South Beach Diet

[jeggeman31]

My wife wants us to start this next week. Just wondering if anyone has any tips when we start it. Was not sure how it changed if any the insulin intake on the pump.



Thanks

[seacomp]

Was not sure how it changed if any the insulin intake on the pump.
Without knowing how you are eating now, there's a limit to what can be said.
If your basal amount(s) and bolus ratios were absolutely correct, changing diet should not effect anything. That's not likely.
I'm on MDI, not a pump, but the principle is the same, I think. Usually, the basal is somewhat off and is corrected throughout the day by adjustments in the boluses, up or down as the case may be. That's fine and works OK. But if you change your diet, especially the amount of carbs you eat, the balance between basal and bolus ratio will be off, and will likely need adjustment.
Now, changing your overall activity, is something else again ...

[camjen1]

I would just like to comment on that South Beach Diet food is actually good and filling. The downside is that there is not much entree's to choose from. I'm wondering if South Beach Diet has their own recipe book.

[Cyborg]

But if you change your diet, especially the amount of carbs you eat, the balance between basal and bolus ratio will be off, and will likely need adjustment.

Not sure I follow you here. Do you mean that if you reduce your carbs so much that you go into ketosis and it messes up your ratios? Otherwise, I don't understand how changing the amount of carbs you eat in a meal should affect your ratios and/or basals.

I would just like to comment on that South Beach Diet food is actually good and filling. The downside is that there is not much entree's to choose from. I'm wondering if South Beach Diet has their own recipe book.

I also enjoy the South Beach Diet foods. I've actually posted a few times now on the different things I've found. I've incorporated many of them into my weekly diet. The more I look, the more I discovery, so keep looking!

I'm pretty sure I've seen a book or two, but that means you've got to cook and carb count, and clean the dishes. Call me lazy, but with 2 kids, 2 jobs, and too little time, I enjoy the prepackaged stuff. Don't get me wrong, I still do love to cook. In fact, just today I made a huge pot of what could classify as homemade South Beach Chicken Soup. Let us know if you find a good book.

[gettingby]

I actually like some of the wraps they have. There is a great Turkey Bacon Wrap that is to die for.:eating:

[seacomp]

Not sure I follow you here. Do you mean that if you reduce your carbs so much that you go into ketosis and it messes up your ratios? Otherwise, I don't understand how changing the amount of carbs you eat in a meal should affect your ratios and/or basals.
No, I'm sorry I wasn't clear. My point was that most basal/bolus "configurations" that people arrive at, whether on a pump or doing MDI, are only approximations. For example, the basal may be too low, but since the meal bolus ratio(s) are too high, or there is a correction at every meal, the overall effect works out.
After all, if your body requires X amount of insulin at a particular moment, it is of no account whether that insulin is bolus insulin or basal insulin.
Just for an example, assume you didn't need to sleep and you ate 12 small meals evenly spaced around the clock. Your actual requirement is 30 u basal and 30 u bolus for the 300 gm carb you eat. But you would be covered very well if you took 60 u basal and 0 u bolus (a ratio of 0 u per gram), or 0 u basal and 60 u total bolus (a ratio of 1 u per 5 gm), or any combination in between. Now reduce the carb intake to 60 gm and figure out what happens using those ratios that worked so well before.
I'm afraid that this may not be clearer, the concept is clear in my head but without doing the math it is hard to put across. Sorry.:flowers:

[Cyborg]

No, I'm sorry I wasn't clear. My point was that most basal/bolus "configurations" that people arrive at, whether on a pump or doing MDI, are only approximations. For example, the basal may be too low, but since the meal bolus ratio(s) are too high, or there is a correction at every meal, the overall effect works out.
After all, if your body requires X amount of insulin at a particular moment, it is of no account whether that insulin is bolus insulin or basal insulin.
Just for an example, assume you didn't need to sleep and you ate 12 small meals evenly spaced around the clock. Your actual requirement is 30 u basal and 30 u bolus for the 300 gm carb you eat. But you would be covered very well if you took 60 u basal and 0 u bolus (a ratio of 0 u per gram), or 0 u basal and 60 u total bolus (a ratio of 1 u per 5 gm), or any combination in between. Now reduce the carb intake to 60 gm and figure out what happens using those ratios that worked so well before.
I'm afraid that this may not be clearer, the concept is clear in my head but without doing the math it is hard to put across. Sorry.:flowers:

Sorry for being off topic...

