Quick question

I haven’t been on here in a while but wanted to ask a question…

I have been eating more vegetarian type meals lately in order to try and reduce the amount of meat we are eating (almost every night) and have noticed my numbers are high at the one hour mark. We had a vegetarian “hot pot” this evening with no potatoes but some chick peas (not a lot) and mostly various veggies (carrots, turnip, cauliflower etc…). At one hour I was 174 and then at 2 hours 140. I have noticed in the past if I did have meat the protein would have helped with the spike and it wouldn’t of been as high.

My question is… Are these numbers bad? Do I need to worry about eating meat 5 times a week? I’m just concerned about the fat and cholesterol etc… I know a lot on here say they have omlette, bacon etc for breakfast. Do you worry about too much cholesterol?

I’ve been doing as much as I can to reduce carbs but it seems anything over 10-15 carbs will spike me past 170-180 at the one hour mark but back down to 140 or less at 2 hours. Maybe its time I try Metformin?

Thanks, as always for your input… Paul

Hi Paul,
Try adding some vegetarian sources of protein to your meals and see what happens.

There’s soybeans (aka edamame), tofu and tofu-based meat analogs like Boca Burgers and Morningstar Farms Chick’n Strips.
Of course there are eggs, just use more egg whites than whole eggs, or a liquid egg substitute like Egg Beaters
Quinoa is a grain that makes a complete protein; that means it has all of the essential amino acids necessary to make protein
Low fat cheese and dairy might work
Nuts & seeds, just be aware that some are calorie dense

The other thing to pay attention to is the amount of fiber in a serving of beans. I find that black beans and soy beans have higher amounts of fiber and therefore don’t cause my blood sugar to rise as much as some other kinds of beans.

Cheers,
Corinna

Don’t worry about the fat and the cholesterol. By eating carbs and the resulting high blood sugar will do much more damage to your body.

Just be careful on Metformin. If you are put on the metformin er (and quite possibly the regular round metformin) that it will drop your blood sugar fast! If you take metformin, it says right on the bottle to carry it or something in writing stating you are taking it and it’s not a bad idea to carry your meter around just in case.

As for the meat thing…have you tried turkey? You can use it just like beef and remember with diabetes that nearly all meats are free of carbs…it’s only the marinating of the meat that can be dangerous. Also, if you buy like ground beef it will say something like 80/20, 70/30 etc. That is how much meat/fat ratio you get.

Also remember that carrots, peas, potatoes, tomatoes all have starch in them. So, if you are substituting more vegetables like carrots, peas, and tomatoes and beans in place of meat, then you’ll see a spike in your blood sugar. You should wait 2-3 hours after you eat to check your blood sugar…checking it an hour after you eat, means that it will be higher than a 2 and a half to 3 hour reading because it spikes right after you eat and it needs time to “level” out.

Hope this helps and good luck.

I find I can’t eat pulses (lentils, beans, etc) as they cause a gigantic spike in my bsg. Pumpkin too can spike you. I eat omelettes, but not preserved meats, ham, bacon, etc. Anyway as a vegetarian you wouldn’t eat bacon anyway. Egg is more than enough protein in that meal.

There’s much research showing that dietary fat doesn’t cause unhealthy lipids. It’s excess carbs responsible for coronary problems. We’ve been told forever to limit fat & increase grains & become fat-phobic. Read Gary Taubes.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published their research that included about 350,000 subjects. Their conclusion–dietary saturated fat was not associated with increased CVD or CHD risks. http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/ajcn.2009.27725v1

High BG effects blood lipids. I eat low carb, so my protein & fat intake increased. Like many others here, my cholesterol, LDL, HDL & trigyclerides improved by lowering carbs & increasing fat. I eat eggs, fish, turkey, cheese, nuts as my main protein source.

You answered your own question:) Eating protein helped your spikes. It’s difficult to get sufficient protein from vegetable sources without a high carb diet.

My preference is to not eat highly processed soy products & high carb food substitues that contain chemicals. I’d rather eat whole food in its natural state. While fermented soy like miso, tamari & tempeh are healthy, tofu, soy faux foods & texturized vegetable protein are not. Check out labels to see the actual ingredients.

Hi Paul, good to hear from you again!



Based on your post you are more insulin deficient than insulin resistant. Adding Metformin may help here, dont think it would hurt much, but I know it tends to work even better when you have visceral fat which I know you dont have a lot of.



I believe you have been tested for LADA which was negative and you are a Thin T-2. The other people that posted are correct these readings are doing damage to you and you shouldnt let this go on to long. A normal persons fasting would be in the 70-100 range after 2 hours or so. You are 2/3’s over that after 2 hours, not so good.



Meters can be off here too and you could actually be twenty points higher or lower. How are your fastings going and are you loosing weight presently? When did you do your last A1C? Is your meter 30 day average close to your A1C?



Eating or adding more protein likely would help you gain weight.



I remember from past posts that you were dealing with heart arrhythmia so I would check with your Dr as to how much fat you could add. Personally though I agree with Gerri, Going low carb my Lipids improved, even with higher fat intake.



May want to explore a mealtime insulin if Metformin does nothing for you. I would talk to your Dr again though and tell him/her your post numbers. You need to get these down.

