@Thyroiddiabetic as a type 2 diabetic, I have two goals: eat foods that keep glucose levels below 140 mg/dl (7.8 mmol/L) prior to and following eating to increase insulin sensitivity and/or reduce insulin resistance. Eating a low carbohydrate ketogenic diet (LCKD), which is less than 50 carbs a day makes that possible for me most of the time without taking medication(s) or injecting insulin.
Everyone has a different tipping point with carbohydrate intake. phonic2k, I assume, is able to maintain a normal A1c - (is that right?; I envy you!
) - by eating 100 to 120 carbohydrates a day, which would not be possible for me because I have severe insulin resistance. We're all different.
Additionally, due to a lot of variables, how much a specific food spikes my glucose levels compared to you or others commenting here will differ, sometimes greatly. That's why we each have to "eat to our meter".
Eliminating or greatly reducing intake of sugar, grains, starchy root vegetables, legumes, and fruit isn't easy at first - (and to that list I'd add for other reasons industrial seed oils - (corn, soybean, saffola, canola, sunflower, cottonseed, and peanut) - but the results are impressive.
I still have small amounts of root vegetables, legumes, and fruit, but typically only once or twice a day. I rarely have sugar or grains. It's been two years. I'm doing okay. Last A1c was 5.4%.
If I went back to eating grains with every meal and fruit once or twice a day, my glucose levels would begin spiking into the 180 - 200 mg/dl (10 - 11.1 mmol/L) range immediately, eventually climbing to up to 300 mg/dl (16.6 mmol/L), which is not what I want.
To learn more about the low carbohydrate high fat diet, come visit us at the Low-carb Diet Forum and ask questions...
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/category/low-carb-diet-forum.18/
Oh, and thanks for posting the link to the video. We've been mislead: complex carbohydrates in the form of grains and starchy vegetables convert to glucose quickly as demonstrated by the test strips.
@DaftThoughts I'm curious as to whether or not I can tolerate boiled potatoes better than baked. Will give it a try.
A good place to start is to continue eating how you're eating now AND test pre-meal, 1-hour post-meal, and 2-hours post-meal. If you keep a journal, noting what you ate and your pre- and post-meal results, you'll gain a better understanding of how the foods you're eating are affecting your glucose levels. What you're eating might be fine, might not. You won't know until you begin tracking your results.
Oh, and as for the meat concerns... The low carbohydrate diet is a moderate protein diet, not high protein - (excess protein is converted to glucose, not what we want).
I include a small amount of animal and/or plant protein in each meal, but it's not much. For me at 142 pounds (64 kilograms), I include an egg and slice of bacon for breakfast, 3 ounces or less of animal protein and/or raw nuts and avocado for lunch, and 3 ounces or less of animal protein for dinner. For energy, I add healthy fats to each meal. For fiber and additional nutrients, I add lots of vegetables.
Animal protein, cheese if you're able to eat dairy, nuts, seeds, vegetables, berries, fats, mushrooms, onions, garlic, herbs and spices can be combined to make delicious, satisfying meals.