I getcha. The way I handled making sure my carb ratios were correct was to ensure basal testing was complete for all 4 cycles of the 24 hour period. Once that was done, I started doing the carb ratio testing. First I used meals with smaller amounts of carbs until I got the ratios close. When the ratios were close, then I finished the testing by eating much larger amounts of carbs. This allowed me to fine tune the ratios. The trick was to have the bg return to my target value in approx. 4-5 hours without a correction.

I see your point that if are not careful in setting your basals, you will get interference from your basal insulin and will not accurately set your carb ratios. Interjecting correction boluses into the mix while testing your carb ratios also throws in another factor that you can do without during that phase of testing. Eating too frequently during this testing also interferes with the testing because of the reasons you mention.

[jeggeman31]

I would just like to comment on that South Beach Diet food is actually good and filling.

So can you buy this food at the store ?

[Cyborg]

So can you buy this food at the store ?

Yes, you can buy these at the grocery store and even some at the super centers like Sam's, Walmart or Costco. They have frozen meals, breakfast bars, lunch wraps, plus others. It is a Kraft brand, so if you go to the Kraft site, they may have a complete list of all the South Beach items available.

I've tried the Chinese dishes (Kung Pao being my favorite), the High Protein Cereal Bars (many flavors available), the breakfast burritos (at least 2 varieties available) and the lunch wraps (at least 2 variates available). I usually wait till they are on sale since the non-sale prices can be a little steep. I haven't tried anything yet that I didn't like, YMMV.

[trailrunner]

the pizza's are fabulous! The best" diet" pizza's ever.

[jeggeman31]

Yes, you can buy these at the grocery store and even some at the super centers like Sam's, Walmart or Costco. They have frozen meals, breakfast bars, lunch wraps, plus others. It is a Kraft brand, so if you go to the Kraft site, they may have a complete list of all the South Beach items available.



I have never noticed them at the stores. Guess if you are not looking :albertein


Thanks for the info, I searched them on the web and they do look Good. I am going to have to try them also.

[Lynne1]

I've tried 2 of the frozen dinners and they were good. Also tried the Toasted Wheats w/Cinnamin flavor (cereal) and thought they tasted alot like cinnamon dental floss! I'll have to try the other SBD cereal I bought and let you all know how I like it. It doesn't have the cinnamon flavor, and that's a big plus in this case.

Cyborg, thanks for telling us about the dinners...I would never have bought them otherwise!

[camjen1]

The wraps are good and you get 2 of them plus Jello. Now what diet allows you to eat 2 wraps and top it off with Jello. I haven't tried the frozen besides the pizza. I'm not a fan of onions, green peppers, mushrooms so the dinners aren't appealing. The pizza is not to bad and very filling. I would prefer South Beach over Lean Cuisene or any of the other low carb packaged meals.

[jeggeman31]

Thanks for all the info. Today is Day 1. So far so good. I have not tried any of the frozen food yet. We are doing the stuff out of the book. I think the hard thing for me is when dinner comes and no Potato for me :smokin:


My wife is having a hard time becuase she is a chocoholic and I can't remember a day in her life she has not gone 24hrs without a candy bar of some sort.

[Cyborg]

Thanks for all the info. Today is Day 1. So far so good. I have not tried any of the frozen food yet. We are doing the stuff out of the book. I think the hard thing for me is when dinner comes and no Potato for me :smokin:


My wife is having a hard time becuase she is a chocoholic and I can't remember a day in her life she has not gone 24hrs without a candy bar of some sort.

Why no potato? 1 medium sized potato has 31g carbs... ;) Bolus away!

[jeggeman31]

Why no potato? 1 medium sized potato has 31g carbs... ;) Bolus away!

Because on the South Beach Diet you cut out all white carbs. Thus Potato's are a no no !

[RBmumsie]

FYI - my older sister (Type II) went on South Beach @ 8 months ago. She dropped almost 50 pounds and is off meds ENTIRELY now. The only down side is that it's boring as all get out.

[Cyborg]

I don't do "diets" anymore since I've decided to make lifestyle changes instead, but of all the diets I thought the South Beach diet seemed the least restrictive and the most appetizing (and healthy).

[DesertDiabetic]

Cyborg

Diet has different meanings making it almost useleszl... I got tired of telling people that I never use diet meaning a weight adjustment approach, but just what I select to eat. I disagree with the diet for weight loss a lost cause. It is almost an industry standard to say that diets don't work for weight loss. Not in the long run anyay. lifestyle chages are the only way to approach it. I know this is the dieting forum and that is what the word diet means here, well, I guess I am just agreeing with you.

