Help needed re carbs

[LizziR]

I got diagnosed with Type 2 last week, i decided to try the first 12 weeks with diet rather than go straight onto medication. I was a bit flustered when the nurse said about choosing foods below 3g per 100g - is that for carbs or carbs of which sugar please? I have no idea if i am doing it right - yoghurt and berries for brekkie, few crackers with either cheese or tuna and salad for lunch, 2 x snacks of apple and banana then dinner at night (halved my amount of rice/pasta/potatoes

 

[Drummer]

I got diagnosed with Type 2 last week, i decided to try the first 12 weeks with diet rather than go straight onto medication. I was a bit flustered when the nurse said about choosing foods below 3g per 100g - is that for carbs or carbs of which sugar please? I have no idea if i am doing it right - yoghurt and berries for brekkie, few crackers with either cheese or tuna and salad for lunch, 2 x snacks of apple and banana then dinner at night (halved my amount of rice/pasta/potatoes

It is nonsense either way, I'm afraid.
Many type 2s set a limit of 10 percent carbs of all kinds except polyols which aren't digested by Humans but are really best avoided as the flora and fauna in your guts will have wild parties if given access.
Depending on how high your HbA1c is, crackers, apples and bananas might be best avoided, or at least be checked on using a blood glucose meter.
I personally can cope with more carbs in the evening than the morning, some find the reverse, but rice/pasta/potatoes no longer feature in my diet - I would eat cauliflower, swede, courgette or other low carb option.
Each person has their own set of foods which are more or less problematic for them.

 

[Sally71]

You need to look at Total Carbs, not just the sugar, as all carbs will raise your blood sugar.
3g per 100g seems a bit over strict, you’ll find it very hard to find foods which fall into that category! The suggestion of 10g per 100 is more realistic. It sounds like you have made a good start by halving your carbs in the evening, if that goes well try dropping it further or substituting the carbs for something else, more meat or veg, or you can make cauliflower rice or courgette spaghetti for example. Berries and yogurt is good for breakfast (best if it’s natural yogurt as the flavoured ones contain sugar). As far as fruits go, berries have the least amount of carbs, apples/oranges/pears are in the middle and the ones with most sugar are the tropical ones such as bananas, pineapple, mango etc, which are probably best avoided. And grapes/raisins are little sugar bombs!

If you can get hold of a blood testing meter then a good plan is to test just before you eat and again 2 hours later and you are aiming for a rise of no more than 2-3 mmol/l, any more than that would suggest that something in that meal doesn’t suit you. The doctor may well say that this is unnecessary, however if you really want to know what’s going on and whether your diet is helping you, it’s the only way to find out. The cheapest ones are Gluco Navii and TEE2 I think (it’s the ongoing cost of strips that you have to think about if you have to buy your own). And whatever you do with your diet, you have to find a way that you can stick to forever, if you try to cut everything down too drastically you’ll probably fail. One step at a time!

 

[Martin.A]

I got diagnosed with Type 2 last week, i decided to try the first 12 weeks with diet rather than go straight onto medication. I was a bit flustered when the nurse said about choosing foods below 3g per 100g - is that for carbs or carbs of which sugar please? I have no idea if i am doing it right - yoghurt and berries for brekkie, few crackers with either cheese or tuna and salad for lunch, 2 x snacks of apple and banana then dinner at night (halved my amount of rice/pasta/potatoes

I back what @Sally71 has said and would add that it's a good idea to look at alternatives to rice, pasta & potatoes. In my case I'll have riced cauliflower instead of normal rice, red lentil pasta rather than regular pasta (40g portion max) and will mash cauliflower or celeriac as a substitute for potatoes. I also make chips from celeriac. This means that I don't have to have separate meals from the rest of the family. Tonight, for example, we're having a Tuna Pasta Bake but whereas the rest of the family will be having theirs with regular pasta my portion will be dished up with red lentil pasta. Everything else in the dish is fine for me.

