‘The Riddle of Carbs’ - a new Diabetic

[LieB]

Hi everyone,

I was diagnosed with T2D around a week ago. I have yet to get any support by way of focus groups, a dietician etc via my GP. However I am not hanging around and tried to overhaul my lifestyle - which brings me to my bind - diet.

Beyond the obvious (minimise it not exclude free sugars), I’m struggling with carbs - not because I feel the need to eat them, but because I’m struggling on keeping a tally, in particular combinations. For example, one of my ‘new meals’ for dinner is 50g of whole wheat penne, with mushrooms, spring onions, 10 green olives and one chicken breast (roasted) chopped up. And a portion of steamed non starchy vegetables on the side.

Does this combination change the nutritional balance? I’ve read some guides that suggest this amplifies the carb content even though it’s only the pasta and vegetables that contain them.

And the 130g target - is this inclusive of fruit and vegetables? In which case I find the guidance conflicting - as a pear can have 18g of carbs and an apple 15g and yet they are recommended as part of the diet.

I would welcome some sanity!

 

[JITR]

I use Cronometer to record what I eat. Works out all the carbs and a host of other nutrients so you can see at a glance. There's a free version, worth a try.

 

[Leadinglights]

Hi everyone,

I was diagnosed with T2D around a week ago. I have yet to get any support by way of focus groups, a dietician etc via my GP. However I am not hanging around and tried to overhaul my lifestyle - which brings me to my bind - diet.

Beyond the obvious (minimise it not exclude free sugars), I’m struggling with carbs - not because I feel the need to eat them, but because I’m struggling on keeping a tally, in particular combinations. For example, one of my ‘new meals’ for dinner is 50g of whole wheat penne, with mushrooms, spring onions, 10 green olives and one chicken breast (roasted) chopped up. And a portion of steamed non starchy vegetables on the side.

Does this combination change the nutritional balance? I’ve read some guides that suggest this amplifies the carb content even though it’s only the pasta and vegetables that contain them.

And the 130g target - is this inclusive of fruit and vegetables? In which case I find the guidance conflicting - as a pear can have 18g of carbs and an apple 15g and yet they are recommended as part of the diet.

I would welcome some sanity!

The 130g total carbs per day is everything, any food and drinks.
Carb information can be found on packets, tins, etc and by putting whatever food it is in google and asking total carbs. Usually given in grams per 100g.
Some foods will be pretty high like pasta, rice, bread, potatoes, anything with sugar in but there are many foods which will be either low carb or zero. Meat, fish, eggs, cheese are pretty well zero as are green veg, other veg will have some carbs but will be quite low. Fruits are variable in that tropical fruits are pretty high, bananas, pineapple, mango, grapes, apples, orange, pears, middle carb, and berries with are low carb with the exception of blueberries which are middle carb.
Portion size is important.
Pasta is tricky as there is always the conundrum about whether the carb value given is for a portion of cooked pasta or a amount of dry pasta which is then cooked, so make sure you read the label carefully, But anyway many people can't cope too well with a normal portion of pasta as it is too may carbs.
You may find this link helpful https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
Also the book or app Carbs and Cals which gives carb values or various portions of a whole range of foods.

 

[martinswife]

Hi everyone,

I was diagnosed with T2D around a week ago. I have yet to get any support by way of focus groups, a dietician etc via my GP. However I am not hanging around and tried to overhaul my lifestyle - which brings me to my bind - diet.

Beyond the obvious (minimise it not exclude free sugars), I’m struggling with carbs - not because I feel the need to eat them, but because I’m struggling on keeping a tally, in particular combinations. For example, one of my ‘new meals’ for dinner is 50g of whole wheat penne, with mushrooms, spring onions, 10 green olives and one chicken breast (roasted) chopped up. And a portion of steamed non starchy vegetables on the side.

Does this combination change the nutritional balance? I’ve read some guides that suggest this amplifies the carb content even though it’s only the pasta and vegetables that contain them.

And the 130g target - is this inclusive of fruit and vegetables? In which case I find the guidance conflicting - as a pear can have 18g of carbs and an apple 15g and yet they are recommended as part of the diet.

I would welcome some sanity!

Same here, diagnosed type two about 3 weeks ago, not had any support except on this site
Is the target 130g to loose weight, maintain weight or what, ( I don’t need to loose weight). How many carbs in unlabelled products. Good luck I’m sure we will sort it out

 

[Leadinglights]

Same here, diagnosed type two about 3 weeks ago, not had any support except on this site
Is the target 130g to loose weight, maintain weight or what, ( I don’t need to loose weight). How many carbs in unlabelled products. Good luck I’m sure we will sort it out

The internet is useful for checking out things not in packets, just look for as an example 'aubergine total carbs' and it will give you the carb per 100g.No more than 130g is suggested as a good starting point for reducing carbs to primarily to manage blood glucose level, it usually does mean people may lose weight especially if they previously had a high carb diet.
If you don't need to lose weight then making sure you have enough protein and healthy fats and add low carb snacks which are high calorie.

 

[martinswife]

The internet is useful for checking out things not in packets, just look for as an example 'aubergine total carbs' and it will give you the carb per 100g.No more than 130g is suggested as a good starting point for reducing carbs to primarily to manage blood glucose level, it usually does mean people may lose weight especially if they previously had a high carb diet.
If you don't need to lose weight then making sure you have enough protein and healthy fats and add low carb snacks which are high calorie.

I was diagnosed with a low red cell count/ anemia at the same and out of curiosity googled how/if the two could be related. It appears that they are and the low red count can give a falsely high glucose reading. Anyone else heard of this ?