[Cyborg]

I found that the only thing I really have to do to lose weight is to watch my calories. Both the Atkins and South Beach "Diets" limit carb intake, which I find really isn't a key for me. In fact, now that I'm on a pump I've been much more liberal with my carb intake and I've been amazed at the amount of weight I've lost in just 2 1/2 months. I started eating things like pasta and potatos again just recently and I sure did miss them. Living a low-carb restrictive lifestyle for reasons to lose weight or to control blood sugar is just something I no longer personally want to do. Seeing that I can have tight bg control and lose weight while injesting a fairly large amount of carbs is fantastic (sorry Bernstein fans)! In a sense, it is easier for type 1 diabetics since we have the luxory of taking our insulin to cover whatever we eat, albeit there are drawbacks to insulin.
:star:

[DesertDiabetic]

For a type 1 or 1.5 that works. For type 2 it doesn't. Potatoes drive you up and adding insulin does not correct like it does for you. Especially if weight control is necessary. More insulin for a type 2 is just making the problem worse. We already have excess insulin, for the most part, anyway. Those of us that don't make insulin or only limited amounts are still insulin resistent. If injecting insulin corrected the problem it wouldn't be such a problem. Bernstein comes back into play again.

[Cyborg]

Those of us that don't make insulin or only limited amounts are still insulin resistent. If injecting insulin corrected the problem it wouldn't be such a problem. Bernstein comes back into play again.

If you aren't making any insulin than you aren't type 2. I am actually glad that I am type 1 rather than type 2. It sounds strange, but it is easier for me to control the disease. Although type 2's can significantly reduce insulin resistance through exercise and weight loss. Some type 2's are treated with insulin and some actually go on the pump. I don't see your logic with regards to Bernstein though since he was type 1.

[jeggeman31]

If you aren't making any insulin than you aren't type 2.


Type 2 can shut down in time and stop making insulin.

[Cyborg]

Type 2 can shut down in time and stop making insulin.

Right... I meant if they aren't making any at all, then they've got to be type 1. But you knew that, wasn't sure if the other poster did.

[Penny]

I wanted to try a couple of the South Beach meals, but as I was looking at them, a complete stranger started telling me they have a huge sodium content. I don't have trouble with my blood pressure, so it didn't concern me too much, but I got distracted talking to this lady and didn't check it out. She was trying to tell me her nutritionist said all these dinners were very bad for you. Again I didn't check it out, but wonder if any of you have. I would like to have a couple in the freezer for when the family wants to have Mac n'cheese or potato soup! :dontknow:

[Cyborg]

I wanted to try a couple of the South Beach meals, but as I was looking at them, a complete stranger started telling me they have a huge sodium content. I don't have trouble with my blood pressure, so it didn't concern me too much, but I got distracted talking to this lady and didn't check it out. She was trying to tell me her nutritionist said all these dinners were very bad for you. Again I didn't check it out, but wonder if any of you have. I would like to have a couple in the freezer for when the family wants to have Mac n'cheese or potato soup! :dontknow:

I think that with most prepared frozen meals you need to check the sodium content on each one individually. I personally do not use salt on anything except popcorn or french fries (which I don't eat anymore), so eating a frozen meal that is higher in sodium still leaves me below my RDA for sodium. To make a blanket statement that all frozen dinners or all South Beach dinners are high in sodium is kind of ignorant, in my opinion.

[jeggeman31]

a complete stranger started telling me they have a huge sodium content.

I am looking on Kraft's healthy living website and the Nutrition for the ORANGE BEEF SLICES & BROWN RICE IN SAUCE WITH BROCCOLI & CARROTS shows that meal has 940mg of sodium!

I found some that had over 1200mg of sodium in them :hmmmm:

[Penny]

I am looking on Kraft's healthy living website and the Nutrition for the ORANGE BEEF SLICES & BROWN RICE IN SAUCE WITH BROCCOLI & CARROTS shows that meal has 940mg of sodium!

I found some that had over 1200mg of sodium in them :hmmmm:

I should know this, but am to lazy this morning to check it out. How much sodium should we have in a day. That seems very high.

[Cyborg]

I should know this, but am to lazy this morning to check it out. How much sodium should we have in a day. That seems very high.

The RDA is 2400 mg of sodium.

[Penny]

The RDA is 2400 mg of sodium.

Wow! I think I will stick to my home cooked meals.

[Petruchio]

When I was first Dx'ed and freaked out I looked for guidelines. I found everything imaginable being promoted. The Heart Assoc says low meat, the Burnstins say no carbs, What's left???

