What is carb creep

[Peadair O Brionn]

I’ve been T2 for about 3 yrs on low carb . Recently I’ve noticed my bg levels going up to high 6 s low 7 s . But I haven’t increased my carbs by that much on a daily basis . . My question is can the carbs build up in yer body if you are drinking more alcohol than usual . Like over Christmas and new year and will they normalise once things go back to normality.

 

[Lamont D]

Yes, you are more likely to notice weight gain and bg rises when you up your carbs consistently.
A much more better outcome is to stick to low carb and have a treat every now and then!

 

[Pipp]

I find carb creep tends to be the ‘addiction’ that occurs when I go above my usual carb intake. The more carbs I consume the more I crave. Unchecked results in weight and BG increase. Beer is carb heavy. I guess different folk have different tolerance levels. Also, different forms of carb affect individuals differently. I can cope with a beer occasionally, like one every couple of weeks, but if I have toast more than one slice a week, I get hooked.

 

[chani111]

I certainly feel that I have a carb addiction. If I stray it gets difficult to get back on the straight and narrow and I have emotional bouts of poor me I put on 3lbs over Christmas. 1st lb is off already so quite happy. Happy New Year everyone

 

[Peadair O Brionn]

I don’t really drink beer . Mostly Whiskey and red wine . Also my weight hasn’t gone up just my bg readings . my carb intake normally is around 50 grms a day Christmas and the build up might have been 75 to 100

 

[ianf0ster]

Some people find it relatively easy to relax their carbs over Xmas, birthdays etc. and go straight back to strict low Carb again afterwards. Others fond it one heck of a struggle.
If you find it too much of a struggle, then you must try to avid relaxing the Low Carb and find alternative lower carb festive foods.
Carb creep is all too real and I thing up to 50% of Dr David Unwin's low carb patients suffered at least 1 or 2 bouts of it. But the majority eventually overcome it since the benefits are just so huge and so obvious.

 

[Resurgam]

Having been isolating after being ill with what can only have been the Omicron virus my diet has not been normal this month, but having benefitted from the sell off afterwards I am now back on track.
Carb creep usually means starting to include a little more carb, then a little more until the total amount is way more than you can cope with.

 

[Ronancastled]

I suffer from carb creep as I get away with a lot of "cheats".
Them I see it on the scales instead of the meter the next morning, that only leads one way.

I have a weight baseline I don't like to cross so that keeps me in check.

 

[KennyA]

I don’t really drink beer . Mostly Whiskey and red wine . Also my weight hasn’t gone up just my bg readings . my carb intake normally is around 50 grms a day Christmas and the build up might have been 75 to 100

Other things can increase or decrease my BGs as well as food. For example - exercise, stress, illness, ambient temperatures, etc. Yours might be the same. Someone at the link below has put together a list of 42 things he believes affect blood glucose - it's not just the carbs.
https://diatribe.org/42-factors-affect-blood-glucose-surprising-update

 

[catinahat]

carb intake normally is around 50 grms a day Christmas and the build up might have been 75 to 100

Your daily carb intake increased between 50% and 100% over Christmas I would have thought that higher levels were inevitable.

 

[Helen100%]

Well that answers what's been going on with me! Thanks. My HBa1C was 47 around 3 years ago, and after eating carefully and very well my tests over the past couple of years have been in the "normal" range (thanks again to @Resurgam who answered my first questions on here when I knew next to nothing). My weight and cholesterol levels also came right down. Recent HBa1C and lipid tests were a shock though - back up to 46 and cholesterol up too. I was confused initially.... but taking an honest look at it.... I've carb crept...a lot. At first I tried to blame it on getting less sleep, but the reality is I've started accepting lots of the sweet treats I initially cut out, and carb rich meals now and again, and a few carbs added to an otherwise low carb meal... all the time. And skipping meals - my recent googling has reminded me that's not a good idea. The funny thing is that although I clearly like carbs, I also like the alternatives. I think it was just a case of not trying. It's certainly a learning curve over time.

PS - just had a look at https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html - very clearly information