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Soft drinks query.

Nicksellick

Well-Known Member
Messages
78
Hi everyone,
Prior to being diagnosed with T2D no addes sugar squasg was my drink of choice. Along with tea and coffee, both of I added sugar to.
Since diagnosis I have dropped the sugar in coffee, switched to one sweetener in tea,* and am dropping that slowly).
I drink water, but it's not a favourite.
I have just heard the latest Zoe Science and nutrition podcast and have discovered that the two sweeteners that are not great for diabetics, due to the effect on bllod glucose, are the two sweeteners, (Acesulfame K, Sucralose), that are in every low sugar or no added sugar squash.
Does anyone have any ideas for alternatives?
Squashes that have aspartame in are ok for example, but I can't find any!
Or different drinks I might try that don't have a negative effect.
Thanks for any advice and suggestions.
Cheers
Nick
 
There is more than one study on line if you Google sweeteners raising blood sugar, which seem to relate blood sugar spikes to changes in gut biome. I drink soft drinks, both no added sugar squash and diet/zero fizzy ones. I know from experience that saccharine spikes my blood sugar levels but I’m ok with many of the others.
The only way you’ll know for sure if you can tolerate any sweeteners is to test yourself.
 
Thanks for any advice and suggestions.

Hi @Nicksellick my friend I wish I could suggest some other alternative for you,but I have only had Water and milk to drink the last 6 years I chose milk as contains the naturally-occurring sugar, lactose, which I was pleased to discover isn't one of the 'free' sugars I was advised to do without,and it doesen't change my numbers at all.I used to have 3 spoonfuls of sugar in my tea and just cut it out straight away when I was told I had diabetes 2 ,the powers to be said oh you will soon get used to it but I never have ,I am sure one of our friends will be along shortly who knows a lot more than me and has more experience:)
 
Hi @Nicksellick my friend I wish I could suggest some other alternative for you,but I have only had Water and milk to drink the last 6 years I chose milk as contains the naturally-occurring sugar, lactose, which I was pleased to discover isn't one of the 'free' sugars I was advised to do without,and it doesen't change my numbers at all.I used to have 3 spoonfuls of sugar in my tea and just cut it out straight away when I was told I had diabetes 2 ,the powers to be said oh you will soon get used to it but I never have ,I am sure one of our friends will be along shortly who knows a lot more than me and has more experience:)
Lactose is a sugar. Milk has carbs in it from the lactose. What do you mean by "free sugars"? I have to include the carbs from milk in my daily amount as it affects my blood sugar levels, as does fruit. We are all different.
 
Hi there @Nicksellick

I think this is one of those issues where you ‘pays your money and takes your choice’ as the saying goes.

I am under no illusion that artificial sweeteners are ‘good’ for me, but choose to consume some of them, in the form of Diet Coke because a) I enjoy it and b) I’ve established through testing that it doesn’t affect my blood sugar levels. Neither does it seem to trigger cravings/my addiction issues.

However there is a lot of conflicting opinion about their effects on blood sugars, with much of the ‘evidence’ quoted being of the ‘circumstantial’ or ‘correlation not causation’ variety.

This one challenges the ‘sweeteners negatively affect BG/insulin response’ mantra: https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/112/4/1002/5872362

And this one looks at different sweeteners and the gut micro biome - suspect it’s what the Zoe podcast was referring to: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867422009199

So far as drinks are concerned, this one is reasonably ‘clean’ - it does contain natural sweeteners, and indeed sugar, but as it is fermented, the sugar is fully ‘consumed’. I was given a free sample at an event I attended and was very surprised to like it! Ain’t cheap though. https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/nexba-kefir-strawberry-peach-4x330ml
 
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Or a sprig of fresh mint (some supermarkets sell it growing in pot to keep on a window sill), or a slice of lemon, lime or even cucumber.
Somehow these taste better still if you use sparkling water
 
Hi everyone,
Prior to being diagnosed with T2D no addes sugar squasg was my drink of choice. Along with tea and coffee, both of I added sugar to.
Since diagnosis I have dropped the sugar in coffee, switched to one sweetener in tea,* and am dropping that slowly).
I drink water, but it's not a favourite.
I have just heard the latest Zoe Science and nutrition podcast and have discovered that the two sweeteners that are not great for diabetics, due to the effect on bllod glucose, are the two sweeteners, (Acesulfame K, Sucralose), that are in every low sugar or no added sugar squash.
Does anyone have any ideas for alternatives?
Squashes that have aspartame in are ok for example, but I can't find any!
Or different drinks I might try that don't have a negative effect.
Thanks for any advice and suggestions.
Cheers
Nick

I'm sure I could get used to drinking coffee black with no sweetener but it's not something I currently enjoy. I've tried and I find I end up drinking less during the day and I'm not a good drinker at the best of times. I have found through testing my bloods that I don't get a raise from Silverspoon tablet sweeteners, they're 0.5g per tablet and I enjoy the taste. Some sweeteners do not taste great. The only way to know if it or other sweeteners would affect you is to test them yourself.

I also enjoy diet lemonade especially in summer and I was pleased to find it didn't raise my sugars. I know some people do OK with sugar free drinks and others don't. We're all different and unfortunately it's a case of testing, with trial and error, to know what affects your bloods.

I hope you find something you enjoy and can drink without the worry of a raise in bg!
 
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