Welcome back! Let me be frank and ask you, for a guy who is 6’ and only weighs 155 lbs, do you think you should be eating dinners that are “mostly veggies?” Your dietary fat and protein is not going to drive your cholesterol. I think you know what I am getting at. Meat, seafood, eggs, butter and cheese. You need to start eating more high protein/fat nutrient dense meals. I don’t worry about the cholesterol. But that’s just my opinion.



Now as to your blood sugar, you have not said whether you have a bad fasting number. That can make a difference in how you tolerate the carbs. And you should not worry about metformin, it is safe and effective. It is better to be aggressive about your blood sugar control.

Thanks Everyone…

I guess having lower BGs is what I should be shooting for as opposed to less cholesterol and fat. I may talk to my Dr about taking Metformin and see if that makes a difference in my post spikes… My fasting numbers are between 100-120, not great but not terrible?

I’ve never been tested for LADA (long story) but I have maintained 155lbs for the last 6 months now. I have noticed my spikes have been creeping up so I think my next A1C will show an increase from my last one (5.9)… I walk for just over an hour almost every night after supper.

I’m just curious how many eggs do you eat per week? I hear lots of you saying to eat eggs, omlettes etc for breakfast…

Thanks gain for your help… Paul

I generally eat at least a dozen and sometimes two dozen a week. I like to buy organic free range eggs.

Wow… I’ve been told and read that 3 a week is all you should eat bc of cholesterol… Hmmm, I know if I talked to my Cardiologist he would say to limit the eggs but then when talking about high BG people say don’t worry so much about the high cholesterol…

Dad Gummit. You posted earlier your cholesterol numbers, they are better than mine. Did you have a heart attack? Do you have heart problems? Do you have trouble walking a half block cause you get winded? Does the cardiologist claim any responsibility for your health besides your heart? Mine never did and was willing to let me die as long as it wasn’t from high cholesterol or heart problems.



You need to ask around, get the best information you can and make your own decision, but in my view eggs are a perfect food.

ps. Sorry for swearing in american.

No worries on language :wink: Because I’ve been running for 12 years and walk over an hour 5-6 times a week I could probably out run/walk most people 1/2 my age… I think I’m going to ask my Dr to give Metformin and see how it goes… If they continue to climb I might push for the LADA tests but I know it will be a battle bc the 3 Dr I tried last year were “Whats that”…

Paul

I eat a dozen eggs about every 2-3 days. However, I only eat the egg whites and try to stick to lean meats. 96/4 lean beef and chicken/turkey,etc. I have also read a lot of research stating what Gerry and some of the others have said about going low carb improving your triglycerides and cholesterol, I eat a lot of protein and fat and my cholesterol is excellent not to mention my good cholesterol being very high which is very good. (By the way when I used to eat low fat/high carb I had HIGH cholesterol at 19 yrs old 100 lbs!) So I would def recommend at your weight that you can afford to eat more healthy fats and protein. Keep us updated if you do decide to go on the Metformin as I am in the same boat as you working out nonstop and barely eating carbs to try and keep my 2 hr blood sugar normal and have been considering Metformin.

If you are worried about eating too many eggs but like the taste, a perfectly ripe avocado with a little sea salt on it, I swear tastes like a boiled egg yolk. Yum and avocadoes have some good fats. :slight_smile:

Dad Gummit. Here is the fat content of an egg and an avocado



Egg (5g total, 1.5 sat, 0.7 poly, 1.9 mono)



1 Avocado (25g total, 3.7 sat, 3.1 poly, 17 mono)



Dietary cholesterol is entirely different than blood cholesterol and dietary cholesterol has basically NO effect on blood cholesterol. And as you can see, the fat content of an egg is not really much different than an avocado.



For a good book explaining this stuff read “Know you Fats” by Mary Enig (http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&key…). Dr. Enig is a renowned expert on this stuff and was the expert who first brought the dangers of trans fats to our attention.



ps. Sorry, I said that bad american thing again.

Stop with the sorries :wink:

I don’t understand the egg being same as avocado? In your example you have it at 25g and an egg at 5g?

Just to let you know…

I decided to have 2 eggs, some leftover turkey and a couple small pieces of cheese for lunch > 100 before and 99 at 1 hour :slight_smile: :slight_smile: If I would have had my usual spinach salad I would be at about 140, 1 hour later…

Paul

I don’t see that either Paul - they are different. They have different levels of the fats.

Yes, bsc but the avocado still has more of the good fats. And Paul is thin t2 like me so he is concerned about weight. The avocado could be a good addition to his diet esp. if he wants to get more of a variety of foods in his diet. Also avocadoes have fiber which we need - eggs have none. The amount of fat in an avocado can vary by the variety too. And can have just as much protein too.

Maybe some people don’t really like the taste of eggs and don’t want to eat a ton of them and want more variety - there are alternatives you know.

The avocadoe is a good fruit - don’t pick on it. :slight_smile: At least, it doesn’t need to be cooked and you can eat it in a flash and pretty much no worries of possible Salmonella poisioning. :slight_smile:

Hi KimKat,

Unfortunately I’ve tried Avocados and I’m not too keen. We had them in a salad and I just found them mushy and having a very distinct taste… Maybe there are different ways too cook/serve?

Paul