How on earth does anyone stay under the sugar goal?

Cdona111

According to MFP my sugar goal is 69. I do not eat any sweets (was diagnosed pre-diabetic 18 months ago and react to sugary sweets so don't eat them). Yesterday my sugar was 99 from a small banana, a cutie, 4 oz of orange juice and a cup of grapes. I got a gram or 2 here and there. I wish MFP had a function to separate added sugar from natural sugar.

Anyone else have this problem? Or even track it? I have my nutrients set to 40% carbs and usually at or under.

livingleanlivingclean

I think if you're going to worry about anything, added sugar would be your focus - most of my "sugar" comes from vegetables, like sweet potato, carrot/beets, red peppers etc, some fruit and dairy. If I cared about the sugar id be restricting my fruit and vegie intake.

You know if you've eaten predominantly whole foods with sugar from natural sources, or if you've eaten foods with added sugar. For your condition, youre probably aware of what you can eat - I don't get too caught up in numbers that aren't overly relevant or important

ano1942

I have the same problem even though I only eat what is on my daily meal plan. I've decided to not worry about it for the time being until I can check with a dietitian. I don't go over by much so I'm not too concerned right now.

Stripedtriangle1

Sugar isn't the end all be all enemy when it comes to diabetes, like the guy before me, diabetes is just your body's response to added sugar. You don't hear stories of fruit heavy eaters getting diabetes. It's from the added sugar and processed sugar. Keep eating your fruits, veggies, legumes and starches and get those vital nutrients!

lulalacroix

I don't track my sugar. I prefer to know if I'm hitting my fiber goal.

Lourdesong

I don't track sugar but I check on it every once in a while and I'm almost always at or under MFP's goal for me.

I do eat sweets but don't eat sugary fruit due to preference. My fruit sources are typically non-sugary foods like tomatoes, cucumbers and zucchini, bell peppers, etc.
The occasional banana, apple or orange can put me over if I don't compensate elsewhere.

I really don't believe there's much meaningful difference between sugar from fruit vs anywhere else. Most sugary fruit was bred to be sugary so to be more palatable to consumers. If you don't need to worry about sugar for health then have at it and ignore mfp's goal. But if you do need to worry about sugar, then you probably should be concerned about sugary fruit intake and not romanticize the produce section as having some kind of mysterious properties that negates their sugars effect like many tend to do.

NewyRob

I don't drink orange juice. Most of us are brought up believing orange juice is healthy. It's basically a concentrated sugar hit. It's far better to eat an orange and take advantage of the fibre.

Machka9

I don't bother tracking my sugar intake.

matthelmet

I'm usually over my sugar goal and sometimes over my sodium. I'm just trying to stay under my calorie goal for now, which is hard enough for me.

Machka9

NewyRob wrote: »

I don't drink orange juice. Most of us are brought up believing orange juice is healthy. It's basically a concentrated sugar hit. It's far better to eat an orange and take advantage of the fibre.

There are two occasions where I'll drink fruit juice, and only 99% or 100% pure fruit juice ...

1) When I have a cold.

2) When I have finished one of my ultra-distance bicycle rides.


In both cases, I crave it, and end up drinking quite large quantities of it. But the minute I feel better from my cold, or once about 2 days has passed since the end of the ride, I don't want it anymore.

I figure it's my body's way of telling me it needs hydration, energy, and vitamin C all at once in a quickly digestible format.

AnnPT77

I'm not diabetic, but stopped tracking sugar when I found I was exceeding the default goal every day, from 2-3 servings of whole fruit, plus the sugars inherent in unsweetened dairy products (I'm ovo-lacto vegetarian). This was at a time when literally the only added sugar I ate was concentrated fruit juice on the bottom of the ingredient list of one daily tablespoon (30 calories total) of all-fruit spread I put in my oatmeal.

IMO, the default sugar goal is Not Useful. I kept tracking carbs (even though I'm not real excitable about those either), but replaced sugar tracking with fiber tracking.

Lounmoun

I'm usually under my sugar goal.
I prelog my food for the day every morning so I can meet my goals better.
I look at my calorie goal first and then meeting my protein goal. If I am getting those goals met then stuff like carbs, sugar, etc takes care of themselves.
I eat more vegetables than fruit.
I don't drink juice, sweetened drinks or shakes.

If you want to eat fruit you might make different fruit choices than bananas or grapes and reduce sugar. http://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/glycemic_index_and_glycemic_load_for_100_foods
http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/LabelingNutrition/ucm063482.htm
http://www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/food/what-can-i-eat/understanding-carbohydrates/

comptonelizabeth

Mine is always way over,too,especially if I drink fruit juice or fruit smoothies. I've stopped worrying about it.

fishshark

i dont track sugar because i eat a lot of fruit... like watermelon and id go over everyday!

crzycatlady1

I used to be a prediabetic and got my glucose numbers into the normal range (80s and 90s) while still eating sugar every day. I just started eating at the correct calorie deficit for my weight loss goals and dropped 50lbs-that's what corrected my high glucose numbers. Now almost 4 years into maintenance and I still eat sugary foods in moderation and still have normal glucose numbers. My doctor didn't tell me to cut out sugar-he told me to cut out poundage. And it worked

Also-sugar is sugar and your body processes it the same, regardless of what kind of food it's coming from.

