Almonds?

[Mack Khelly]

I'm a type 2, last AIC on November 20th, was 5.9. My fasting numbers used to be around 125. Lately, they have been around 147. I do my daily exercised on the afternoon, and when I'm done, I drink 3 non-alcoholic beers and eat a large handful of almonds. I didn't start eating any almonds until about 50 days ago, and that when my numbers jumped up to 147. My question is: Could eating almonds the day before is the cause? I do know that almonds have the good fat, but do they convert into sugar after several hours? Thanks for any response.

[tanyatype1]

Hi there Mack ~ I just looked on the package of almonds in my pantry and it says that for 1/3 of a cup of whole almonds (not many!) there's 10 grams of carbs, 25 grams of fat, 6 g of fibre, and 11 g of protein. A percentage of the fat and protein will be converted to glucose as well as the carbs. (minus the fibre) How many carbs are in the non-alcoholic beers? That's where I'd be looking!

[Mack Khelly]

Tanya, thanks for responding. The non- alcoholic beer I'm using has 12.5 grams of carbs. I drink 3 a day. I'm not taking any kind of medication as suggested by my doctor. Do you happened to know how many grams of carbs is a normal use for type 2? Thanks a lot! Mack

[Handybear]

That is a lot of carbs! 36 from the beer and 10 or more for the almonds. I follow Dr. Bernsteins 6-12-12 carb program and that is more than I have for the entire day. I drink a low carb alcoholic beer only 2.6 grams of carbs for 12 oz.

[Jill-O]

I do not think it's the almonds. The net carbs per serving (subtract the fiber) is something like 2? They are one of my "good" foods. But, you can keep that beer (non alcoholic or otherwise). I'll stick to martinis http://www.getsmile.com/emoticons/smileys-91853/r/content.gif

[DCaplinger]

It's not the almonds... it's your beer. Beer is very high in carbs. Almonds are high in fiber and in poly and mono unsaturated fats. As previously stated, the effective carb content in a serving of almonds is 2 grams. That's very low.

Almonds have become a staple for me. Almonds and Cottage Cheese. They are perfect snacks.

I would recommend looking at your beer at bit closer. BTW, why non-alcoholic? Alcohol in moderation is okay, as it also helps to lower the BGLs.

Regards,

[Mack Khelly]

DCaplinger, thaks for responding. I do't drink alcoholic beer, because I have always thought that they have more carbs than non-alcoholic

[Schlep]

There are low carb beers on the market that have a lot less carbs than the non alcohol one you are drinking. I also but I am not sure that some of the light beers have less carbs also.

[Cyborg]

I'm not advocating alcohol, but Mich Ultra has only 2.6 grams of carbs per 12 oz. Don't they make low carb non-alcoholic beer?

BTW, check the serving size of the almonds. I'll bet you'll be surprised how few make up a serving. I eat them quite often and in fact bought more today (dry roasted seasoned with sea salt).

I have to be careful I don't eat too many as they are high in calories. They are very good for you. Personally, I do bolus for them using an immediate bolus for the carbs and extended bolus for the protein. If I don't, my bg rises...

[tanyatype1]

I wonder how your bg's would be if you did a test ~ one day try regular beer with alcohol, (alcohol will lower your blood sugar) the next day, drink non-alcoholic beer, and the third day, low carb beer. I drink Smirnoff Ultra Ice (vodka drink) because it only has 1 carb per bottle ~ and it's yummy!

[Schlep]

By us suggesting that you use alcohol beer we may be creating an alcoholic as 3 beers every day is a fair amount.:)

[DCaplinger]

I see no problems at all with 3 beers a day. It's only one more than is generally recommended. I know there are people here who do not care for any alcohol, however as an EMT, I must say that I disagree with the dry life. Why? Because medical science has already shown that a bit of alcohol is good for the heart.

As far as the BGLs, yes, alcohol does lower your BGLs, that's because the liver has to switch roles to remove the alcohol from the body, so it stops putting out as much glucose. So, even if you drank a beer that had more carbs, you should still see a decrease in BGLs.

I would drink lite beer myself, and cut down to 2 a day, preferably with a meal.

Regards,

[DCaplinger]

1/4 cup, or roughly 22 almonds is a serving. I can eat more than that, as almonds so far appear to do little to my BGLs. They are very high in monounsaturated fat, and they are rich in several vitamins, oils and essential nutrients.

Regards,

[Schlep]

I see no problems at all with 3 beers a day. It's only one more than is generally recommended. I know there are people here who do not care for any alcohol, however as an EMT, I must say that I disagree with the dry life. Why? Because medical science has already shown that a bit of alcohol is good for the heart.

As far as the BGLs, yes, alcohol does lower your BGLs, that's because the liver has to switch roles to remove the alcohol from the body, so it stops putting out as much glucose. So, even if you drank a beer that had more carbs, you should still see a decrease in BGLs.

I would drink lite beer myself, and cut down to 2 a day, preferably with a meal.

Regards,

Quote found on a nutrition web site below also I would not suggest driving after 3 beers.

Of course that doesn't mean that if one beer is good, three or four must be better. That isn't true. Drinking more than one beer or any alcoholic beverage per day can put too much alcohol in your system and that isn't good for you. Heavy drinking has been associated with several health problems, so moderation is definitely the key with drinking beer. The studies also point to one beer per day as being beneficial, not drinking all seven beers in one day per week. That type of binge drinking will overload you system with alcohol too.



Beer Nutrition - Beer Can Be Healthy - Healthy Beer Nutrition (http://nutrition.about.com/od/hydrationwater/a/beer_Nutrition.htm)

[DCaplinger]

I personally wouldn't drive after ONE beer, but that's the cop in me.

You can't look at a single site and get the correct information. There are several factors involved in determining what a safe maximum amount of alcoholic beverages would be for you.

1) Your body size and weight.
2) How much you drink on a regular basis.
3) How long your body takes to process alcohol

For me, 1 beer a day is about it. Why? Based on my size and weight, I should be able to drink more than one. So, what's the reason... 2 and 3. #2... I don't, so my body isn't used to having alcohol in it. If I were to drink every day, my body would become more tolerant. #3... Roughly 2 - 3 hours. I can catch a good buzz, if not become fully intoxicated off of one beer. It takes about 2 - 3 hours for my body to process that alcohol to the point that it is safe for me to resume normal functions (driving, etc).

The whole point I was trying to make earlier is that if you are going to drink a beer, the alcoholic version is *better* for you all around than the non-alcoholic version... at least, in moderation. The alcohol is good for the heart if it's one beer (not 3), and it will lower your BGLs for a while.

Regards,