Hi everyone,
The dietician at my Endo’s office is booked until early April so I am going to ask the “experts” here.
Is it safe to have a no-carb meal on occasion?
What about skipping a meal (which I rarely do even B4 diagnosis!)
I’m just thinking ahead to when I am out and about and don’t feel like dealing with the insulin.
Protein and fats will raise blood sugar, albeit very slowly.
Sure you can eat no carb but you will see ketones because your body will metabolize fat. This is not dangerous if you maintain blood sugar.
Restaurants hide sugar in water. I had a plain burger. No bun. No ketchup. I had to take insulin for 40 grams carb. How? I suppose it was whatever they added to the beef I’m thinking bread crumbs and probably sugar. Eating 0 carb at a restaurant is nearly impossible. IMO.
My friend was trying to lose weight by eating keto and ordered ribs. When I saw that they came with bbq sauce I told him “you know that’s about 80 grams carbs right”? And he was flabbergasted thinking there were no carbs and that 80 was his allotment for the week. Anyway. Good luck maybe a nice restaurant can make you steamed chicken sauce on side. 
@joe that’s another word that sends me into fear…keytones!
Yikes to the meat and 40 carbs!
I am fully aware of sugars in sauces. One of my favorites - I know, yuk for some - is Manwich Sloppy Joe mix but, if I recall, 9 grams of added sugars per serving. I haven’t had it since diagnosis. I literally went cold turkey with added sugars from day 1. Now, I do add a small amount of organic cane sugar or dates to my oatmeal which I find myself eating daily,
With my pump I can skip meals, especially since Control IQ helps keep me level. It was trickier with injections - even without a shot for a meal, the peak time of longer acting insulin can be tricky. If you decide to skip or go low carb keep an eye on your numbers to make sure you don’t go low.
Man, what a drag this disease is.
It takes time. Things will come me naturally to you with time.
Cathy @HopeFloats2020 , the only truly “0 Carb” meal i know of, is a leaf of iceberg lettuce served with a celery stalk and a glass of distilled water. But be careful not to eat too much.
It is okay to eat carbohydrates, even in significant amounts, as long as you understand what you are eating, how the foods you are eating release carbohydrate and if you offset the expected rise in glucose level with activity and insulin. Yes, this disease IS a lot of work, but I expect by this time next year you will be such a pro that the “lot of work” portion will be an almost automatic reflex. Don’t starve your brain; the only food a brain can eat is carbohydrate.
In addition, you will be learning how the “glycemic value” of various foods affects YOU. Some foods, like candy and sweet drinks, will cause BG to rise very quickly - things you will use to pus yourself out of “a low”. After eating these and seeing your BG rise significantly, you miost probably will see a BG drop to lower than before eating unless you couple the fast acting glucose with a more complex carb-food.
Some meals, although having a “high” total-carb count - such as pasta, you may expect to see a more gradual rise in your BG followed by youyr BG remaining slightly elevated for a while - possibly needing a carefully calculated “correction bolus” 4 hours after the meal. You can still enjoy life - I’m waiting for this pandemic to finish up [maybe in 2022] so my wife and I can eat out again, split a medium size pizza, she with a couple of glasses of wine and me with a couple of pints of a local brew.
@Dennis thanks!
I am already learning how foods affect me as best I can without the GCM (hooking it up next week). Whenever I introduce a new food, I check blood more often to see the affects. I currently eat about 150 carbs a day, most are low on the GI scale. I have very little activity (light, short walks periodically) as I don’t want to lose ANY more weight. I am thinking about adding more carbs soon!
