Diabetes

[daugen]

I've tried black coffee, can't do it. And I drink a 12 cup pot of coffee each day, each mug is 2-3 cups, so I'm dumping four teaspoons of sugar/substitute in me every day.
Will buy some Stevia next time I'm in the store. Thanks

 

[daugen]

If I were to eat three life sustaining foods that were
low carb but not from animals or fish
and were satisfying...
what should I eat?

And I'm not a cow....I don't consider a salad life sustaining...though I like them. Of course it's what you put on top
that can make it a real meal.

As I'm thinking about going down and boiling a dozen chicken eggs for future use...
might make an exception for eggs. Not a critter yet.
And a great source of protein.

but what else if I want to cut down on the large amount of meat I eat?

 

[MinnesotaEric]

I've tried black coffee, can't do it. And I drink a 12 cup pot of coffee each day, each mug is 2-3 cups, so I'm dumping four teaspoons of sugar/substitute in me every day.
Will buy some Stevia next time I'm in the store. Thanks

Try using butter instead.

 

[daugen]

Try using butter instead.

Now I'd ask if you were kidding, but I don't think you are...
Add an oil to calm the waters. Different way of disguising the bite of coffee.
Wow, that would be a stretch to try butter.

Do you like it? Thanks

 

[Clay45]

As a diabetic since 1987 I find this one of the most informative threads on the subject I've seen. And thanks for the link to the excellent video Eric.

Regards,

Clay

 

[JamesHW]

At 62 I have managed to not develop diabetes, though it plagued my father for 60 years until his death at 81. The theory was he developed it after he flipped a Model T while learning to drive and injured his pancreas. The disease prevented him from enlisting in any service after Pearl Harbor (including the Merchant Marine) despite being a sergeant in the NG in the years running up to the war. My younger sister developed very difficult to control diabetes after the birth of her son and was the cause of a bad car accident that left her in a coma for a year to which she eventually succumbed.

I admittedly have a sweet tooth, but have managed to lower consumption a lot by cutting out sweet drinks and have taken my coffee black since working as a PI in the 70's. I drink at least 6 cups a day. Gave up smoking when I married 25 years ago (she threatened to take it up if I did not).

Mainly wanted to contribute my experience on exercise. A few years before my recent retirement I decided to try to lose weight and started walking the seven flights up to my office every day instead of the elevator. At first I would be winded and had to pause to rest. After a few months I could walk up at a steady pace and was working on running up the stairs when they moved my office to a secure building where you could not access stairs except to walk down. Gyms have never worked well for me, although I do like weight training. Never liked jogging, bicycles or treadmills, then I discovered rowing machines and invested in a Water Rower. Not inexpensive, we found it worked well for our lifestyle, is quiet and does not take up much space in our small house and has been a great investment in our health. Easy on the knees, it really works the muscles (something like 80%) and I do some push-ups to round out the workout. It has been such a boon to weight loss and allowing me to go from having a substantial gut to developing the start of a six-pack. Worth every penny.

 

[PhysAssist]

At 62 I have managed to not develop diabetes, though it plagued my father for 60 years until his death at 81. The theory was he developed it after he flipped a Model T while learning to drive and injured his pancreas. The disease prevented him from enlisting in any service after Pearl Harbor (including the Merchant Marine) despite being a sergeant in the NG in the years running up to the war. My younger sister developed very difficult to control diabetes after the birth of her son and was the cause of a bad car accident that left her in a coma for a year to which she eventually succumbed.

I admittedly have a sweet tooth, but have managed to lower consumption a lot by cutting out sweet drinks and have taken my coffee black since working as a PI in the 70's. I drink at least 6 cups a day. Gave up smoking when I married 25 years ago (she threatened to take it up if I did not).