Hamsibian

I only have a teaspoon of honey, and the rest of my sugar intake comes from fruits and vegetables. I still go over. Don't worry about it, just track your fiber intake Instead.

GottaBurnEmAll

I don't bother tracking sugar.

While juice wouldn't be a choice I'd make since I think eating the whole fruit is better nutritionally, I think your choice to drink it is between you and your doctor.

MFP can't make a separate category for added sugars because the labeling laws for tracking them are just now starting to be implemented. They won't be fully into effect for a few years yet.

Hornsby

Another one that doesn't really track sugar. I track fiber instead and then check up on sugar from time to time.

AlabasterVerve

I wouldn't drink the juice if I was pre-diabetic. With the fruit I'd mix up the high sugar fruits with lower sugar ones instead of eating all higher sugar fruits (or swap some fruit out for sweet, raw salad vegetables if you like them).

If that sounds like something you'd like to do these pics might help:

Source

Cdona111

Thank you for the feedback. I have gotten my numbers under control by losing 60 pounds but still want to lose at least another 40.

I don't drink juice often, this just happened to be in today's list. The worst culprit was actually the grapes.

Like many others I focus on protein and carbs first. I have recently started tracking sodium as I seem to have developed borderline high blood pressure (even after losing the weight). Watching the sodium has got me looking at other numbers too.

Given how careful I am with my diet it just surprised me to see how often I go over my sugar numbers. Makes me wonder how the rest of the world does it!

Talan79

If I don't eat fruit, I can keep sugar under 30 grams.

aafig25

I recently started doing keto which is high fat and extreamly low sugar (10% carbs daily). I found that replacing my sugars with fat is a great way to keep away the sugar cravings. I have heard some research about how good this is for people with diabetes as well- maybe do some research on a high fat or keto diet, it may do wonders for you but deffinitly do your research first.

JeromeBarry1

How on earth? Well, today my plan is under the sugar goal, and includes portions of fruit cake, prunes, and a peach. The sugar goal is 80 and my plan is at 56. It seems easy.

Baruchuda

I'm usually under the sugar goal but I don't eat many processed foods or fruits, mostly vegetables, and I only drink lemon water/tea/seltzers.

Baruchuda

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fitchick37

I'm a type 1 diabetic with an insulin pump and constant glucose monitor (been diabetic 40 years but only got the tech 6 months ago). It now fascinates me how different things affect my blood sugar, I don't eat fruit now other than a couple of blueberries with my breakfast porridge and hardly any bread where possible. Low GI stuff is helping and trying to keep low carbs but enough to not be hypo all the time. Diabetes is a bit of a minefield, I've become a bit obsessed with my scanner and blood sugar graph with what's doing what to it!

mjbnj0001

I'm older, big and don't have - or want - any sugar problems, so I monitor my numbers as best I can.

As some posters above have said, OJ and grapes are hidden sugar bombs. I love them myself, but restrict myself - for instance, I usually stick to actual oranges/clementines rather than juice. And other fruit juices as well - cranberry, apple, pom, etc. - all have natural sugar and most have added sugar. I like dried cranberries, cherries, blueberries, pineapple, kiwi, etc. - but many carry sugar coatings in addition to their natural sugars. Prunes and dried figs are sweet and generally don't have added sugar. Naturally, I'm pretty stingy about drinking sodas and similar drinks.

Commercial bread often has added sugar in various forms in addition to their natural flour contents. I bake about 85% of our breads from scratch ("no-knead" method). High Fructose Corn Syrup or other sugar shows up in a lot of prepared foods (along with salt), so they can sneak up on you. This includes salad dressings - I make most of ours, including buttermilk/ranch styles.

I initially let MFP set my macro goals according to their internal formula, then lowered my sugar target to give me an added buffer against inevitably going over target. As at least one poster said above, your daily quota can get filled with ordinary food (including fruits, veggies, dairy, ...) even without "sugar goodies." I don't fret about occasional overshoots, as long as they are the exceptions and not the rule (and the holidays were tough in this regard), but my blood counts show that this type of approach works ok for me. "Your mileage may vary" ... unfortunately, we all process things a bit differently.

Good luck!

peaceout_aly

Cdona111 wrote: »

According to MFP my sugar goal is 69. I do not eat any sweets (was diagnosed pre-diabetic 18 months ago and react to sugary sweets so don't eat them). Yesterday my sugar was 99 from a small banana, a cutie, 4 oz of orange juice and a cup of grapes. I got a gram or 2 here and there. I wish MFP had a function to separate added sugar from natural sugar.

Anyone else have this problem? Or even track it? I have my nutrients set to 40% carbs and usually at or under.

Sugar is sugar. I know people like to "not count" natural sugar, but your body still recognizes it as sugar. Opt for berries when choosing fruits, that was a suggestion made to me.

Cylphin60

I don't track sugar. Sodium is my kryptonite.

mjbnj0001

mjbnj0001 wrote: »

I'm older, big and don't have - or want - any sugar problems, so I monitor my numbers as best I can.

... And other fruit juices as well - cranberry, apple, pom, etc. - all have natural sugar and most have added sugar...

I meant to be more specific ... the "added sugar" in a lot of juices is added grape juice as a sweetener.

Lizarking

I turned it off, and only stick to my carbohydrate limit.