 

[chaoticcar]

Finding alternative to carbs can be fun ! I have cab bol instead of spag bol .Slice across a sweet heart cabbage into strips and quickly fry or blanch to keep a little crunch much tastier than boring spaghetti .Also I top lasagne with aubergine or courgette or celeriac slices and finish with lots of cheese ,so I get most of the cheesy topping with my meat and my husband has the boring pasta .Fried caulli chopped small dusted with a little seasoning beats boring rice hands down..!!!

Carol

 

[helli]

I was a bit flustered when the nurse said about choosing foods below 3g per 100g - is that for carbs or carbs of which sugar please

I have heard of people focusing on foods below 10g or even 6g carbs per 100g but 3g carbs per 100g sounds very low unless you are eating meat and lettuce all the time*.
Given how low this is, I wonder if the nurse was meaning under 3g sugar per 100g as some DSN's seem to only focus on sugar (although all carbs turn to glucose).
The advice above about finding out what your body can tolerate is excellent advice as we are all different. For example, some people find they can cope with porridge in the morning because it is slowly digested whereas others find it sends their blood sugars into orbit.

 

[Inka]

I guess she meant sugar @LizziR You’d be better off watching the amount of carbs you eat, both sweet and savoury. Look at what you ate pre-diagnosis, then make adjustments.

Bananas are quite carby so you might want to swap that for a lower carb snack.

 

[LizziR]

You need to look at Total Carbs, not just the sugar, as all carbs will raise your blood sugar.
3g per 100g seems a bit over strict, you’ll find it very hard to find foods which fall into that category! The suggestion of 10g per 100 is more realistic. It sounds like you have made a good start by halving your carbs in the evening, if that goes well try dropping it further or substituting the carbs for something else, more meat or veg, or you can make cauliflower rice or courgette spaghetti for example. Berries and yogurt is good for breakfast (best if it’s natural yogurt as the flavoured ones contain sugar). As far as fruits go, berries have the least amount of carbs, apples/oranges/pears are in the middle and the ones with most sugar are the tropical ones such as bananas, pineapple, mango etc, which are probably best avoided. And grapes/raisins are little sugar bombs!

If you can get hold of a blood testing meter then a good plan is to test just before you eat and again 2 hours later and you are aiming for a rise of no more than 2-3 mmol/l, any more than that would suggest that something in that meal doesn’t suit you. The doctor may well say that this is unnecessary, however if you really want to know what’s going on and whether your diet is helping you, it’s the only way to find out. The cheapest ones are Gluco Navii and TEE2 I think (it’s the ongoing cost of strips that you have to think about if you have to buy your own). And whatever you do with your diet, you have to find a way that you can stick to forever, if you try to cut everything down too drastically you’ll probably fail. One step at a time!

Thankyou for all of that especially the total carb bit as i really wasn't sure which one she meant, i am having Fage 0% yoghurt as its 3g with warmed up frozen berries (yum!). Crisps are my one thing that im struggling with but hey i havent killed anyone yet and its day 4 🙂

 

[LizziR]

It is nonsense either way, I'm afraid.
Many type 2s set a limit of 10 percent carbs of all kinds except polyols which aren't digested by Humans but are really best avoided as the flora and fauna in your guts will have wild parties if given access.
Depending on how high your HbA1c is, crackers, apples and bananas might be best avoided, or at least be checked on using a blood glucose meter.
I personally can cope with more carbs in the evening than the morning, some find the reverse, but rice/pasta/potatoes no longer feature in my diet - I would eat cauliflower, swede, courgette or other low carb option.
Each person has their own set of foods which are more or less problematic for them.

Thankyou for your help, courgettes are in season so plenty of those at the moment!

 

[LizziR]

I have heard of people focusing on foods below 10g or even 6g carbs per 100g but 3g carbs per 100g sounds very low unless you are eating meat and lettuce all the time*.
Given how low this is, I wonder if the nurse was meaning under 3g sugar per 100g as some DSN's seem to only focus on sugar (although all carbs turn to glucose).
The advice above about finding out what your body can tolerate is excellent advice as we are all different. For example, some people find they can cope with porridge in the morning because it is slowly digested whereas others find it sends their blood sugars into orbit.

