If Vegan can why cant we.............. There is no such thing as a Diabetic Diet ????

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Jenny105

Jenny105

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iTS DIABETIC WEEK ---Every time i go into a Supermarket I see Vegan vegan vegan .... Freefrom , free free .
Ive been a Diabetic , type 11/2 for a few months , now type 2. I dont see LoCit LoCit LoCit ????? Why not . LoCit = Low Carb it . Its Nowhere .
I have to handle boxes this way, that way, upside down ,sideways all thru Covid, at risk to my health beCAUSE the CARBS arent listed on the front why not ??
Surely there are more diabetics watching their Carbs than Vegans watching out for animals . WHY isnt there a move to have Lo Carb shelves, Lo Carb areas , Lo Carb symbols . what are manufacturers afraid of
I say IF WE AND DIABETIC orgs made a great big SHOUT we could put our needs high on the supermarket shelves. Im sure we have enough buying power
 
Jenny105 said:
iTS DIABETIC WEEK ---Every time i go into a Supermarket I see Vegan vegan vegan .... Freefrom , free free .
Ive been a Diabetic , type 11/2 for a few months , now type 2. I dont see LoCit LoCit LoCit ????? Why not . LoCit = Low Carb it . Its Nowhere .
I have to handle boxes this way, that way, upside down ,sideways all thru Covid, at risk to my health beCAUSE the CARBS arent listed on the front why not ??
Surely there are more diabetics watching their Carbs than Vegans watching out for animals . WHY isnt there a move to have Lo Carb shelves, Lo Carb areas , Lo Carb symbols . what are manufacturers afraid of
I say IF WE AND DIABETIC orgs made a great big SHOUT we could put our needs high on the supermarket shelves. Im sure we have enough buying power
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Totally agree Jenny105
 
People with diabetes eat a variety of diets, including carbs. Diabetes U.K. had a campaign a while ago about removing the Diabetic labels from foods, and I’m glad they did. It was a money-maker for the companies but not that good for people with diabetes.
 
Vegans always seem to be the butt of jokes, but a Whole Food Plant Based Diet is sometimes recommended for people with diabetes, and other conditions. Also, eating less meat can help the planet.

There are more non meat-eaters than you’d think:

https://www.finder.com/uk/uk-diet-trends

“Currently, 14% of adults in the UK (7.2 million) are following a meat-free diet. A further 8.8 million Brits plan to go meat-free in 2022 (the highest figure in 4 years). This means that the UK could have a total of 16 million meat-free citizens at the beginning of 2023.”
 
Like @Inka I am glad there is no such thing as a diabetic diet. We need to recognise that we are all different and no single diet suits all of us.
On the other hand, people with diabetes are not the only people who chose to eat a low carb diet, just like people with diabetes can eat vegan diets … or even low carb vegan diets.
I do not eat meat and am glad things are better labelled nowadays. It was not long ago, I had to turn labels this way and that to check whether dietary produce such as cheese contained rennet or yoghurt contained gelatine or ice cream contained animal fats.
 
But at least now, the info is usually there! 50 years ago, it wasn't pretty instantly available.

PS I have diabetes and I'm an omnivore !
 
The problem with low carb food is that it is more expensive to produce so there is less money to be made by the food industry on it. The big companies are much more interested in producing high carb addictive foods which are cheap and they can make a lot of money selling in bulk. Smaller start up companies are more likely to do low carb products but the price of them will be higher due to manufacturing costs and in a recession it is harder to make a profit, so the economics are stacked against marketing a wide range of low carb foods both to the producer and the retailer.
 
I’m finding that the only real way of going low carb is to make your food from scratch with fresh ingredients without the processed foods in it. Processed foods including low carb processed foods tend to affect me. If I make from scratch my bgs are better. I tend to do casseroles and slow cooked stuff.
 
Inka said:
Vegans always seem to be the butt of jokes, but a Whole Food Plant Based Diet is sometimes recommended for people with diabetes, and other conditions. Also, eating less meat can help the planet.

