OT: blood sugar question

[Janknitz]

Nmvan,

Leafy greens and avocados are good potassium sources. Some people use salt substitutes to sprinkle on veggies--potassium chloride. But it's easy to overdo potassium with the salt substitutes. You can also buy "electrolyte water" at places like whole foods. That is UNFLAVORED WATER (NOT a sports drink full of fake sugars and colors) with the right ratio of potassium and sodium--about 99 cents a liter.

Even coffee and eggs have some small amounts of carbs in them (less than 1 gram each), so I don't think it's possible to have a truly 0 carb breakfast. But here's what a lot of people do--it's going to sound NUTS if you aren't into Paleo and Keto diets, but don't knock it before you try it:

It's called "Bullet Proof Coffee". Look it up. The original recipe was coffee with MCT oil and butter. Yes, butter. It sounds crazy, but it's actually really tasty. Butter is made from cream, after all. You add the fats to coffee, and then blend it up in a blender, or just use a little hand frother--that's what I use. (Caution: Coconut oil and MCT oil will do a number on your stomach if you don't introduce them SLOWLY into your diet).

I have coffee with about 2 tbsp of coconut oil, plus coconut milk in the morning. If I'm exceptionally hungry I'll have eggs or something. But most of the time I just have the BPC. And I can go to about 2 or 3 pm before I'm hungry for meal. So in essence, the people who are putting a LOT of butter in their BPC are eating butter for breakfast.

If you don't eat carbs or protein, it's considered "intermittent fasting" despite the fat. IF is supposed to be great for your body, BUT it's not something to try until you are fully "fat adapted", something that can take several weeks. So you will probably want to eat something too. Eggs are always a good choice, leftover dinner is fine. It's a good time to have some broth in the morning--sometimes I make "egg drop soup" by swirling a beaten egg in gently boiling broth. I also make egg custards in my pressure cooker ahead of time and have those for a quick, ready made breakfast.

If you don't/can't eat eggs, you have to get more creative. You can find recipes on Paleo websites with all sorts of ideas. I sometimes make a "meal" out of nuts, seeds, and protein powder for a breakfast cereal or make pancakes from a tiny bit of green banana, mixed with almond butter and eggs.

[kona0197]

Guys keep in mind you have to eat some carbs everyday. The body runs off of carbs. You would starve yourself if you drop down to zero carbs per day.

[Janknitz]

Some people CAN thrive on no carb, but they eat a LOT of fat, and whether they can do that safely in the long term is a question. Many people eat "Very Low Carb" (VLC) with excellent results. That's below 50 grams a day of total carbs.

Someone who is an insulin dependent diabetic cannot safely go no carbs (and nobody is suggesting that). If you have to inject insulin, then you need some glucose in order to give the insulin something to work against. However, if you are carefully controlling your diet, you don't need to eat a LOT of carbs to safely use insulin. But you shouldn't attempt it without expert help from a knowledgeable physician or dietitian who can help you adjust your insulin as your blood sugar comes down.

Here's the blog of someone who successfully went from dependence on insulin to NO medication, normal blood sugars: http://www.diabetes-warrior.net/2010/01/24/mystory/

[pja2013]

You should test 2 hours after your first bite of food. I'm not a diabetic but my husband is. We are in the middle of a refresher course with the diabetic nurse and covered this in our last class.

[Janknitz]

Love it! My daughter made me a Paleo chocolate Flourless cake with candied (turkey) bacon for Mother's Day dessert. We served it with a homemade low carb vanilla ice "cream" (I used coconut milk in place of the cream). A rare and yummy treat.

And my 2 hour pp blood sugar was ... 82! Awesome!

I checked my ketones after and they were moderate -high. The fat in the dinner (roast chicken, sautéed Brussels sprouts and sorrel) and the ice cream were enough to modulate the small amount of maple sugar in the cake and sprinkled on the bacon.

I love that I can eat well and with great satisfaction without fear of harming my health or my body weight.

