• Guest, the forum is undergoing some upgrades and so the usual themes will be unavailable for a few days. In the meantime, you can use the forum like normal. We'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

What to use instead of coffee

ultradad

ultradad

Well-Known Member
Hi there, i did a forum check for coffee alterntives but had no luck. When i went on a day out i would have a cuppa coffee to keep me alert when driving. I tryed a cup of nescafe and my bloods were up a bit and only thing i can account for is the coffee.

What non coffee alternatives do you suggest to pick me up when out for the day. I was thinking of trying a decaf coffee and seeing if my body cant tell the difference :)

Use to take a thermos of coffee with me and have a cuppa at the services to keep me going. I drink decaf tea and i am fine with that, its just the Caffeine like boost without the Caffeine :)
 
Could it be the milk rather than the coffee? I like a milky coffee and use unsweetened soya (alpro is the best tasting), you could try lactofree milk which is lower carb.
I actually have decaff lavazza pod coffee (due to heartburn) which I really like.
 
ultradad said:
Hi there, i did a forum check for coffee alterntives but had no luck. When i went on a day out i would have a cuppa coffee to keep me alert when driving. I tryed a cup of nescafe and my bloods were up a bit and only thing i can account for is the coffee.

What non coffee alternatives do you suggest to pick me up when out for the day. I was thinking of trying a decaf coffee and seeing if my body cant tell the difference :)

Use to take a thermos of coffee with me and have a cuppa at the services to keep me going. I drink decaf tea and i am fine with that, its just the Caffeine like boost without the Caffeine :)
Click to expand...

Hi there, well I wouldn't give up on the coffee just yet. What numbers are you talking about when you say a 'rise'? Just the excitement of the day out can send a person up by a bit or a lot. Also do you take it black, as above the milk can sometimes raise it a little...or a lot if it's made entirely with milk. Try your coffee on a slow day sitting on the sofa and at a few other times to test it again. Try it with cream instead of milk. If after all that you still believe it's the actual coffee then so be it but personally, if I was a person who otherwise ate well and low carb and had cut out a few carby things I would still NOT cut out my coffee!!!!!!
 
Coffee is my drug of choice but could jack your numbers up a little as it produces an adrenaline like surge. You may be sensitive to it or as others have pointed out, a latte could definitely spike you as the lactose (milk sugar ) amounts to 2 tsp sugar (though far healthier for you than the other white stuff.
However if you are doing the right things with other aspects of diet then I really wouldn't worry about any slight bg rise after your coffee. I'd definitely rate it as a drink over chemical stuff such as RedBull, Diet Coke which can cause your body to expect sugar leading to cravings.
If you're driving a lot frequent breaks and moving your legs (park as far away as possible from where you are going) will also wake you up too.
 
ultradad said:
Hi there, i did a forum check for coffee alterntives but had no luck. When i went on a day out i would have a cuppa coffee to keep me alert when driving. I tryed a cup of nescafe and my bloods were up a bit and only thing i can account for is the coffee.

What non coffee alternatives do you suggest to pick me up when out for the day. I was thinking of trying a decaf coffee and seeing if my body cant tell the difference :)

Use to take a thermos of coffee with me and have a cuppa at the services to keep me going. I drink decaf tea and i am fine with that, its just the Caffeine like boost without the Caffeine :)
Click to expand...

You need to define exactly how you take your coffee?
My multiple coffee with double cream has little to no impact on my bloods..
Then again I make it myself at home so know exactly what goes into it.
 
Everyone is different of course, but black coffee without any milk or sugar should usually be ok. Maybe do another test for just black coffee and see if you have better luck. Failing that, black tea is good for keeping you going: you just take the bag out quicker than if you were adding milk. There's Yerba Mate as well: that's quite good.
 
Thanks everyone for the suggestions :). I have a cuppa decaf tea with a tiny bit of skimmed milk in the morning now and i am fine with that. Coffee if i have one is a tiny bit of milk no sugar.

I was feeling tyred 1 hr before my test was due so i had a cuppa coffee with tiny bit of milk and no sugars and when i tested my bloods was at 6.0 which was a bit more than iexpected as i usualy only see a rise of 0.5 after brocolli and fish but maybe the reading was off as i was expecting it to be lower.

Will do what KK123 said and take it black in morning so if there is a rise i will know its the coffee :). I could also be over thinking everything as i am knew to all this :woot:

Ps I know 6.0 is great but i had been averaging no higher than 5.5 for 3 days before :)
 
Last edited:
Was the weather hot on your day out? That can definitely raise levels a little just like a hot bath can. You say your level was 6, but what was it before your coffee? If you didn't test immediately before, then your 6 is meaningless.
 
ultradad said:
Thanks everyone for the suggestions :). I have a cuppa decaf tea with a tiny bit of skimmed milk in the morning now and i am fine with that. Coffee if i have one is a tiny bit of milk no sugar.

I was feeling tyred 1 hr before my test was due so i had a cuppa coffee with tiny bit of milk and no sugars and when i tested my bloods was at 6.0 which was a bit more than iexpected as i usualy only see a rise of 0.5 after brocolli and fish but maybe the reading was off as i was expecting it to be lower.

Will do what KK123 said and take it black in morning so if there is a rise i will know its the coffee :). I could also be over thinking everything as i am knew to all this :woot:

Ps I know 6.0 is great but i had been averaging no higher than 5.5 for 3 days before :)
Click to expand...
Ditch the skimmed milk. Try cream (not creamer, but actual cream!). Tastes great and less carbs. And the fats would slow down any rise you might get. Google bulletproof coffee, that is excellent too. Also, caffeine is a stimulant. For some it triggers a bit of a liver dump. Not everyone, but your meter might be letting you know you're one of the lucky ones. I love my decaf nespresso with cream. ;)
 
ultradad said:
Will do what KK123 said and take it black in morning so if there is a rise i will know its the coffee :). I could also be over thinking everything as i am knew to all thi
Click to expand...

Hi ultradad, be sure to come back and tell us the results of your experiment if you don't mind. If you had a rise of 0.5 then honestly that is nothing, it really isn't. If you have the strips to spare try a finger prick at the same time on two different fingers and you'll probably find no two tests are the same. x
 
Had a black coffee with no sugar this morning with 3 eggs in lettice and bloods went from 4.7 to 5.6 so everything looks ok :) Going to do what jokalsbeek suggested and scrap skimmed milk and decaf tea and goto coffee and cream. Not sure what cream to use (single,double or extra thick) but i see what you mean as 2 tablespoons only have 0.5 grams of carbs in it :)
 
Last edited:
I tend to use single cream for preference (ie in the stuff I make myself - when I buy out it's a macchiato or espresso). Double is just too rich...unless it has a shot of Bushmills in as well. Coffee seems to have zero impact on my BG anyway.
 
Thanks for the info KennyA :). I just tryed double cream with a coffee (first time) and found it ok. 0.5 grams of carbs for 2 spoons is why i tryed that first. So i had 2 angus burgers in lettice and a cuppa creamy coffe and went from 5.3 to 6.0 so all looking good :)

Will try single cream next and see how it goes. Trying different things now is nice as i was always having cuppa tea and didnt try much else :)
 
arla-lactofree_cream_250ml.png
Hi there, I use this, it's a small carton with a long shelf life (although it goes in the fridge) and is only a carb per splosh, tastes GOOD in coffee too. Sorry for the rather large image, I'm not great at posting links! I didn't like the normal single cream or double cream either but this is good. x
 
Back
Top