Net Carbs???

SCAPER · #1 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 12:19 PM

So just trying to figure out what I can eat now. This is difficult. But I went to the low-carb store close by and found a bunch of good stuff. So I am a little happier now, having found foods that I can eat.

But what's the deal with this NET carbs stuff? Back when I was doing Atkins years ago you just counted carbs - that's it. Now somehow if you add fiber to the food then they offset the carbs??? I dunno. That seems suspect. There were all these foods there that were fairly high in carbs (16g or 20g of carbs) but then once you subtracted the fiber, they'd have a NET carb of only 3g.

That might work for people on the Zone diet, but does that trick really work for diabetics? I mean, with that logic, I could go eat a hershey's bar as long as I took some ex-lax or metamucil at the same time.

I will say there were some foods that had a total carb count of like 10g but then 9g of that was sugar alchohol or something like that. So maybe sugar alchohols don't affect diabetics? I guess if that's true, then the net carb count of 1 would really be true. But I am still suspect of the subtracting the fiber thing.

Can someone help me decipher all this mumbo jumbo? Do I worry about real carbs or net carbs???

dbaratta · #2 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 12:23 PM

Yes, if your food has 15g of carbs and 3g of fiber, it is like having 12g of carb. You subtract the fiber from the carb. But keep in mind that processed carbs (simple carbs) react differently than complex carbs. Try to stick with the complex carbs in fruits and veggies, ti is way better for you. Plus, for me a simple carb shoots thru my system like a rocket and my BG is out of control......that is just me though.

A diabetic diatition can help a lot.

jer.lawrence · #3 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 12:40 PM

Poppy's right. With MOST foods, "Total Carbs" includes Fiber, Sugar, Sugar alcohols. Your body cannot digest the fiber, and so that does not break down into glucose and thus never gets absorbed into your bloodstream.

So typically (and it may be different on some foods), your "Net Carbs" is the "Total Carbs" minus "Fiber." It works the same for us too.

I love those atkin's bars, I have one for breakfast most mornings now. They're like 11g carbs, but 8g of it is fiber. So, I only count it as 3g of carbs.

Pretty neat, that's why high-fiber foods seem to work pretty well.

SCAPER · #4 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 03:56 PM

Boy I don't know. I think I may have to just avoid carbs alltogether. I ate a low-carb version of a rice-crispy treat this morning that I bought from the low-carb store. 7g carbs - 2 g fibe = 5 g. carbs net. Also had 1-2 other carbs at that time too.

Afterwords, my BG spiked from 155 this morning to 241 after all that. That's the highest it's been since I began watching my carbs 2 days ago. Mostly it's been in the 140-165 range. This was the first thing that made it spike. Wow!

Granny Shanny · #5 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCAPER

Boy I don't know. I think I may have to just avoid carbs alltogether. I ate a low-carb version of a rice-crispy treat this morning that I bought from the low-carb store. 7g carbs - 2 g fibe = 5 g. carbs net. Also had 1-2 other carbs at that time too.

Afterwords, my BG spiked from 155 this morning to 241 after all that. That's the highest it's been since I began watching my carbs 2 days ago. Mostly it's been in the 140-165 range. This was the first thing that made it spike. Wow!

You sure got this right, Scaper . . . we can't trust the ads & labels that lead us to believe it's diabetes-friendly! Anything that promises to be low-carb, sugar-free, no-sugar-added . . . and all that jazz . . . usually bears further scrutiny. They might be okay for low-carbers who don't have glucose issues, but for us diabetics, they can be a real pitfall.

Read the labels! Anything that contains corn syrup, corn syrup solids, high fructose corn syrup, and almost anything at all that ends in "ose": take a pass on it. All those "ose" are sugars, and have exactly that effect.

There ARE a few sweets that I can enjoy without spiking, and those are the Atkins Endulge bars. And I swear - if you like Mounds candy, you won't be able to tell the difference in Atkins Endulge chocolate coconut bar. I like their peanut caramel cluster bar too.

Just remember, Your Mileage May Vary . . . all I can say is they don't spike me. And I hope they don't spike you either, but you'll have to try 'em & test.

Handybear · #6 (**permalink**) 10-09-2009, 07:19 PM

Being a 6-12-12 Bernstein low carber I only subtract half of the fiber to get the net carbs.

Larry H. · #7 (**permalink**) 10-16-2009, 09:50 AM

Its very hard to determine for anyone else what may work for them. I only know what is working for me.

Yes I subtract the fiber from the carbs as nearly all sources suggest that is the way diabetes should do it. For instance the Schwanns low carb ice cream we buy is figured at 4 carbs per serving. They use some kind of filler I think that causes the carbs to digest much slower making the effect of a much lower carb than the total that is really in the product. I think Byers has similar types of ice cream. When I buy bread I look at the amount of carbs, Sara Lee low sugar, 1 grm. bread is quite good and two slices are only 18 carbs. Now maybe for you those 18 carbs will raise your numbers, for me they are barely noticeable.

