I am male aged 87 and have been type 2 for many years. I have a normal Type 2 diet, avoiding sugars and carbohydrates where possible and am considering replacing normal semi skimmed cows milk with "Apro Oat or Almond No Sugars" with my morning cereals. For tea and coffee I will continue to use cows milk. I have looked up milk alternatives online for type 2 diabetics to see if they are ok but most of them (at least those I have read so far) will only say they are good for "Vegans". It does not mention Type 2 diabetics. I appreciate that cows milk has some benefits over Apro milk but surely the fact that the latter contains about the same carbohydrates but with no sugars must be beneficial to Diabetics. Can someone enlighten me please.
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Type 2 and Apro " No Sugars"
- Thread starter Bernie 2
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Kaylz
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You say you have a normal Type 2 diet and avoid carbohydrates where you can but then mention you have cereal, most of the Type 2's on the forum had to give up cereal as it caused significant spikes in BG so personally I'd be more wary of the carbs in cereal rather than in cows milk
The alternatives wouldn't mention about diabetics as there is no need to mention it and foods cannot be labelled as suitable for diabetics
As it's total carbs diabetics struggle to tolerate then for purposes of milk especially sugar value is irrelevant as it only really determines how fast it may spike your BG
I used to use Alpro unsweetened almond milk which has no carbs but just use cow's milk now as it gets rather expensive buying alternatives when I don't really have to
The alternatives wouldn't mention about diabetics as there is no need to mention it and foods cannot be labelled as suitable for diabetics
As it's total carbs diabetics struggle to tolerate then for purposes of milk especially sugar value is irrelevant as it only really determines how fast it may spike your BG
I used to use Alpro unsweetened almond milk which has no carbs but just use cow's milk now as it gets rather expensive buying alternatives when I don't really have to
Inka
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Hi @Bernie 2 🙂 The Suitable for Vegans label you mention is only to let vegans know that this is an approved food for them that does not contain animal products of any kind. That’s why diabetes isn’t mentioned - someone with diabetes can follow a variety of diets.
You ask about Alpro milks. As well as considering the carbs, it’s a question of taste - that is, which do you prefer? I use Koko coconut milk (don’t worry - it doesn’t taste coconutty). The unsweetened version of Koko has 0.3g carbs per 100ml and is much lower than cows milk.
There are also environmental considerations eg some people avoid almond milk because of the amount of water involved in its production.
Why not buy a few over the next few weeks and see which you prefer? Be aware there are usually both fresh versions and longlife versions and the packaging can look similar. So do make sure you know which you’ve got and follow the storage instructions.
You ask about Alpro milks. As well as considering the carbs, it’s a question of taste - that is, which do you prefer? I use Koko coconut milk (don’t worry - it doesn’t taste coconutty). The unsweetened version of Koko has 0.3g carbs per 100ml and is much lower than cows milk.
There are also environmental considerations eg some people avoid almond milk because of the amount of water involved in its production.
Why not buy a few over the next few weeks and see which you prefer? Be aware there are usually both fresh versions and longlife versions and the packaging can look similar. So do make sure you know which you’ve got and follow the storage instructions.
rebrascora
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Hi
I wonder if you have a proper understanding of carbohydrates because your breakfast cereal is likely to have far more carbs in it than the type of milk you use with it. I know that the thinking was focused on reducing sugars in the diet for many years with diabetes but it is all carbohydrates which turn to glucose and get absorbed into the blood stream and your cereal will be about 60% carbohydrate whereas the milk will be about 5% so the cereal is the thing you should be looking to replace rather than worrying about the milk if you want to reduce your carbohydrate intake.
Many of us have Full fat Greek style natural yoghurt for breakfast with a few berries and some mixed seeds and/or chopped nuts as a lower carb alternative..... or eggs are a great choice however you like them as they are pretty much carb free. If you restrict your self to just one slice of bread/toast with the eggs you have probably reduced your breakfast carb intake by more than half, so those might be better options than worrying about the type of milk you use.
I wonder if you have a proper understanding of carbohydrates because your breakfast cereal is likely to have far more carbs in it than the type of milk you use with it. I know that the thinking was focused on reducing sugars in the diet for many years with diabetes but it is all carbohydrates which turn to glucose and get absorbed into the blood stream and your cereal will be about 60% carbohydrate whereas the milk will be about 5% so the cereal is the thing you should be looking to replace rather than worrying about the milk if you want to reduce your carbohydrate intake.
Many of us have Full fat Greek style natural yoghurt for breakfast with a few berries and some mixed seeds and/or chopped nuts as a lower carb alternative..... or eggs are a great choice however you like them as they are pretty much carb free. If you restrict your self to just one slice of bread/toast with the eggs you have probably reduced your breakfast carb intake by more than half, so those might be better options than worrying about the type of milk you use.
D
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@rebrascora @Kaylz after being diabetic for many years and making it to 87, I reckon the op has a better understanding of type 2 diabetes than the rest of us to be honest. No need for the lecture. Clearly cereals work for many of us. Many of us are happy on them, or Weetabix, or porridge, or Muesli.
As to answering the question @Bernie 2 actually asked, I've used Alpro oat milk, but went back to semi skimmed.
the real advantage is it is low in saturated fats, and better for cholesterol. I even made yoghurt out of it.
I switched back as I cut saturated fats out in most other foods.
As to answering the question @Bernie 2 actually asked, I've used Alpro oat milk, but went back to semi skimmed.
the real advantage is it is low in saturated fats, and better for cholesterol. I even made yoghurt out of it.
I switched back as I cut saturated fats out in most other foods.
Kaylz
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FYI I was not lecturing just questioning as was confused as to why anyone would be concerned about milk given the use of cereal and also wondering about the avoidance of carbs where possible yet carbs for breakfast when most are more insulin resistant then
But if you take a look at the OP's other posts with an hba1c of 70.5 which has apparently been the OP's average over the years then maybe the cereal isn't the best idea to be continuing with
I am not a fan of low carb pushing but the cereal is to be of more concern than the milk and there could be adjustments made to lower the hba1c
Thank you for all your replies which are appreciated but just too numerous for me to answer individually. However, I fully understand that I should change from Cereals to something else but I have enjoyed cereals for breakfast for at least 65 years or more and I do not wish to change now. All I really wanted to know was whether Apro No Sugars was better for type 2 diabetics than semi skimmed cows milk, as I could not find the answer online. The fact that it may cost more or taste differently is up to me, so is having cereals with Aspro No Sugars more beneficial for Type 2 diabetics than semi skimmed cows milk, ignoring cost, sugar spikes etc?
D
Deleted member 21371
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Personally, yes.
Less fat, less saturated fat, less calories, so it's a winner all around for me.
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