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Carb intake to BG function.

3K views 10 replies 8 participants last post by  MCS 
#1 ·
Could low-carb diet (say 30-50g/day) be BETTER (in terms of blood sugar levels) than very-low-carb diet (5-10g/day)? This is for type-2 diabetics.

Common wisdom would suggest otherwise, since perhaps lower the carb better the BG levels. But, perhaps, that may not be true.

What do you guys think? Any experience?

My (speculative and based on ignorance) theory is that our pancreas is capable of handling a certain amount of carbs/day. So, uptil a certain amount of carbs/day, the BG should be relatively constant/low-enough. Moreover, if we really have very minimal carbs, then the pancreas may not even be pushed to release any insulin -- making the BG levels high for very-low-carb diets.
 
#2 ·
Carbs covert to glucose and therefore it follows that the more carbs you have the more glucose in circulation, the higher your blood sugars, the more insulin (ought) to be secreted to normalize them. That should answer the first part of your post.

There are certain cells (approximately 5 %) that will only rely on glucose and hence you need some carbs for the day. However, the liver is capable of producing that amount out of the proteins that we eat. But if some carbs must be ingested, it better be green leafy or other non starchy vegetables.

My (speculative and based on ignorance) theory is that our pancreas is capable of handling a certain amount of carbs/day. So, uptil a certain amount of carbs/day, the BG should be relatively constant/low-enough.
That would be the situation in a non-diabetic person, but once you are inflicted with diabetes, the pancreas do not secrete enough insulin to handle the carbs ingested and/or the cells becomes resistant to the uptake of insulin.
 
#5 ·
That would be the situation in a non-diabetic person, but once you are inflicted with diabetes, the pancreas do not secrete enough insulin to handle the carbs ingested and/or the cells becomes resistant to the uptake of insulin.
No, even for diabetics (type-2), our pancreas IS capable to secrete SOME insulin -- maybe, to be able to handle only a small amount (say 5 g/day). Then, I meant that for 0-5 g/day, the BG levels should be relatively constant.
 
#3 · (Edited)
While I believe everything skb says, I also think it depends on each person, from an individual standpoint. I can't eat only a few carbs a day (5-10). When I do, my BG is higher than if I eat 25-30 a day. I am really sensitive to excess protein, for some reason. When I go really low carb, I end up eating too much protein and have trouble keeping my numbers down. I can sit down to dinner and eat 1 1/2 steaks, a side salad with LC dressing of some kind, and maybe some keto yogurt for dessert. My BG reading will be higher than if I added low carb veges in the mix. I discovered through trial and error (and a ton of it), that very LC makes it hard for me to maintain good BG levels (well, better than what they were, anyway).
 
#4 ·
I find VLC better than LC, I have more energy and less appetite. There is a scientific rationale for this:

Ketosis is an indication that fat-burning is occurring. If you linger just above ketosis, you are still burning a larger amount of glucose, and your fat-burning enzymes are not induced. You will thus have less energy.

I had to go pretty low carb, to get here, too!
 
#8 ·
I still don't understand how to eat more fat than protein. I get the carb part, but honestly I don't know if I overshoot on carb amount or what. I would never be able to eat 0-5 grams of carbs a day...what do you eat? Even veggies have some carbs in them...I couldn't go with eating just fat all day. I still have difficulty with cholesterol and trigs, so I'm still a bit leery of eating tons of saturated fat. Perhaps that's my problem! :eek:

I probably overdo the protein...I just get so frustrated because I eat so much less than I used to, and I eat all good things...nuts, avocadoes, coconut oil, olive oil, sour cream, cream cheese, real butter...but I am kind of lazy when it comes to baking so I tend to rely on something quick like some lunch meat or brick cheese for snacking. I've cut way back on that as well.

I don't know the answer. Sometimes I indulge in a carb that I know I shouldn't eat and it won't affect my bg's severely, but then I eat hardly any carbs and I get wham'd with a high bg. I cannot figure it out. And, to be honest, I'm really tired of worrying about it constantly. I hate when it begins to monopolize my life. I have other things to worry about and take care of. I do the best I can for myself and keep things as low as possible. But when I have a high I don't get too freaked anymore...I just treat it and get on with it.
 
#10 ·
I'm really tired of worrying about it constantly. I hate when it begins to monopolize my life. I have other things to worry about and take care of. I do the best I can for myself and keep things as low as possible. But when I have a high I don't get too freaked anymore...I just treat it and get on with it.
That sounds very sensible and logical to me.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Ansh,

Are you thinking that if the pancreas isn't stimulated to make insulin (or much of it) because of eating VLC, that it might lose that function? Sort of "use it or lose it."

I doubt very much that this would be true. There are indiginous peoples who eat VLC their entire life, but would, and do, produce insulin if they ingested carby foods.

So if you think there is some danger in keeping your carb consumption below what your pancreas is capable of producing (or what it's able to produce above your IR) then rest assured, there is no harm being done to your pancreas and it will respond to carbs when and if you consume them. And it won't be a lesser amount because of having "rested" for a while. In fact, I have found that keeping my carbs below my "budget" for a few months reduces IR (to a small degree) - at least this is what appears to be happening.
 
#11 ·
What normally happens when you indulge in a few carbs after eating a very low carb diet is your body becomes very interested in storing as much glucose as it can in the form of glycogen. So you get an abnormally low BG when this happens. You also will have built up some Phase 1 insulin because you were eating below your carb budget and not using all of the insulin being manufactured. What will happen over a period of time while eating a low carb budget is your body will adjust its insulin manufacturing so as to meet your demands. After a period of time if you then decide to eat a huge carb load at one sitting you may find your BG spiking because of the lack of insulin. Takes a few days to get things revved back up after your pancreas hasn't been used for a while.
 
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