I don't eat meat, i'm a pescatarian. I will read the info she has given me but we don't have a full time diabetic nurse at my surgery so its not like i can even call and try to get a phone call from someone! I will ask at the next appointment in 12 weeks time but until then i will lower everything. Just very hungry atm

 

[helli]

@LizziR there is no need to lower everything. I mentioned Meat as an example but as a pescatarian, most dairy, eggs and fish have no or very low carb content and are unlikely to raise your blood sugars.
I find eggs very filling but other things to consider to fill yourself up which have little carbs are nuts and avocado and high cocoa chocolate. As well as vegetarian meat alternatives like tofu, soya mince and quorn if you eat them.

 

[LizziR]

I guess she meant sugar @LizziR You’d be better off watching the amount of carbs you eat, both sweet and savoury. Look at what you ate pre-diagnosis, then make adjustments.

Bananas are quite carby so you might want to swap that for a lower carb snack.

Yes thats what im trying to do to start with, cut out breakfast cereal, cut out mid morning crisps, more salad/veg at lunch then no biscuit in the afternoon but have an apple instead, the more i get into it the better it will be - after 12 weeks if there hasnt been much change they will put me on metformin i think but i wanted to try this first as A im useless about remembering medication and B i need to lose weight! I will start looking at lables and my dad has a book - dad is on metformin and mum is on insulin

 

[LizziR]

@LizziR there is no need to lower everything. I mentioned Meat as an example but as a pescatarian, most dairy, eggs and fish have no or very low carb content and are unlikely to raise your blood sugars.
I find eggs very filling but other things to consider to fill yourself up which have little carbs are nuts and avocado and high cocoa chocolate. As well as vegetarian meat alternatives like tofu, soya mince and quorn if you eat them.

OH great thanks, i have veggie sausages, love avocado, nuts etc - its just figuring things out at this early stage so you have all been really helpful as its pretty daunting! My mum who has been type 2 for about 30 years now said 'dont be silly you can have nice stuff' - she is now on insulin and think she forgets not having all the treats!

 

[LizziR]

You need to look at Total Carbs, not just the sugar, as all carbs will raise your blood sugar.
3g per 100g seems a bit over strict, you’ll find it very hard to find foods which fall into that category! The suggestion of 10g per 100 is more realistic. It sounds like you have made a good start by halving your carbs in the evening, if that goes well try dropping it further or substituting the carbs for something else, more meat or veg, or you can make cauliflower rice or courgette spaghetti for example. Berries and yogurt is good for breakfast (best if it’s natural yogurt as the flavoured ones contain sugar). As far as fruits go, berries have the least amount of carbs, apples/oranges/pears are in the middle and the ones with most sugar are the tropical ones such as bananas, pineapple, mango etc, which are probably best avoided. And grapes/raisins are little sugar bombs!

If you can get hold of a blood testing meter then a good plan is to test just before you eat and again 2 hours later and you are aiming for a rise of no more than 2-3 mmol/l, any more than that would suggest that something in that meal doesn’t suit you. The doctor may well say that this is unnecessary, however if you really want to know what’s going on and whether your diet is helping you, it’s the only way to find out. The cheapest ones are Gluco Navii and TEE2 I think (it’s the ongoing cost of strips that you have to think about if you have to buy your own). And whatever you do with your diet, you have to find a way that you can stick to forever, if you try to cut everything down too drastically you’ll probably fail. One step at a time!

Thanks for all of that, i will get a blood tester as will be interesting more than anything to know! My mum has one that she tests with throughout the day

 

[Leadinglights]

Testing is a good idea as it will give you an indication of which foods you can tolerate, this is all the more important when you are not able to have foods like meat which are zero carbs so need to find foods which are suitable which you like but fish and eggs are good options.
Have a look at this link https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/ for some ideas for modifying your diet, there is no need to have 0% fat yoghurt unless you want too but full fat is more filling and will help you not to feel hungry.