From the National Institute of Health I found a few snippits that I do go by:

1 gram of Protien for every 10 pounds weight, per day
150 grams of carbs per day
under 2000 calories per day


My diet avgs. around 1200 to 1500 cal's per day. My fasting BS is 95 to 105. I have lost around a pound a week consistantly. It seems to be working for me, YMMV.

The NIH said there is still a need for some carbs because the brain needs the glucose and does not use insulin. So, even when the body has a hard time using the glucose, the brain still needs some there. I don't know. As I said, it seems to be working for me, and I don't feel like I am torturing myself with the "I can't have that" syndrome.

[jeggeman31]

Well I started On Tuesday an as of this morning when I got up I have lost 7 pounds! Not to bad. Miss all the white carbs, but my cravings are going away for those.

[Cyborg]

Well I started On Tuesday an as of this morning when I got up I have lost 7 pounds! Not to bad. Miss all the white carbs, but my cravings are going away for those.

Way to go! :top:

[am1977]

Well I started On Tuesday an as of this morning when I got up I have lost 7 pounds! Not to bad. Miss all the white carbs, but my cravings are going away for those.


Wow...Great job!:cool:

[DesertDiabetic]

Cyborg -

Saying that a type 2 that does not produce insulin is then a type 1 is fighting words to so many people. I have said that very same thing myself only to be told over and over that type 2 cannot ever become type 1's. The reason stated to me is the way that you become insulin dependent is different..... and that the two never can meet. There have been some mutterings of type 1's that become type 2's also. Another terrible to say in print...

I know, does not make sense, does it. As far as Bernstein being type 1 does not change anything. He does not have to be either type to have knowledge about it. Ok, lets take the thinking that a type 2 stops producing insulin(or produces very little) and needs insulin just like a type 1. That does not change the insulin resistence problem. Injecting more insulin than your body can use only makes the problem worse. Well, that is the basic problem.

[Cyborg]

Saying that a type 2 that does not produce insulin is then a type 1 is fighting words to so many people.

So you are saying that there are some type 2 diabetics that have pancreas' that don't create any insulin? I did not know that! My apologies. Are there any on the forum that can collaborate this statement?

[Harold]

Like I've said before nothing about this disease is set in concrete. I've thought for some time now that it is possible to develope one type and then down the road to also develope the other. It seems possible that if one contends that too much insulin damages the body that the body will try to reduce high levels of insulin possiblly even to the extent of destroying beta cells. Radical thought and probably too simple of an explanation for this multifacited disease. Still in talking to others it seems that some type 1's do show signs of becoming insulin resistant and some initial type 2's report having developed antibodies.

From Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes
What Do They Have in Common? (http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/full/54/suppl_2/S40)Leaving out the extreme ends of diabetes phenotypes, young children progressing rapidly to total insulin deficiency and strongly insulin-resistant subjects mostly with non-Europid ethnic origin, a large proportion of diabetic patients may have both type 1 and type 2 processes contributing to their diabetic phenotype.So unless your at one extreme end or the other you probably have some of both processes working in you right now. :hmmmm2: Kind of helps to explain why we see so many different responses to different treatments. :ahhhhh:

[Lynne1]

Well I started On Tuesday an as of this morning when I got up I have lost 7 pounds! Not to bad. Miss all the white carbs, but my cravings are going away for those.
How's the diet going? I'm thinking of starting it. Is it worthwhile?

[jeggeman31]

How's the diet going? I'm thinking of starting it. Is it worthwhile?

If you have a strong will power it is worthwhile. I lost 15 pounds on it the first 3 weeks. The first TWO weeks are ruff. But willpower took over for me and I started eating stuff I should not eat while on the diet. I think for me part of the problem was taking to much stuff away at once. I drink about a 12 pack of pop a day. So taking that away and all the carbs for 2 weeks was not a good idea. It is like smoking. I did enjoy the food, it is just not what I am use to eating 7 days a week 3 meals a day. So I am going to get back on it. I have decided I am going to get myself off of a few things one at a time. Like Pop. I have cut myself down to 4 cans a day, water the rest. I have been doing that for about the last week. I am going to cut out those 4 cans next week, and then start back on the diet.


Sorry so long, in the short of it all, it was worthwhile. I lost weight. The food is not that bad once you get use to eating that way.

[jmoodi3]

How do u figure all of that out...I'm confused and still am trying to get my dosages right...right now im on 25 units Levemir in the a.m. and use a 1:7 carb ration Humalog at all meals and snacks. For correction I use a 1:40 during the day and at night use a 1:50 ratio. I'm totally stressed with all this cause I feel like I'm constantly stuffing my face because I'm afraid of dropping low. Any thoughts???