[nmevan]

amazing…making guacamole feels like an accomplishment for me

[49er]

This thread has motivated me to get back on my previous LC diet in which I had lost about 10 pounds without counting calories or increasing exercise. I haven't been diagnosed with any type of metabolic disorder but am concerned for various reasons that I may have something.

Unfortunately, the glucometer I purchased seems to require a lot of blood and that I get it on the strip exactly right. As a result, obtaining readings has been an extreme exercise in futility big time and I am not up for trying another meter and possibly wasting more money.

Speaking of chocolate, I got really brave and purchased a bar of completely unsweetened dark chocolate. This morning, I ate 2 squares with Stevia. Not the tastiest combination but it feels really satisfying. And I was definitely not tempted to overeat.

Good luck to everyone no matter what they chose to do to improve their health.

49er

[SleepWrangler]

Love it! My daughter made me a Paleo chocolate Flourless cake with candied (turkey) bacon for Mother's Day dessert. We served it with a homemade low carb vanilla ice "cream" (I used coconut milk in place of the cream). A rare and yummy treat.

And my 2 hour pp blood sugar was ... 82! Awesome!

Congrats on the pp numbers. Your daughter made you a perfect Mother's day gift too. Nice!

[old dude]

Guys keep in mind you have to eat some carbs everyday. The body runs off of carbs. You would starve yourself if you drop down to zero carbs per day.

This is patently untrue. The only substance that your body absolutely cannot do without is, you guessed it, fats. Your brain is largely composed of fatty acids, without which you would die. The body doesn't manufacture them on it's own so you have to intake them. There is no such survival need for carbs.

In a previous post you indicated you couldn't commit to a LCHF diet That's fine, but let's be honest. It isn't that you can't, it's that you make a conscious choice not to do so even in light of evidence that it would be best for you. It's a lot like the people ( a couple of whom are good friends of mine) who say they just can't do CPAP even though they have been diagnosed with OSA. They likely could do it if they wanted but are making a choice that the effort isn't worth the health benefits. In the end most of us do in fact live in a free country.

[kona0197]

Um, no. I can't do a LC diet. My Doctor recommends I eat carbs. So does my dietician. So far, even with eating carbs, I have a low blood sugar every day and a low A1C number. So it can be done.

[49er]

Um, no. I can't do a LC diet. My Doctor recommends I eat carbs. So does my dietician. So far, even with eating carbs, I have a low blood sugar every day and a low A1C number. So it can be done.

Kona,

The issue is you do want to have to use insulin for the rest of your life? If you don't have a problem doing so, then that is fine. But if you want to try to get off of it, then I would reread Jankwitz's posts. Going on a LC diet isn't a guarantee that you will get off it but in my opinion, it will greatly increase your chances.

The choice is yours.

49er

[kona0197]

I don't mind using insulin for the rest of my life, I see no problem with that. Why would there be a problem? And I have cut many high carb foods out of my diet. I just can't see myself going with a complete low carb diet. There are other reasons as well. Some of the low carb foods I can't eat.

[old dude]

I don't mind using insulin for the rest of my life, I see no problem with that. Why would there be a problem? And I have cut many high carb foods out of my diet. I just can't see myself going with a complete low carb diet. There are other reasons as well. Some of the low carb foods I can't eat.

I surrender...

[49er]

I don't mind using insulin for the rest of my life, I see no problem with that. Why would there be a problem? And I have cut many high carb foods out of my diet. I just can't see myself going with a complete low carb diet. There are other reasons as well. Some of the low carb foods I can't eat.

Kona,

Do a google search for insulin side effects.

Again, if this is what you chose to do, that is your prerogative. But you need to make a fully informed choice and it doesn't sound like you have all the information.

49er

[kona0197]

I do have all of the information. My diabetes doctor and team went over all of this with me when I started. Before i was on insulin my blood sugar levels were in the 500 to 600 range. And even when I starved myself it stayed in that range. The insulins I take, Lantus and Novolog, have brought my levels down to 120 to 140. What side effects are you talking about? Taking insulin is better than losing a foot or eyesight or dying.