How do you keep your sugars low?

mrswine

I have been noticing lately how high my sugar intake is. I am over today because I had oatmeal (sweetened), an apple, and a yogurt. I didn't have coffee with sugar which I usually do and I am still over. How do you keep yours low? Avoid fruit and any sweet food? I am at a loss as to how to get it down and still eat a balanced menu.

Just a side note: I have adverse reactions to artificial sweeteners including splenda so real sugar is my only option.

Are you diabetic or diagnosed prediabetic? If not, tracking your sugars isn't especially necessary. Eat good foods, stay on track with your macros and calorie goals, and you'll be fine.

I am hypoglycemic and my sugars rise and drop very rapidly causing adverse side effects. I am worried this will eventually lead to diabetes. I think it's something I need to take into consideration. Even a teaspoon of sugar in my coffee causes a crash an hour later.

RllyGudTweetr

I have been noticing lately how high my sugar intake is. I am over today because I had oatmeal (sweetened), an apple, and a yogurt. I didn't have coffee with sugar which I usually do and I am still over. How do you keep yours low? Avoid fruit and any sweet food? I am at a loss as to how to get it down and still eat a balanced menu.

Just a side note: I have adverse reactions to artificial sweeteners including splenda so real sugar is my only option.

Are you diabetic or diagnosed prediabetic? If not, tracking your sugars isn't especially necessary. Eat good foods, stay on track with your macros and calorie goals, and you'll be fine.

I am hypoglycemic and my sugars rise and drop very rapidly causing adverse side effects. I am worried this will eventually lead to diabetes. I think it's something I need to take into consideration. Even a teaspoon of sugar in my coffee causes a crash an hour later.

Ah, the plot thickens.

An old friend of mine was hypoglycemic. She swore by agave nectar or honey to prevent spikes in her glycemic index, though that was many moons ago and further research has no doubt been done since then. Are you familiar with the site http://www.glycemicindex.com/ ? It may help you control such crashes by making monitoring your foods easier.

missability

I always go over the MFP 25g....BUT I always look to see where the sugar came from, and if it was fruit, whole grains and veggies such as onion, peppers, etc....I technically don't count it...maybe that's wrong but it has worked for me....

Fruit has so many valuable vitamins, antioxidants, etc... I would not give it up...I stick with strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries...and watermelon..occasionally apple slices...I limit my bananas, oranges, pineapple, to twice a week....I only use real organic sugar and organic honey...NEVER substitutes....so far so good:)

carolynhart01

The problem with sugars in how fast they hit your blood stream and how quickly they cause your insulin to jump (it causes the insulin to process this sugar really fast then you get an energy crash that can cause bad diet choices and can also store excess sugars riiiiight on the hips or gut or wherever you don't want it). The number cannot be changed unless you give up sugar in all its sneaky forms. But, we like fruit. Fruit is good for us. So, what we can do is SLOW down how fast it hits our blood stream and how quickly our insulin jumps by pairing it with good lean protein. Apples with peanutbutter. Grapes with cottage cheese. The protein does a great job of slowing that sugar processing down. So yes you will still have red in your journal but you will have eaten it is a healthier way.

christimccarty

Although, OP... looking at your diary, I see your coffee had 64 grams of sugar. Hmmmm.

That would be like 18 teaspoons, or more than 1/4 cup of sugar. If that's true.... holy ****.

And if it's true, your coffee did not have 154 calories. It had 256 calories from sugar alone, plus the calories from the coffee (maybe 10) plus the calories from the cream.

24 grams of fat, 64 grams carbs, and 24 grams of fat would actually be 504 calories. Not 154.

I see that, There is something up with that entry! Girly, you may find another coffee to use in the tracker. Or if you have the phone app, scan your creamer and your sugar packet/bag and coffee barcodes seperately *this is what I prefer when tracking, no guess-work*.

stormyfindley1

My doctor's office just informed me yesterday that I'm not allowed artificially sweetened food or drink. I guess a person's body can't tell the difference between the 2 and reacts the same to both. Since I'm working on getting my insulin level down this is a no go for me.

krhn

Hard to keep it low when you incorporate yogurts and sweetened prepack oatmeal...
Yogurt even low fat has tons of sugars compared to normal daily foods put together

