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Confused with food!

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Charlz

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Type 2
Hi, I’m a newbie to diabetes and to the forum……I’m getting VERY confused about the kind of food I can and can’t eat. I am trying to follow a low carb diet at the moment and using a bar code scanner on a phone app to see how much carb,fat etc are in different foods…..what I’m finding though is that although I might choose something with low carb, the fat content is really high. Is this not counterproductive to good health or am I doing something wrong? I really am finding this really confusing at the moment. I’ve just done my weekly marks and Spencer’s shop which usually takes about 30 minutes….today it took twice that as I tried to check the carb,fat etc content of each product before adding it to my basket! Help!!
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Hi there , your right. It’s really very confusing. There are way more educated people then me on here that no doubt will be along shortly. If you try to learn it all at once then you head will explode. If your cutting the carbs try not to worry about the fats (particularly the good ones) your body needs energy. As you will have probably noticed there are carbs, usually a lot, in most foods these days. Try cutting back in the obvious like bread, cakes, rice, pasta biscuits, potatoes and cereals. These are big spikers. When were you diagnosed? Do you know your hba1c ? This will give people an idea of how far into the diabetic zone you are and what modifications may be needed. Do you test yourself at home and how often? Try not to get to overwhelmed at the start, it can take a good while to get to grips with it and don’t do it too fast. Your body will not react well to drastic changes and this can be really hard. Ask us absolutely anything. And yes my shopping takes much longer than it used to but give yourself that time as it’s important and will be worth the effort in the end.
 
Ahh, well with only three sources of energy in foods, carbohydrates, protein, fats, if we have to reduce one of them then the other two must make up for the loss of the other.

Less carbs, so more protein and fats. And fats are not the enemy some used to think.

So limit your carb intake to a level you feel comfortable with, me, I limit to less than 100g a day when reducung weight and 150g a day when maintaining weight. But if you can, test you blood glucose levels before and 2 hours after eating a food to see if it adversely affects your BG levels. And set a carb limit that sujits you and the foods you can eat. Its a bit of a journey finding out what suits you, so bear that in mind.

It does seem an impossible task to sort it all out, at first, but it IS possible as many on this forum can say.

Increasing your food fat intake will not harm you nor make you fat.

hope that helps.
 
The main message is that as fats do not affect your blood glucose levels then healthy fats included in your diet will help you to not feel hungry when you reduce the carbs. Low fat products are often higher carb as manufactures have to add carbs to make them taste better.
Remember to look at the TOTAL carbs not the sugar amount as things can say low sugar or sugar free but are still high carbs. The thing than immediately comes to mind are breakfast cereals which people treat with caution also prepared sauces which can also be high carb.
People look for substitutions for some of the high carb things like rice so use cauliflower rice or pasta and opt for black bean or edamame bean pasta or courgetti or other veg made into noodles. Mashed celeriac instead of potatoes. So lots of alternatives out there.
 
I was diagnosed last week and started on metformin after 2 HbA1c results of 48.
I exercise quite a lot and in the last 6 months have lost about 2 stone through smaller portions and generally more healthy eating.
Im finding it hard to find bread that has low carbs! I'm missing my daily treat of tea and cake at 3 too
 
Charlz said:
I was diagnosed last week and started on metformin after 2 HbA1c results of 48.
I exercise quite a lot and in the last 6 months have lost about 2 stone through smaller portions and generally more healthy eating.
Im finding it hard to find bread that has low carbs! I'm missing my daily treat of tea and cake at 3 too
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That was my downfall the cake with the afternoon cuppa when I retired and was at home.
Some people manage to find Burgen soy and linseed or Livlife bread at the supermarket and some have perfected homemade Keto bread.
 
I guess its all about new choices. Finding new and alternative foods or simply reducing portion size.

Diabetes forces T2's into having to make choices, even if, for some, that choice is to ignore it all and eat as before. The choices are different for everyone as everyone is different and everyone will like / dislike different foods as well as everyones bodies reacting differently to the same foods.

So yes, it's confusing, but the up side is that as you journey on this path you will be able to discover so much more about yourself.

Good luck. Journey well.
 
For anybody prepared to read scientific papers, here is one about Cholesterol (in favour of it), Saturated and MonoUnsaturated fats (in favour of them) and PolyUnsaturated Fats (mostly warning against their use in cooking).
 
Charlz said:
I was diagnosed last week and started on metformin after 2 HbA1c results of 48.
I exercise quite a lot and in the last 6 months have lost about 2 stone through smaller portions and generally more healthy eating.
Im finding it hard to find bread that has low carbs! I'm missing my daily treat of tea and cake at 3 too
Click to expand...
Well your score of 48 is not too bad at all. Sounds like you already started making changes before your diagnosis. Your going to be just fine. Hows the metformin treating you? Is it ok on your tummy so far. ?
 