My guess in that rice crispy bar is the rice content. Rice tends to make most of us see high numbers quickly. One has like has been said just learn though experience. I wouldn't personally go to extreme low carbs. The ADA says the recommend 50 for breakfast and 70 for each of the two other meals. Keeping it under that amount is fine, but I wouldn't starve unless you just can't tolerate them, which is possible. Its all a learning experience that takes time an experimentation. I read all the labels and size of the serving and try to keep to the above goals. For me it works.

SCAPER · #8 (**permalink**) 10-16-2009, 12:53 PM

Man, I had some of that Schwan's Low Carb ice cream last night and it didn't raise my BG hardly at all!!! I was so scared that it would. But barely noticeable.

I was so excited I just about did a back flip. I honestly couldn't tell the difference between that and regular ice cream either. It tasted delicious!

MCS · #9 (**permalink**) 10-16-2009, 01:25 PM

The carbs I do eat are always complex carbs, that is whole grain if possible, and even then I still run into trouble sometimes. I would have to say, whole grain has always been better than refined carbs though. Haven't tried the Steel Cut Oats yet, tring to build up the accept/reject courage for those.

cyberus · #10 (**permalink**) 10-16-2009, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCAPER

Man, I had some of that Schwan's Low Carb ice cream last night and it didn't raise my BG hardly at all!!! I was so scared that it would. But barely noticeable.

I was so excited I just about did a back flip. I honestly couldn't tell the difference between that and regular ice cream either. It tasted delicious!

Just remember that not all net carbs are created equal. Sugar alcohols are something to keep track of also, not everyone metabolizes them the same ... for instance manitol, maltitol and sorbitol all spike my blood sugar (slower than regular sugar but still) and act as a ... ummm ... errr ... energetic .. laxative

Make sure that the numbers you are using are off the nutritional data label not off the blurb on the front of the package, voodoo math involving things like resistant starch, low GI sweeteners and so on can sneak up on you 3-5 hours later.

Larry H. · #11 (**permalink**) 10-16-2009, 10:20 PM

I have not had any issues with the Schwann low carb so far except perhaps it might have a bit of that laxative effect mentioned. By far my favorite of the choices that are out there. The label seems pretty convincing as to the way they arrive at the 4 carb readings.

I think this Soy Four I have just got into has some possibilities. I have avoided muffins like the plaque, but after reading that soy muffins, depending on what is in them only had around 4 or 5 carbs I decided to go for it. I ate two around the meal two days ago and it didn't hardly show up. Tonight I made a pizza crust, not wonderful, but surely passable and perhaps improvable, and I ate two thirds of it. Two hours latter even with two scoops of schwann I got a 116. I can't say everyone would react that way, but so far so good with myself.

This is why I dig around trying to find those things that I can still eat that won't make for numbers I don't want to see. Maybe I am somewhat unique if there is such a thing in that I am getting by with these foods, for now I am content with the results.

genie86333 · #12 (**permalink**) 10-17-2009, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCAPER

I mean, with that logic, I could go eat a hershey's bar as long as I took some ex-lax or metamucil at the same time.

Not exactly...it's not that the fiber is negating the carbs you eat... It's based on the fact that we can't digest fiber, so if a company finds a way of replacing some of the non-fiber carbs with fiber, there will be less digestable carbs in the product.

That being said, although YMMV, many people find they can only subtract half of the amount of fiber carbs from total carbs, not the total amount. So...20 grams of carbs, 10 fiber = about 15g digestible.

And sugar alcohols is about the same thing (plus it will give you the same effect that ex-lax will, so watch out for using too much!)

SCAPER · #13 (**permalink**) 10-18-2009, 01:48 AM

All I know about the Schwan's Ice cream is it works for me! I am so grateful! I haven't seen my BG levels spike at all since I started eating it. And it tastes every bit as good as any other ice cream I used to eat. So I am happy with it. Can't wait till my Schwan's man comes again.

MrsMia · #14 (**permalink**) 10-18-2009, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCAPER

All I know about the Schwan's Ice cream is it works for me! I am so grateful! I haven't seen my BG levels spike at all since I started eating it. And it tastes every bit as good as any other ice cream I used to eat. So I am happy with it. Can't wait till my Schwan's man comes again.

Hi Scaper!

I was wondering what the serving size is on the Schwan's lo carb ice cream. I know Breyers has lo carb ice cream and the serving size is 1/2 a cup. I usually have their carb smart bars (so delicious and tastes very much as good as some of the higher end brands of ice cream). Unfortunately they seem to catch up with me for a few days afterward with higher blood sugars.

SCAPER · #15 (**permalink**) 10-18-2009, 07:25 PM

The serving size is 1/2 cup. I stuck to that at first, and didn't see much of an increase in BG a few hours later that night or the next morning. So I went up to 1 cup one night and still didn't see much of an increase. But that could be because I took my meds right before.

Last night I had a little over a cup and I definitely saw a small spike in BG this morning. The thing is, I often see BG spike in the morning - often for no good reason. Sometimes that just happens even if I've had almost no carbs the night before. So it's hard to say but I know FOR ME it seems like I can have somewhere between 1/2 cup and 1 cup without much problem. YMMV.

Regardless, that's more ice cream than I was having - which was ZERO. So I am stoked to have some, even if it is only 1/2 cup.