram, this is probably the source of the "fat makes you fat" myth. However carbs are generally not very satiating

http://mendosa.com/satiety.htm

and the insulin spikes they produce cause leptin resistance among other things so their weight-increasing properties are out of proportion to their calorific value.

The pancreas also produces bile which is required to digest fats, without it they go straight through which is probably the reason for that restriction. I had a tendency to chronic squits when I had gallstones (see steatorrhea)

I shall watch this forum with interest as I've lots to learn and I'm willing to try new things and have cut back on the carbs quite a bit. Having said that I had a home made pie tonight with a crust made of stoneground wholemeal flour and a couple of boiled new pots in the skins with peas and green beans, my test was 6.3 before the meal and 6.3 after 2 hours. I had expected it to be higher.
Click to expand...

Probably your pancreas is in better shape than some of us. Mine can still produce a lot of insulin over time, just not at a high rate, so I can should I choose eat relatively low GI carbs without spiking. Probably the fat and protein and fibre in your meal slowed down the carbs to a degree that your pancreas could "cover" them with insulin.
 
fat = 9 calories per gramme ... and all those years I scraped the barrell at often under 10 grammes of fat a day ... and still put on weight *whistles* ... funny what you learn when you get a serious illness isn't it!?!
 
Jem said:
fat = 9 calories per gramme ... and all those years I scraped the barrell at often under 10 grammes of fat a day ... and still put on weight *whistles* ... funny what you learn when you get a serious illness isn't it!?!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the correction, it's been typo city around these parts recently

Message to all: please read what I meant, not what I typed. That is all.
 
ahh Mr Trink - please don't think I was being all grammatically corrective, it just never ceases to amaze me how long I spent avoiding fats and really they weren't MY problem!
 
To All Low Carbers,

I have been a high carber for more than 25 years. This is not to say that high-carb meals are better than low carb meals. What works for a type 2 diabetic is the main point.

To stay healthy, I think that it is very important for a t2d to know how to avoid hypoglycemia. Type 2 diabetes is about hyperglycemia. His goal is to reduce his high blood sugar levels to normal levels. He must by all means not overdo it or he gets hypos which are surely worse than hypers.

Bonny Damocles
Male 80 years old, 5'7", 137 lbs.
Past A1Cs: 5.2% - 6.3%
Never had hypos, no diabetes complications yet
No meds since diagnosis in July 1991
First blood sugar reading: 468 mg/dl
Control Method: D&E
No meds for any health problems
 
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