Mainly wanted to contribute my experience on exercise. A few years before my recent retirement I decided to try to lose weight and started walking the seven flights up to my office every day instead of the elevator. At first I would be winded and had to pause to rest. After a few months I could walk up at a steady pace and was working on running up the stairs when they moved my office to a secure building where you could not access stairs except to walk down. Gyms have never worked well for me, although I do like weight training. Never liked jogging, bicycles or treadmills, then I discovered rowing machines and invested in a Water Rower. Not inexpensive, we found it worked well for our lifestyle, is quiet and does not take up much space in our small house and has been a great investment in our health. Easy on the knees, it really works the muscles (something like 80%) and I do some push-ups to round out the workout. It has been such a boon to weight loss and allowing me to go from having a substantial gut to developing the start of a six-pack. Worth every penny.

Sorry about your family, but it sounds like you really have it all together- don't fret the coffee unles it gives you palpitations or headaches, because all the GOOD evidence from well done studies supports the antioxident profile of coffee for preventing many cancers and slowing dementia, if not outright preventing it.

 

[dmccarty]

...

The one thing you said that makes no kind of sense to me, is a blood test that somehow can show your intake of "refined carbs", I have been a physician assistant, nationally board certified in family practice and also a certified Diabetes Educator for the past 23 years, so if there was such a test, I would know about it.

On the lab results, my ALT(SGPT) was high and the doctor said that suggests too much refined carbs. :confused3:

Later,
Dan

 

[PhysAssist]

On the lab results, my ALT(SGPT) was high and the doctor said that suggests too much refined carbs. :confused3:

Later,
Dan

Hi Dan,

Well, now at least I understand to what you are referring, but ALT, like AST is a liver enzyme level, and while it can be released in many circumstances, elevated refined carbohydrate intake isn't one of them.

Elevated liver enzymes - Mayo Clinic

Many diseases and conditions can contribute to elevated liver enzymes.

Your doctor determines the specific cause of your elevated liver enzymes by reviewing your medications, your signs and symptoms and, in some cases, other tests and procedures.

More common causes of elevated liver enzymes include:

Certain prescription medications, including statin drugs used to control cholesterol
Drinking alcohol
Heart failure
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis C
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Obesity
Over-the-counter pain medications, particularly acetaminophen (Tylenol, others)

Other causes of elevated liver enzymes may include:
Alcoholic hepatitis*(severe liver inflammation caused by excessive alcohol consumption)
Autoimmune hepatitis*(liver inflammation caused by an autoimmune disorder)
Celiac disease*(small intestine damage caused by gluten)
Cirrhosis*(early stages of liver scarring)
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection
Dermatomyositis*(inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness and skin rash)
Epstein-Barr virus
Gallbladder inflammation (cholecystitis)
Heart attack
Hemochromatosis*(too much iron stored in your body)
Hypothyroidism
Liver cancer
Mononucleosis
Pancreatitis*(pancreas inflammation)
Polymyositis*(inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness)
Toxic hepatitis*(liver inflammation caused by drugs or toxins)
Wilson's disease*(too much copper stored in your body)

I recently had an elevated ALT level, and although it was minor, it remained elevated when a non-fasting level was taken (my PCP felt that because I was fasting for the first labs, I might have been a little dehydrated, and that had caused the elevation), now I am getting scheduled for an abdominal ultrasound and more labs.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Now I'd ask if you were kidding, but I don't think you are...
Add an oil to calm the waters. Different way of disguising the bite of coffee.
Wow, that would be a stretch to try butter.

Do you like it? Thanks

Hot coffee, slab of butter and a whisk and it isn't bad at all.

 

[brown40]

Eggs are perfect for added protein, there's a huge selection of tofu/soy products as well. Powdered milk can be added to many items as well. Theres a tremendous variety of cheeses that add a lot of flavor and protein. Cottage cheese, cheese, and chickpeas/legumes/beans on a salad make it more substantial. Getting extra, easy protein is much harder when people don't eat meat/already have failing kidneys. Easiest way is adding boiled eggs to the diet--as you identified. Inflammation from elevated sugars and oxidation needs to be quieted. I am not an advocate of Atkins diet, but the dietary plan is great for keeping the glycemic index down.

