Sweetners

[Jnuonum]

Hello everyone,

How do I know the right kind of sweetner to use? Can I use honey?

[genie86333]

Use whatever sweetener doesn't raise your blood sugar as much as other ones do. Honey isn't usually a good choice except maybe once in a while in small amounts.

[ShottleBop]

I use powdered stevia from Trader Joe's.

[kgm0612]

There are now many different brands on the market today. You will have to determine for yourself which one you like best.

As for honey, I can only use a small amount in my tea, otherwise it raises my blood sugar too high.

Karen

[dbaratta]

Hello everyone,

How do I know the right kind of sweetner to use? Can I use honey?

Honey releases slower than cane sugar, some people can eat it, some can't. Try it and find out how it fairs for you.

I use Splenda.

[MCS]

If you like honey and find out you can't eat it, try Blue Agvae Syrup. It is much like honey but has a lower Gylcemic Index. It is expensive, like everything else.

[Granny Shanny]

If you like honey and find out you can't eat it, try Blue Agvae Syrup. It is much like honey but has a lower Gylcemic Index. It is expensive, like everything else.

The agave syrup is very sweet though (yes, I'd say more concentrated than honey), so you shouldn't need nearly as much.

[gary.keith]

Thanks for mentioning Blue Agave Syrup. I picked some up in the organic food section of the supermarket today. It's yummy! I still need to see what a full serving does to my BG.

[Granny Shanny]

Thanks for mentioning Blue Agave Syrup. I picked some up in the organic food section of the supermarket today. It's yummy! I still need to see what a full serving does to my BG.

It still raises mine, but lower & slower.

Oh! And tonight my better half was grumping that we didn't have kalhua for a white russian, so I splashed a little vodka over some rocks, added cream, a dash of instant coffee & a squirt of agave syrup . . . voilà! :D :D :D

[JayDee1950]

This may sound strange to some, but my body reacts badly to artificial sweeteners. Have tried them all on several occasions with disastrous results (severe diarrahea).
Using honey on food and regular sugar in coffee with moderation.
Sorry - but Coke Zero don't taste the same as Coke Classic AND has an aftertaste as well, now I gotta run to the bathroom.

[gary.keith]

It still raises mine, but lower & slower.

Oh! And tonight my better half was grumping that we didn't have kalhua for a white russian, so I splashed a little vodka over some rocks, added cream, a dash of instant coffee & a squirt of agave syrup . . . voilà! :D :D :D
How does your BG react to alcohol? I've been too scared to have any since being dxed. Besides, getting hypo all the time makes me dizzy and confused enough as is! ;)

[Bountyman]

I used to eat a lot of sugar (5 lbs. a month) before my diabetic episode. By episode I mean I had no idea I had diabetes until I wound up in the ER with a BG of 530. My neighbor has T2 diabetes and recommended I start using a sugar substitute from then on, so when shopping I picked up a box of something, can't remember what. It was TERRIBLE. My neighbor said no wonder it tasted so bad it was saccharin and gave me a couple of packets of his sugar substitute, NutraSweet, which is aspartame.

Then after an exchange on the forum here about the values of sugar substitutes I looked up aspartame. I try and stay away from anything that has possible side effects and it seemed that aspartame has. I started looking for something else. I found a site on the internet that was sending out samples of Stevia, a sugar made from a plant called the Stevia bush.

10 days later I got 4 packets in the mail. I was anxious to try it out so I made a pot of coffee and emptied a packet into my coffee. TERRIBLE! Not saccharin terrible...but in order to be comparative in sugar strength it overpowered the coffee with a strange taste. I guess it tasted like Stevia.

I almost went back to refined white sugar and while in the sugar isle I saw "raw sugar" and thought I'd try that out, first. 4gms of carbohydrates (after all, sugar is a carbohydrate) per teaspoon, verses <2gms of carbohydrates for 2 packets of NutraSweet. So I'd be doubling up on coffee carbohydrates with the raw sugar. I drink about 6 cups of black coffee a day, so my total carbohydrate intake from the raw sugar is about 24gms. My dietitian put me on a 130gm minimum-180gm maximum carbohydrate a day diet. I'll make adjustments elsewhere for the 24gms of sugar.

Did it change the numbers in my BG testing? Yes, it did, they're lower by about 5 points. My FBG, up until I switched to raw sugar, hovered around 100. Now it hovers around 95. Two hours after a meal my BG used to be anywhere between 115 and 125. Now it's between 110 and 120, with a test after breakfast this morning of 102. Even if my numbers raise a little...I'm not going back to substitutes. There IS no substitute for sugar.

[Granny Shanny]

How does your BG react to alcohol? I've been too scared to have any since being dxed. Besides, getting hypo all the time makes me dizzy and confused enough as is! ;)

I'm not a big drinker, but what I've had so far hasn't been a BG issue. My drink of choice is a margarita, and on this forum I found the recipe for a zero-carb margarita (http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/type-2-diabetes/16636-everyone-talking-about-wine.html#post482445):

1 12 oz. can fresca
1 tube Crystal Light lemonade powder
1 shot tequila
ice
salt for rimming the glass

My guess is it isn't the alcohol that causes trouble, but the carby mixes you might add with it. However, drinking so much that you're incapable of monitoring your glucose is another discussion altogether. Search the boards & you'll find several threads about drinking to excess . . .

[gary.keith]

I'm not a big drinker, but what I've had so far hasn't been a BG issue.
[...]
However, drinking so much that you're incapable of monitoring your glucose is another discussion altogether. Search the boards & you'll find several threads about drinking to excess . . .

I've always been a big fan of moderation in all aspects of my life. To me drinking means a glass of rum on the rocks, no lime, in the evening before dinner. ;)

I'll try it tonight and see what it does to my BG. Do you think testing an hour after finishing the drink is sufficient time to evaluate the effect on BG? Cause if I wait on dinner any longer insulin dumping becomes an issue.