How to deal with a sweet tooth?

crowefoot
crowefoot Posts: 11 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I was recently diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia. Some early experimentation has proven that if I eat anything high on the glycemic index and/or more than about 20 grams of carbs in a sitting (even balanced with an equal amount of protein), I have severe negative consequences. I also can't do artificial sweeteners because they give me migraines in addition to tasting terrible. How can I satisfy my cravings for sweets when I can't stand anything I'm allowed? If it were just a matter of calories, I could cheat occasionally, but this is my quality of life I'm risking with every temptation.

This doesn't even touch on the fact that corn syrup is in just about everything. Seriously, sausage does not require corn syrup. Food producers, please take notice.

Replies

  • KimINfortheWin
    KimINfortheWin Posts: 251 Member
    I just performed a Google search on "Low GI sweets".

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/372236-low-glycemic-desserts/
    This was the first result. Maybe this will help? I know I've been surprised at how low in sugar strawberries and blueberries are.
  • Midlifegoals
    Midlifegoals Posts: 18 Member
    I drink herbal tea - some of the fruity ones taste quite sweet but have 0 sugar, 0 carbs. That helps.
  • RubyRunner14
    RubyRunner14 Posts: 148 Member
    - Cookie-like taste: Almonds with raisins or cacao nibs
    - Nuts and seeds. Fats slow digestion.
    - Cacao has no sugar to it! Only fats and protein. (:
    Look for high fiber fruits! If you freeze it it tastes pretty good.

    Oats are actually pretty sweet if you eat them plain and get your palette down enough. Breads are also a good Ida, bake them with fruits in them.

    If all else fails, try Keto or low carb with a doctor's watch if that's an option. No energy falls or spikes, rarely ever hungry, don't have to worry about eating per 20 net carbs the entire day, never mind in one meal.
  • emmalousmom1
    emmalousmom1 Posts: 121 Member
    have you had gastric bypass?
  • JunkFoodJane
    JunkFoodJane Posts: 150 Member
    Can you have xylitol? It has fewer calories than sugar and is safe for diabetics. I do not know carb info off hand. It is pricey but a delicious sweetener.
  • crowefoot
    crowefoot Posts: 11 Member
    I forgot to mention, I'm deathly allergic to tree nuts and have a milder reaction to fruits in the peach family, which further reduces my intake.

    Sadly, tea is one of the few things that I can't stand any hint of sweetness in.

    The reason I need to watch total carbs even more than GI is my discovery that I can't eat an apple (described everywhere I've looked as low GI). I can manage about a quarter of an apple or a few berries. My reaction to dairy sugars remains untested.

    I have not had any sort of surgery.

    I have not previously heard of xylitol, so I have no idea if I can have it or not. I'll look into it. I've tried stevia, and it has a horrible chemical taste on top of the sweetness. I find it curious that a natural product tastes chemically, though.

    What I really miss, more than anything, is bread and its derivatives. I was kind of hoping that since I absolutely can't have that, I could at least sub in some of the sweets I'm missing.

    Thanks, everyone, for your replies. :)
  • RubyRunner14
    RubyRunner14 Posts: 148 Member
    Since peanuts are roots related to potato would you be able to eat that? What about seeds?

    Low GI fruits I found are under-ripe/greenish bananas, cherries, grapefruit, dried apricots, sometimes plums and oranges (all 31 or lower). Remove relations to peach family (plums, apricots, cherries are in rose family/ peach cousins), and you're left with banana (a crossbreed of two tropical seeds), and grapefruit... and very occasionally oranges.

    Can you eat beets and tomatoes? They are sweet as well. Consider cacao nibs. They are entirely fat and protein, no carbs.

    I'd once again recommend you look into low carb diet if allowed by your doctor.
  • crowefoot
    crowefoot Posts: 11 Member
    I have guidelines given to me by a dietician: no more than 30 grams of carbs per meal, balanced by at least 15 grams of protein, and halve that for snacks. I'll visit with her again after a few more weeks of trial and error to see how things work very specifically for me—I've already found that 30 grams of carbs is too much for me.

    I can and do eat peanuts, as they are the most convenient protein-laden snack I can have. I can have tomatoes pretty freely, and about half a beet at a time (which I put in salads). I'll look into carob. It's been years since I tried it, and I remember disliking it, but tastes change and needs must.

    Thanks again!

Categories