 

[daugen]

but I thought the chickpeas and beans Brown were loaded with carbs, so there clearly is a tradeoff. But I'm thinking those are "good" carbs, like "good" fat...
Now I love cheese, that's easy to eat but I thought that was loaded with fat....hmmmm, not worrying about so much fat anymore.
Wow it is sure hard to get rid of 30 years of indoctrination...

 

[wngsprd]

Drew, I've been drinking coffee black since I was 18, so I don't like it with sugar. But since I started roasting coffee I've found some varieties that have a natural sweetness (no added flavors), with either fruity flavors, or chocolate, or brown sugar. These coffees are often not bitter, but depends on the level of roast/darkness, and they need to be fresh, and ground just before brewing. For instance, this morning I made a mug of a coffee from beans from Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia that tastes like blueberries.

If you have a craft coffee or specialty coffee house nearby, ask them to brew you a cup of their sweetest, least bitter beans and see if it makes a difference for you.

 

[daugen]

Drew, I've been drinking coffee black since I was 18, so I don't like it with sugar. But since I started roasting coffee I've found some varieties that have a natural sweetness (no added flavors), with either fruity flavors, or chocolate, or brown sugar. These coffees are often not bitter, but depends on the level of roast/darkness, and they need to be fresh, and ground just before brewing. For instance, this morning I made a mug of a coffee from beans from Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia that tastes like blueberries.

If you have a craft coffee or specialty coffee house nearby, ask them to brew you a cup of their sweetest, least bitter beans and see if it makes a difference for you.

what a great idea Billie, thanks. I know that coffee will be more expensive per pound, but the Splenda blend is five bucks a pound and that would disappear.
Funny, one of my oldest and closest friends is in the coffee business, and for a long time he didn't like drinking it. He wasn't in the high end area, just the commercial
end with machines of various complexities, some quite computerized and gadgety. I know he could get coffee for me. But then, just about anything is available online.

I will see if there are any coffee blenders in the next town over, college town, more likely than here. But with just me, don't want to buy too much at a time.
Now I've read I'm supposed to keep coffee beans out of the fridge or freezer instead of in. Confusing... vacupac?

 

[dmccarty]

Hi Dan,

Well, now at least I understand to what you are referring, but ALT, like AST is a liver enzyme level, and while it can be released in many circumstances, elevated refined carbohydrate intake isn't one of them.
...

The Doc wrote the comment on the lab results so I don't have to remember, and thus forget/misremember, what he said. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

From the list and link, none of those issues would explain my ALT number except for needing to loose 15-20 pounds and drinking beer. I stopped drinking beer except on Saturday night, and maybe Sunday night, and reduced my otherwise minimal refined carb intake so it will be interesting to redo the blood work.

Before I saw the doctor, I knew I had gained weight from being on vacation for three weeks and the only way I could have gained weight was from beer calories. I eat more at work because I eat "lunch" which is nuts, dried fruit and dried veggies that I snack on during the day. At home, I seldom eat "lunch" and if I do, it is a handful of peanuts or nuts and no where near what I eat at work. My exercise level was about the same at home compared to work so the only way I could have gained weight was mostly from calorie consumption, and since I was not eating my normal "lunch" calories, and I eat less at home, the only extra calories would be, The Beer....

I am not talking drinking a six pack at night either, just a couple of beers but those calories add up even though I sure would not expect it to add up like it did. :confused3: And beer is refined carbs. Tis the only explanation I have for the ALT number.

I know what my level of exercise was about the same because I wear a Fitbit and I track my daily workout. I might have done a bit less on vacation but not by much. So why the weight gain? It has to be the beer and a bit less burned exercise calories. :confused3: I was pondering this before the doc visit and figured I have to do what I used to do, drink CO2 water instead of beer with dinner, but I had gotten out of the CO2 water habit. So now I am back to CO2 water, I drink almost a liter a night :shocked: plus regular tap water at work, and an increase in my daily walks by at least 20%. Beer only for our Saturday Murder Mysteries. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

The only regularly refined carbs in my diet at the start of the year where the sugar used to dry the pineapple I eat, a bit of sugar in the coffee, a few pieces of chocolate at night and beer. I seldom eat bread, rice or pasta, even though I love all of them. I get rice in sushi from time to time and bread on a burger or a biscuit. Now the beer is gone, and I drastically cut back on the pineapple.