I know this sounds rather critical of G Ps but they do seem to rush to prescribe metformin without giving somebody the opportunity to make the dietary changes that will be necessary anyway even with the metformin especially as you are only just on the first rung of the ladder. However it may be justified if serious attempts at those dietary changes just have not worked for you.
 
EmmaL76 said:
Well your score of 48 is not too bad at all. Sounds like you already started making changes before your diagnosis. Your going to be just fine. Hows the metformin treating you? Is it ok on your tummy so far. ?
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Only taking one tablet with breakfast at the moment, increasing to 2 from tomorrow (breakfast and tea) and 3 the week after, although to be honest, with the blood sugar readings I’m getting, I wonder whether just taking 1 will suffice. So far, my tummy doesn’t seem to bad except for a bit more gurgling, rumbling and wind!
 
Charlz said:
Only taking one tablet with breakfast at the moment, increasing to 2 from tomorrow (breakfast and tea) and 3 the week after, although to be honest, with the blood sugar readings I’m getting, I wonder whether just taking 1 will suffice. So far, my tummy doesn’t seem to bad except for a bit more gurgling, rumbling and wind!
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I could understand building up to the maximum dose if your HbA1C was way into the diabetic zone, I would ask your diabetic nurse' GP if it is really necessary and explain to lifestyle changes you have made.
 
when I was considered type 2 at the beginning hba1c was 55 and I was told to take 1 a day. Glad your tummy’s doing ok but I would ask why such a heavy dose x
 
Getting to see them or even talk to them on the phone is a major hurdle at the moment but until I get through then I think I’ll continue taking just 1 metaformin at breakfast. Thank you.
 
Can I please ask another question…..I play football, twice a week for 90 minutes at a time and it’s pretty full on…….I play from 10.30 until 12.00. As you need more energy and therefore more sugar whilst exercising, is it likely that the Metformin could lower my BG level too much and make me pass out? On the days when I’m exercising, is it better to forget the low carb diet and stock up on carbs before I play?
 
Charlz said:
Can I please ask another question…..I play football, twice a week for 90 minutes at a time and it’s pretty full on…….I play from 10.30 until 12.00. As you need more energy and therefore more sugar whilst exercising, is it likely that the Metformin could lower my BG level too much and make me pass out? On the days when I’m exercising, is it better to forget the low carb diet and stock up on carbs before I play?
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I think that you might have the wrong idea about where our bodies get their energy.
When I go out for the day with the dancers, I eat breakfast of protein and fat - usually scrambled eggs and cheese, plus a bit of salad or a tomato, drive to the place where the dancing is to be and then I walk for miles with my trolley - so I have my kit, a stool, my melodeon and something to drink but I might not get back home until after midnight and then I will eat meat, usually some of the chicken I left for my husband and a bit more salad, maybe have some dessert if there is some in the fridge - so unless there is something seriously awry, you are not going to pass out after under two hours running around - honest.
 
Charlz said:
Can I please ask another question…..I play football, twice a week for 90 minutes at a time and it’s pretty full on…….I play from 10.30 until 12.00. As you need more energy and therefore more sugar whilst exercising, is it likely that the Metformin could lower my BG level too much and make me pass out? On the days when I’m exercising, is it better to forget the low carb diet and stock up on carbs before I play?
Click to expand...
Metformin is unlikely to cause your blood glucose to drop to dangerous levels unless you’re also taking insulin. That’s not to say it can’t happen but it’s unlikely.

I’d advise testing BG before and after a match.
 
Charlz said:
Can I please ask another question…..I play football, twice a week for 90 minutes at a time and it’s pretty full on…….I play from 10.30 until 12.00. As you need more energy and therefore more sugar whilst exercising, is it likely that the Metformin could lower my BG level too much and make me pass out? On the days when I’m exercising, is it better to forget the low carb diet and stock up on carbs before I play?
Click to expand...
Just a caution @Charlz , Many Diabetics trying Low Carb find they are initially unable to 'burn' their body fat efficiently until they become 'fat adapted'. The time this takes varies from person to person, but is though on average to take at least 2 weeks and possibly to to 4 weeks. Once 'fat adapted' then like @Drummer says, you can go all day long with only 1 or 2 meals without either feeling starving or lacking energy because the body fuels itself from its own body fat.

However before reaching that state its a good idea to eat a medium GI snack at halftime e.g. not a banana (or other tropical fruit) like the tennis players do because this would be too fast acting. But perhaps higher carb nuts like cashews or pistachios or something whole grain or even berries would give enough carbs without disturbing your fat adaptation process.
 
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