 

[Robin]

I was diagnosed with a low red cell count/ anemia at the same and out of curiosity googled how/if the two could be related. It appears that they are and the low red count can give a falsely high glucose reading. Anyone else heard of this ?

Yes, it can. The HbA1c test measures how much glucose has stuck to red blood cells over the past few months, and the figures were worked out using an average amount of red blood cells that people usually have. If you’ve got fewer red blood cells than the average for the glucose to stick to, then more glucose is going to stick to each one. There is another test that can be done to assess how far along the diabetic scale you are, which doesn’t depend on red blood cells, ask your GP about a fructosamine test.

 

[LieB]

I use Cronometer to record what I eat. Works out all the carbs and a host of other nutrients so you can see at a glance. There's a free version, worth a try.

I just gave this a go - it’s brilliant. Thank you very much for the pointer!

 

[martinswife]

Yes, it can. The HbA1c test measures how much glucose has stuck to red blood cells over the past few months, and the figures were worked out using an average amount of red blood cells that people usually have. If you’ve got fewer red blood cells than the average for the glucose to stick to, then more glucose is going to stick to each one. There is another test that can be done to assess how far along the diabetic scale you are, which doesn’t depend on red blood cells, ask your GP about a fructosamine test.

Thought so, my blood glucose number was 52, been struggling to reduce carbs, without feeling ill or losing weight. Think I might ask to get retested after the holiday. Mind you will have to find out why I’ve got a low red cell count. Thanks everybody hope you are all keeping fine

 

[Leadinglights]

Thought so, my blood glucose number was 52, been struggling to reduce carbs, without feeling ill or losing weight. Think I might ask to get retested after the holiday. Mind you will have to find out why I’ve got a low red cell count. Thanks everybody hope you are all keeping fine

Yes you need to get your anaemia sorted out, all it may need is some medication like iron tablets.
Make sure you are eating enough protein and healthy fats if you are losing weight that you don't need to. Eggs, avocado, nuts are all good to have.
You may have reduced your carbs too quickly and your body need to adjust to lower blood glucose levels.

 

[SB2015]

50g of whole wheat penne

When I wanted to reduce my carbs I cut out wheat pasta (60g carbs per 100) , and use Edamame and soya bean pasta (14g carbs per 100). There is also black bean spaghetti. These work well as carriers for my bolognaise, taste fine and cut the carbs massively.

It is worth looking for other swaps you can do to reduce carbs. For choosing veg I found this helpful:
If it grows in the ground - high carbs (potatoes, swede, parsnips, …)
If it grows above the ground -medium carbs (green beans, peas, …)
If it grows on the ground -low carb (lettuce, celery, …)
It is the portion size that will set the amount of carbs you are eating but some swaps can give you bigger portions of lower carb options.

I am a big fan of my spiraliser. I spiralise carrots and courgettes and use as a stir fry or raw as a salad. This looks like a big meal, is tasty and few carbs.

 

[Proud to be erratic]

The internet is useful for checking out things not in packets, just look for as an example 'aubergine total carbs' and it will give you the carb per 100g.No more than 130g is suggested as a good starting point for reducing carbs to primarily to manage blood glucose level, it usually does mean people may lose weight especially if they previously had a high carb diet.
If you don't need to lose weight then making sure you have enough protein and healthy fats and add low carb snacks which are high calorie.

But be aware if searching for carb content from the Internet that the US sites include the carb value of fibers [note the US spelling] and you are expected to deduct fibers, since they don't digest so don't add to the potential glucose release. UK sites give carb content with fibres (UK spelling) already deducted. This might seem pedantic, but some apps helping with carb counting come from the US. I have a couple of UK supermarkets readily available in my browser and routinely just go to one of these; each supermarket site has its unique quirks - so it's easier to use a site you are already accustomed to using. Carbs are in nutritional data.

 

[Charl]

Try the nutracheck app....gives you lots of info regarding carbs in foods.

 

[Proud to be erratic]

Try the nutracheck app....gives you lots of info regarding carbs in foods.

And created in UK, originally using UK Barcodes off UK packaging.

 

[Dragonheart]

Can I just add a word of caution to newbies about carb counting.

Here in the uk, Europe and Australasia we count carbs. The amount of fibre is listed and counted entirely separately on labels and in recipes. Unless you’re concerned with the speed of carbs (likely for insulin dosing purposes) largely ignore the “of which sugars” line. Sugar is just one type of carb and it’s already included in our carb numbers above it

In the USA (where much low carb info is sourced) they count total carbs, meaning they include fiber in the count and then make deductions of that fiber to get net carbs (ie what we here in the uk count and call simply carbs).

Much confusion is had over this single issue. People end up deducting fibre twice or including it unnecessarily. The spelling helps identifying which method is being used and often the indentation/wording on a nutritional panel. If it’s indented under “total” carbs, or says “of which” fiber it’s been included in the carb count. If it’s got a line all of its own spelled fibre is already separated.

Then to add to the confusion further some UK people use the wording “total carbs” to mean including the sugar - rather than fibre as per the US usage of the term.

Some labels also deduct sugar alcohols for net carbs values. Danger lies in this as not all sugar alcohols act the same and some cause as much blood glucose rise as actual sugar. Eg maltitol does it to many whereas erythritol almost never does. Check your personal response against a meter before deciding whether to count them or not.

And be cautious of carb counting apps that are users supplied numbers. Often it’s not clear which method they are using or if they have calculated correctly themselves. Use packets and create your own favourites or be sure of your source.

 

[JJay]

And created in UK, originally using UK Barcodes off UK packaging.

And the app can scan the barcodes on packaging, which is a lot easier than squinting at the tiny-print nutrition panels!