Our scale recently fell to pieces, literally, so I don't know my weight but I do know that at the first of the year, the widest hole in my belt was getting tight. Now I can use the second hole and squeeze into the third so I know I am loosing weight. And loosing weight where it really counts, my waist line. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

If the insurance will pay for blood work twice a year I would like to redo the tests otherwise I will wait a year to see the ALT number.

Later,
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

....
Now I've read I'm supposed to keep coffee beans out of the fridge or freezer instead of in. Confusing... vacupac?

I went through a time where I was buying different coffee been varieties, grinding them as needed and storing the beans in air tight jars in the freezer....

One year I went to my parents and I had to use the coffee they had in the house. It was an old can of Folgers Gourmet that was sitting open under the sink. I had to use a perculator that is older than I am as well. ALL bad things to do with coffee...

Coffee was good. Real good.

The beans I had been buying were a PTIA. Very inconsistent in taste and availability. Guess what? Folgers Gourmet is almost always on the shelf and far cheaper! Guess what I buy now? :laughing::laughing::laughing: I do keep the unused coffee in a sealed container in the freezer. :confused3:

Two keys to good coffee is water temperature, boiling water makes the coffee acidic, and good water. I took my coffee maker on vacation to get the right water temperature but the coffee was not good even though it was Folgers. It was the water. We always take water on our trips so I used water from home and everything was right with the world again. :thumbsup::laughing::laughing::laughing:

I do use heavy cream in the coffee and sugar but I cut back by a third on the sugar and I can barely taste the difference.

Later,
Dan

 

[wngsprd]

what a great idea Billie, thanks. I know that coffee will be more expensive per pound, but the Splenda blend is five bucks a pound and that would disappear.
Funny, one of my oldest and closest friends is in the coffee business, and for a long time he didn't like drinking it. He wasn't in the high end area, just the commercial
end with machines of various complexities, some quite computerized and gadgety. I know he could get coffee for me. But then, just about anything is available online.

I will see if there are any coffee blenders in the next town over, college town, more likely than here. But with just me, don't want to buy too much at a time.
Now I've read I'm supposed to keep coffee beans out of the fridge or freezer instead of in. Confusing... vacupac?

My suggestion is for a transition to drinking no sugar added coffee...no black coffee will taste as sweet as that when a spoonful of sugar has been added. but some of the natural flavors can taste better, in my opinion. May take a week or two to start enjoying it black, or maybe never. Just don't buy dark roast, which burns off the sugars. A coffee bean's chemical make up contains from 6 to 9% sucrose.

Most coffee roasters discourage freezing or refrigerating coffee...temp/humidity changes aren't good. Just store in an airtight container in a dark cabinet...no sun, and buy only what you can drink in a week or two.

It might be more a hassle than it's worth, as Dan suggests, but you may discover some tastes you've never imagined could be found in coffee.

 

[brown40]

My apologies--forgot the context of adding protein was within the larger diabetes problem. Legumes are loaded with carbs.

 

[EarPlug]

And Peanuts are legumes (not nuts). 24 grams of carb per cup.

 

[PhysAssist]

My apologies--forgot the context of adding protein was within the larger diabetes problem. Legumes are loaded with carbs.

However, they are complex carbs, taken in with protein and other phytonutrients, and as such should have a very low glycemic index (won't be as likely to affect your BG negatively.

https://www.cardiosmart.org/News-an...l-and-reduce-cardiovascular-risk-in-diabetics

The conclusion:

"So for patients with diabetes, the take-home message is that diet can be extremely important in controlling blood sugar levels. Incorporating foods into the diet that are full of fiber and have a lower glycemic index can help control blood sugar and improve heart health. In general, both legumes and whole wheat products have a lower glycemic index than many other foods and it’s important that patients with diabetes try to eat more foods with a lower glycemic index to aid in blood sugar control and reduce cardiovascular risk."