Losing weight with hypoglycemia

mecameron17
mecameron17 Posts: 1 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi everyone, I am looking for snack ideas/tips from anyone who knows the struggle of trying to lose weight with hypoglycemia. I can't do the keto diet because going low carb isn't an option for me. I have to eat every 2-3 hours... Good snack choices are the hardest part for me in trying to maintain my blood sugar while not wanting to pack on the calories. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Replies

  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    Can you get enough from the starchier veggies, like carrots?

    How about fruits?

    How about left overs from your meals?

    Remember that you can also do half servings of things, as long as they meet your needs. I often have a half serving a peanut butter, for example.
  • Karinafabulous
    Karinafabulous Posts: 4 Member
    It seems that apples with cinnamon really help me with blood sugar.
  • Fflpnari
    Fflpnari Posts: 975 Member
    Im not diabetic but have to be careful that my blood sugar does not drop. I try to keep my carbs stable. If I eat a lot of carbs, my sugar will drop. I do best with meals of 30p/30f/40c. Try to find what works for you and what your triggers are. Keep track of what you eat and when, and hopefully you can see a pattern

  • FL_Hiker
    FL_Hiker Posts: 919 Member
    mecameron17 wrote: »
    Hi everyone, I am looking for snack ideas/tips from anyone who knows the struggle of trying to lose weight with hypoglycemia. I can't do the keto diet because going low carb isn't an option for me. I have to eat every 2-3 hours... Good snack choices are the hardest part for me in trying to maintain my blood sugar while not wanting to pack on the calories. Any suggestions? Thanks!

    I’m hypoglycemic, what worked for me was increasing my protein intake. Nope I don’t do keto either and I love my carbs! Protein helps keep me full though so I don’t have to eat as often and it seems to help keep my blood sugar levels stable and I don’t get shaky. Think string cheese, protein bars, protein shakes, eggs, Greek yogurt. I pretty much hate all protein but I make myself eat it anyways because I like to feel good!
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    I do keto and it resolved my reactive hypoglycaemia. YMMV. Once I was no longer reliant on glucose for my fuel, I never experience BG swings anymore and my energy is steady. No more shakes, headaches, falling BP or hangries. I tend to go 6 hours between my two meals now, although I do have cream in my coffee throughout the morning.

    For me, the snacks that worked in the beginning were high fat and often with protein such as cheese, meats, an egg, nuts.
  • AnneUT
    AnneUT Posts: 19 Member
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    I do keto and it resolved my reactive hypoglycaemia. YMMV. Once I was no longer reliant on glucose for my fuel, I never experience BG swings anymore and my energy is steady. No more shakes, headaches, falling BP or hangries. I tend to go 6 hours between my two meals now, although I do have cream in my coffee throughout the morning.

    For me, the snacks that worked in the beginning were high fat and often with protein such as cheese, meats, an egg, nuts.

    Same here. No hypoglycemia issues anymore now that my carbs are under control. If you don't want to do full on keto, eat a moderate carb diet. I found that my hypoglycemia issues were much improved when I kept my carbs around 90-100 net per day. Good luck.
  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
    Is this reactive hypoglycemia? Because if it is, ironically more carbs are not the answer - too many carbs cause a sudden rise, then a drop. As noted above, keto can work for some people.

    I dealt with this when I was a teenager and what worked for me was avoiding large amounts of carbs early in the day - no pancakes with syrup and Coke for breakfast - plus making sure I got enough protein. If you need to maintain a constant carb level, which is sometimes the case with certain medications, go for slower digesting carbs such as dairy (Greek yogurt is a good choice) or legumes. Edamame for example is a good slow-digesting snack. Or sugary veg such as carrot sticks.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    rheddmobile wrote: »
    Is this reactive hypoglycemia? Because if it is, ironically more carbs are not the answer - too many carbs cause a sudden rise, then a drop. As noted above, keto can work for some people.

    I dealt with this when I was a teenager and what worked for me was avoiding large amounts of carbs early in the day - no pancakes with syrup and Coke for breakfast - plus making sure I got enough protein. If you need to maintain a constant carb level, which is sometimes the case with certain medications, go for slower digesting carbs such as dairy (Greek yogurt is a good choice) or legumes. Edamame for example is a good slow-digesting snack. Or sugary veg such as carrot sticks.

    I think that is smart to ask. Those with actual hypoglycemia tend to be those who take/inject insulin, and who have injected too much. Those people will need more carbs/glucose in order to raise BG to safe levels.

    Those with reactive hypoglycemia are usually not actually hypoglycemic, but the rapid fall in BG produces similar symptoms. For example, if I ate a lot of carbs and my BG went up to an 8.5, I might feel hypoglycemic when aftrewards my BG falls down to a 4.5 within an hour, but that is actually a healthy BG to attain most of the time.
  • wenrob
    wenrob Posts: 125 Member
    I eat three snacks and three med/small meals a day. For me, higher protein, some fat and moderate carbs is what works. I never eat carbs on their own. I tend to avoid large amounts of fruit (for whatever reason it gives me wild swings) and do not drink fruit juice or full calorie pop. Things like donuts, muffins, cereal are never worth it to me, they always lead to a crash. Basically I go for sustained energy vs. quick energy. Everyone reacts differently so you’re going to have to do some trial and error to find what works for you.

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