Some quick comments on carbohydrates: myths that are circulating, tips on dealing with them, and some surprising facts. Your additions welcome!
Myth: "Sugar-free" candy has a low glycemic index.
Sometimes, this is true. But more and more if you read the really really small print, "sugar-free" candy has maltitol or hydrogenated starch in it. The true sugar alcohols (sorbitol, xylitol, mannitol) do in fact have a low glycemic index, sometimes essentially zero. But unfortunately someone noticed that maltitol (a hydrogenated derivative of starch) is structurally speaking a sugar alcohol like sorbitol and all the rest. Maltitol is much cheaper so it is quickly taking over. Unfortunately, our bodies can convert maltitol into glucose pretty fast - depending on the exact formulation, it is anywhere from a third to over a half as good at raising blood sugar as pure glucose it.
My suggestion: if the "sugar-free" candy has maltitol either skip the candy or get the real thing - your body won't know the difference but your pocketbook will.
Tips and surprises over the fold ---
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Tips: easy to remember low carbohydrate foods
There are several categories of foods where essentially all the foods in the category have essentially zero carbs.
Protein rich foods: all fish, all meats, eggs, most cheeses, and most nuts have little or no carbohydrate. That's one reason why many folks find a hard boiled egg, an handful of nuts or a slice of cheese make excellent mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack to keep blood sugar level and hunger in hand. These foods do have variable amounts of fats, though, so depending on your family history and constitution you may favor the fish and eggs over the meat and fatty cheeses. (Keep an eye on cashews - rather high in carbs compared to most nuts)
Leafy or deep green foods: all leafy foods (lettuce, spinach, and so on) and most deep green ones (green beans, green olives, zucchini, etc) are low carb.
Coffees and teas: all zero carb until you start adding things!
Surprises
Fermented dairy foods (yogurt, cultured buttermilk) have lower glycemic effect than you might think reading their labels. That's because some of the mass reported as "carbohydrate" is actually the fermented end products like lactic acid. Those have less energy content, don't raise your blood sugar but they look like carbohydrate on the usual bulk assay.
Soy milks can vary ten-fold in their carbohydrate content! For grins, compare the labels from a chocolate soy milk to its brand sibling unsweetened. Even the regular is likely to have added sugar.
Our bodies make sugar out of protein. We do it quite well so if your body has extra protein it will use it to make sugar if it's needed. Some nutritionists think we have no actual requirement for carbohydrates.
Share your myths, tips or surprises, and let me know in the tip jar if you'd like to take a diary!
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