Ang108

That happens to me with just a grapefruit and a largish amount of fresh vegetables.
I add no sugar to anything, have no sugar in the house and eat nothing that contains any kind of processed sugar, honey or any supposedly " healthy " sweetener, yet most days I am over my allowance. The only way to stay under is not to eat any fruit at all.
Unfortunately this is a tropical country and the fruit like papaya, mango and guavas are equally tropical and sweet .....:o).

taylorckt1

Any type of sugar stalls my weight loss so I attempt to avoid as much as I can (natural and artifical). I still go over daily because I drink a 6 oz glass of juice in the mornings with my flaxseed oil. I eliminated fruit entirely from my diet. It doesn't bother me because I know minus that juice, my numbers would be just fine and that juice is natural so oh well...I continue to lose and feel great. You have to find what works for you/your body.

VeinsAndBones

With ice cream, but only before 1pm, cause any carbs after then turns immediately to fat....

NoraisTreble

I don't put real, or artificial sugar in anything, yet my sugar allotment is regularly over. I worry, since I am "prediabetic," but most of my sugar comes from fruit. This area is a 'sticky wicket.' For now, I am just eating as well as I possibly can. When I have my blood work done in May, I will see what the results are and go from there.

DebbieLyn63

I use Stevia in my coffee and just stay away from sugar, other than 1-2 fruit servings. I don't eat grains, so that helps since I don't eat cakes, cookies, or donuts, etc. I do eat Atkins bars for breakfast, which have sugar alcohols in them, but they don't bother me. Yogurt is very high in sugar unless you eat the light varieties, and even then, the sugar can be a bit high. I have a high genetic risk for Diabetes, so for me, it has just been a shift in thinking. Sugar also causes a lot of inflammation in my body, so the increase in pain when I eat it is enough to keep me away from it.

Have you tried using stevia? It is a natural sugar substitute that doesn't cause the probs some other ones can.

cwolfman13

MFP's recommendation is based on the AHA's recommendation for ADDED sugar. If you're worried about it cut out anything with high fructose corn syrup and limit your intake of processed foods that have a lot of added sugar. I get the bulk of my sugar from fruit...very little added sugar. Your body does metabolize sugars in fruits and veg slower because the sugar is wrapped in fiber...so you don't get the big spike you would get if you had a soda or some other food product with a bunch of added sugar. This is why my type II dad can have fruits in moderation but cannot have sodas or candies or anything like that.

pnubn1

On most days..maybe 5 days a week..I cut out anything with sugar. On those days I try not to go over 8 grams. I'm usually successful. Even on my "off" days though..I still find myself checking for sugar content on labels. I've been sugar free..for the most part now for 2 weeks. My skin is thanking me for it by being smooth and clear.

lobo_a_gogo

Avoid pre-sweetened stuff i.e. instead of having flavored oatmeal, but plain steel-cut oats and after cooking add protein powder, a little bit of honey or a little bit of agave syrup

Pinkylee77

All carbohydrate and I mean all break down to glucose in the body. So if you don't want any sugar eat only meat and fat. Sugar is not the enemy eating too much of any food is not healthy. All things in moderation. Glucose feeds the brain so it is in moderation a very necessary item. Watching your macros is more important. Fruit breaks down to Fructose or fruit sugar. The body generally absorbs it slower than a simple sugar.

chefwrx

Tracking will make you aware of all kinds of mistakes. Under and Over estimating were major mistakes I made before I started logging all of my intake.

If you goal is to reduce bodyfat, you'd be best off eliminating sweeteners in general until you reach your goal. Once you get a taste for it, good coffee is excellent black. I love to get Americanos at the coffee chains for a treat.

Also, Pinkylee77 is correct.

What are your goals?

luvred51

Bump.

cattleyaorchid

The problem I have with sugars is if they are high it indirectly makes my carbs go high which can be frustrating. I love fruit and it is good for you so I try to eat it around my workouts.

Ang108

What you say about yogurt is true, but only as far as commercial yogurt is concerned. I make my own whole milk Greek yogurt and one cup is not only less in calories, but also only a fraction of the sugar. This happens because greek style yogurt needs to sit out at least 48 hours ( I often do 72 ) to get thick. In the process sugar is used for fermentation. Of course that makes the yogurt much more tart, which I like and most people don't , especially in the US food culture, where it seems to me that almost everything that is processed has a hint of sweetness to it.
If you can handle yogurt that is tart, making your own and leaving it out for a longer period of time is the route to go for less calories and less sugar.