There are more non meat-eaters than you’d think:

https://www.finder.com/uk/uk-diet-trends

“Currently, 14% of adults in the UK (7.2 million) are following a meat-free diet. A further 8.8 million Brits plan to go meat-free in 2022 (the highest figure in 4 years). This means that the UK could have a total of 16 million meat-free citizens at the beginning of 2023.”
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My girlfriend is vegan, and I did always joke that they get the whole of January for vegan focused foods, yet me with my diabetes, I get nothing specifically for me! Mind you, I wouldn't want to, because usually when something is labelled as diabetic friendly it just means it's full of artificial sweetener, which is as bad as, if not worse, than sugar.

Having said that, although I'm not vegan, I have cut out red and white meats entirely over the past couple of years, and now I only eat seafood, dairy and eggs - so I'm essentially pescatarian nowadays. I do eat a lot of the same foods that my girlfriend eats, and I would say it that 70% of my diet is essentially vegan. There's a lot of choice out there.

As for labelling, I have never found this an issue personally, and I think where a product is low carb or keto, it's generally well displayed.
 
Inka said:
Vegans always seem to be the butt of jokes, but a Whole Food Plant Based Diet is sometimes recommended for people with diabetes, and other conditions. Also, eating less meat can help the planet.

There are more non meat-eaters than you’d think:

https://www.finder.com/uk/uk-diet-trends

“Currently, 14% of adults in the UK (7.2 million) are following a meat-free diet. A further 8.8 million Brits plan to go meat-free in 2022 (the highest figure in 4 years). This means that the UK could have a total of 16 million meat-free citizens at the beginning of 2023.”
Click to expand...
Sorry I'm not knocking Vegans - far from it . Im in wonder that a relatively new movement has had such an impact. I can easily find Vegan, Veggie foods , free from but NOT low carb. It might not be easy but surely theres a way to do it. If I'm onto some thing I'll /we should contact our MPs or Diabetic assocs should start shouting , Or have I misunderstood this and diabetics dont need low carb on the whole
 
CivicFreak said:
My girlfriend is vegan, and I did always joke that they get the whole of January for vegan focused foods, yet me with my diabetes, I get nothing specifically for me! Mind you, I wouldn't want to, because usually when something is labelled as diabetic friendly it just means it's full of artificial sweetener, which is as bad as, if not worse, than sugar.

Having said that, although I'm not vegan, I have cut out red and white meats entirely over the past couple of years, and now I only eat seafood, dairy and eggs - so I'm essentially pescatarian nowadays. I do eat a lot of the same foods that my girlfriend eats, and I would say it that 70% of my diet is essentially vegan. There's a lot of choice out there.

As for labelling, I have never found this an issue personally, and I think where a product is low carb or keto, it's generally well displayed.
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Hi I'm not suggesting diabetic friendly label. As ive said maybe I'm wrong but isnt low carb what we are looking for. (i know one might have to look for fats, etc. Maybe this wouldnt solve this problem. But what i need is a low carb symbol or label. That would sift out having to turn over every soup tin, bread packet, beans, ice cream etc etc.etc Just need to pick the lo carb symbol to check. It would make my shopping and treats easier
 
CivicFreak said:
My girlfriend is vegan, and I did always joke that they get the whole of January for vegan focused foods, yet me with my diabetes, I get nothing specifically for me! Mind you, I wouldn't want to, because usually when something is labelled as diabetic friendly it just means it's full of artificial sweetener, which is as bad as, if not worse, than sugar.

Having said that, although I'm not vegan, I have cut out red and white meats entirely over the past couple of years, and now I only eat seafood, dairy and eggs - so I'm essentially pescatarian nowadays. I do eat a lot of the same foods that my girlfriend eats, and I would say it that 70% of my diet is essentially vegan. There's a lot of choice out there.

As for labelling, I have never found this an issue personally, and I think where a product is low carb or keto, it's generally well displayed.
Click to expand...
Interesting . where can I find the labels ? This would help if i missed them .
Im having to turn packets etc over and over etc to find the carbs etc. I spend a loooong time online or in store finding a varied diet within the lo carb confines. Its taken me nearly 12m to find a bread which is only 3.6 carbs per slice for instance. My reading soars on wholemeal bread. And recently found ice creams and choc ices after looking for months.
 
