Low Carb and Diabetes

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agrube1968
agrube1968 Posts: 132 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Ok I have been struggling with teying to figure out how many carbs I should have per day. Well this week I have been attending diabetes education classes thru my work and this Evening we had a nutrionist speak to us. She said that women who are diabetic should aim for 3 to 4 servings of carbs per meal. She said 1 serving of carbs equals 15 grams of carbs. So basically according to this I should have 45 to 60 grams of carbs per meal and a 30 gram snack per day. So that totals 165 to 210 grams of carbs per day. I asked her how many I could have to lose weight and she said not to go below 1 to 2 servings of carbs per meal which would be 15 to 30 carbs per meal and a 30 gram snack which totals 75 to 120 carbs per day. She said that extreme low carb like keto can be dangerous for diabetics. Has anyone else talked to a nutrionist? Does what she told me sound right? I am going to do whatever I have to so my diabetes is under control. So if I can eat healthier carbs and stay between the 75 to 120 per day and still lose weight then I think that's what I am going to do. Would love to hear your Input on this. Have any of you followed a low carb diet of 75 to 120 per day and lost weight? Any help you can give me would be great!!!

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  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
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    The nutritionist shared The Diabetic Association guidelines, which were principally developed with insulin dependent diabetics in mind (ie, the 15g of carbs corresponds to a specific insulin dosage).

    Keto can be dangerous for diabetics who have issues with hypoglycemia. Most people only have issues with hypoglycemia of they are on glucose lowering medications.

    Personally, I do best with 50-70g: over 80 in a single day and my fasting numbers start going up, even if no individual meal causes an alarming spike.

  • ZoneFive
    ZoneFive Posts: 570 Member
    edited April 2018
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    I aim for around 100g carbs per day. I have to admit it's not nearly as well balanced per meal as your nutritionist suggested, but it all comes out in the wash. When my carbs are mostly green veg, a little fruit, and some whole grains my fasting BG is well within the healthy range. And I do allow a sweet treat every now and then; I just know to plan for it and expect a bit of a rise in my BG.

    Don't forget that the number or percentage of carbs in your (successful) diet will probably be a little different from other people, not least because some people stay un-hungry longer with more protein, some with more carbs, some with more fat. This is a situation where you're going to have to log carefully and watch how your BG levels respond to different amounts of carbs.

    I've lost about 95 lbs, so around 100g carbs works for me. I should add that my A1c and BG levels are improved enough that my doctor has halved my metformin dose, and I'm well on the way to being off metformin entirely. Take your time and figure out what levels work for you. It may take a few weeks to zero in on the right numbers, but it's definitely time well spent.

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