Carbs vs Net Carbs

[mhtyler]

As a T2D I've found net carbs to be a useless measurement. How do others here feel? When I tried to use Net Carbs it simply led me down a path where I was consuming too many carbs in a day, and delaying the absorption couldn't compensate for the fact that my body couldn't handle to the total carb load.

 

[grovesy]

We don't use net carbs inthe UK.

 

[Lucyr]

As a T2D I've found net carbs to be a useless measurement. How do others here feel? When I tried to use Net Carbs it simply led me down a path where I was consuming too many carbs in a day, and delaying the absorption couldn't compensate for the fact that my body couldn't handle to the total carb load.

Sounds like you’ve been reading American sites if you’re thinking about net carbs. Our packaging already shows the fibre separated out and we just call the carbs, carbs.

 

[mhtyler]

We don't use net carbs inthe UK.

Wise decision.

 

[mhtyler]

Sounds like you’ve been reading American sites if you’re thinking about net carbs. Our packaging already shows the fibre separated out and we just call the carbs, carbs.

Living in America I do read American sites from time to time. Also, there are even doctors on youtube that discuss net carbs. Two things can be true at the same time: it can be useful for non-diabetics I think, but it also appears to be a marketing scheme.

 

[Lucyr]

Living in America I do read American sites from time to time. Also, there are even doctors on youtube that discuss net carbs. Two things can be true at the same time: it can be useful for non-diabetics I think, but it also appears to be a marketing scheme.

If you’re in America you’d be sensible to clarify that when discussing a term only used in America on a British forum

To align with UK labels you subtract the fiber then call it net carbs (on American sites) but just carbs on UK sites.

The UK does use net carbs, but it’s just labelled “carbohydrate” on packaging and people here will refer to it as things like “total carbs not just the sugars”. If someone from the UK says total carbs though, they generally mean net carbs, because adding fibre into carbs isn’t a concept that exists in the UK

 

[mhtyler]

If you’re in America you’d be sensible to clarify that when discussing a term only used in America on a British forum

To align with UK labels you subtract the fiber then call it net carbs (on American sites) but just carbs on UK sites.

The UK does use net carbs, but it’s just labelled “carbohydrate” on packaging and people here will refer to it as things like “total carbs not just the sugars”. If someone from the UK says total carbs though, they generally mean net carbs, because adding fibre into carbs isn’t a concept that exists in the UK

I'll be sure to add, "American" to my warning label.

 

[Lucyr]

I'll be sure to add, "American" to my warning label.

Great, that would be most helpful to list.

 

[PerSpinasAdAstra]

It's just semantics really. Scientifically speaking dietary fibres like cellulose are carbohydrates but these are not a digestible food for humans. In the US and perhaps some other places the 'Total carbohydrates' number on food packaging includes 'fiber' and lists it as a sub-category. Net carbs - total minus fiber - is the digestible figure, the one that means something useful.

In the UK and most other places the 'Carbohydrates' figure on food packaging does not include fibre and so all carbs are net carbs.

Fibre is good for a person of course and I believe it does have some utility for diabetics. I found during my FreeStyle Libre experimenting that some foods that have quite a lot of carbs and fibre have less of an impact on my blood glucose levels than their 'net' carb content would suggest as possible. Beans for example - there was a particular pre-packaged '3 Bean' salad that I ate a few times with the Libre on my arm and my BG stayed dead-flat, despite it having 19g of 'net' carbs in it. The same 19g or so eaten as a couple of small Clementine oranges or as blueberries produced a noticeable and significant spike. My assumption is that the fibre in the beans slows down digestion to such a degree that I can metabolise the carbs at the same rate or faster than they are being absorbed through digestion. Just a guess though.

 

[rebrascora]

And then there are some of us who must be able to digest some of the fibre in beans and lentils because we get nearly double the carbs from them than they are supposed to contain. This most likely comes down to the gut biome of the individual, and like GI values, it will vary from one person to another, so testing comes into it's own yet again rather than just accepting the guidance that pulses are a good healthy choice for all diabetics. Same with porridge!