PS can you correct if I'm wrong on this but I thought most people should be having a low carb diet - not just low sugar -. Carbs on the whole turn to starch , turn to sugar. I believed low carb was good for most people unless they are exercising a lot or use a load of calories in their daily lives. Im all for learnning
 
Jenny105 said:
PS can you correct if I'm wrong on this but I thought most people should be having a low carb diet - not just low sugar -. Carbs on the whole turn to starch , turn to sugar. I believed low carb was good for most people unless they are exercising a lot or use a load of calories in their daily lives. Im all for learnning
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I didn't low carb even before I reversed my diabetes.
Low fat and exercise was my choice.
 
You might still be looking for a needle in a haystack to find any low carb foods even if labelled as such in big letters on the front. But you would have to define what Low Carb was. Less than 30g/100g?, less than 20g/100g, or whatever.
Can't ever imagine that ever happening or even being practical.
 
Jenny105 said:
Sorry I'm not knocking Vegans - far from it . Im in wonder that a relatively new movement has had such an impact.
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Vegetarian and veganism is definitely not a new movement. I have known vegans since my childhood and have been vegetarian for nearly 30 years. I have only come across low carb diet since I joined diabetes fora.
I suspect it is about individual awareness - low carb has probably been around longer but as the NHS is not encouraging it for people with diabetes, the number of people with type 2 is not relevant: most are not following a low carb diet.

I think it is a shame that the traffic light system only highlights sugar content rather than all carbs but I think the latest figures (at least the latest ones I can find) suggests less than 7% of the population has type 2 diabetes and the majority do not follow a low carb diet so there is not a market need. Coincidentally, about 7% of the Uk population are vegetarian but many others chose to reduce their meat consumption so there are more people interested in the plant-based options.
 
helli said:
Vegetarian and veganism is definitely not a new movement. I have known vegans since my childhood and have been vegetarian for nearly 30 years. I have only come across low carb diet since I joined diabetes fora.
I suspect it is about individual awareness - low carb has probably been around longer but as the NHS is not encouraging it for people with diabetes, the number of people with type 2 is not relevant: most are not following a low carb diet.

I think it is a shame that the traffic light system only highlights sugar content rather than all carbs but I think the latest figures (at least the latest ones I can find) suggests less than 7% of the population has type 2 diabetes and the majority do not follow a low carb diet so there is not a market need. Coincidentally, about 7% of the Uk population are vegetarian but many others chose to reduce their meat consumption so there are more people interested in the plant-based options.
Click to expand...
As a child (70 years ago) people thought anybody vegetarian or vegan was very odd, and just thought it was a funny religion and had nothing to do with what you ate. My father was vegetarian and there was a few products that you could buy, nutmeat brawn, Savormix to make rissoles were 2 I remember, but people never knew if things included non vegetarian ingredients like anchovies in Worcestershire sauce or rennet in the cheese.
If eating out anywhere the best options were omelettes, macaroni cheese or just a plate of veggies or salad.
 
Inka said:
Vegans always seem to be the butt of jokes, but a Whole Food Plant Based Diet is sometimes recommended for people with diabetes, and other conditions. Also, eating less meat can help the planet.

There are more non meat-eaters than you’d think:

https://www.finder.com/uk/uk-diet-trends

“Currently, 14% of adults in the UK (7.2 million) are following a meat-free diet. A further 8.8 million Brits plan to go meat-free in 2022 (the highest figure in 4 years). This means that the UK could have a total of 16 million meat-free citizens at the beginning of 2023.”
Click to expand...
Whilst I agree with your comment, there is a lot more to being Vegan than just not eating meat - that is being vegetarian.

Being vegan is much more restrictive and I suspect there are far less "true" vegans than suggested.
 
We are all daft aren't we! Manufacturers cannot label their products low carb, unless there is a legal definition of how much carb = low or high.

So @Jenny105 - get the law passed.
 
Low carb is not the answer for everyone, it only seems to be this forum (and the other red forum for diabetes) that seem to push this so much. As soon as a newbie joins and asks for advice, it's "low carb diet" right from the start.

I like this forum but this is a real bug bear of mine, sorry!
 
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