Pre-Diabetic level - Doc suggest no bread/pasta - What's your substitute for bread?

[Turbo29]

Most beans are low glycemic. There are pastas made from beans. There are also a number of foods that lower glycemic levels, like vinegar and cinnamon.

Careful with the cinnamon. I started eating it everyday as my fasting glucose sometimes is over 100. About a month later I noticed my ankles and feet were puffy. Thought I was eating too much salt. Suddenly, over a period of two days it seemed like I had to urinate every hour. The puffiness went away and I lost 2.5lb. Went to the store the next day to buy some more cinnamon as I had run out four days earlier. Suddenly a lightbulb went off in my head, "The cinnamon!" I googled it on my phone right in the store and found this: Edema from Taking Cinnamon for Treatment of Diabetes

Sure it's only one report but since I stopped the cinnamon I haven't had any more problems.

 

[JoeWras]

Agree that "wheat" bread can be crap. We have a bread machine with which I make 100% true whole wheat bread. We go super easy on it too. It fills the occasional crave in a good way. BTW since we eat it slow, I slice and freeze it. It takes a quality hit, but it is better than eating it too fast.

 

[aja8888]

We have given up on bread. We use 4 carb tortillas as they are "the greatest thing since sliced bread"!

 

[COcheesehead]

Interesting video from a doctor about consuming bread. Watch it and make your own judgement. Virtually any bread not made from pure, unmodified, ancient grains is bad for you.

https://youtu.be/JdtTFbqaW9U

 

[daylatedollarshort]

A couple of studies have found that macrobiotic diets, high in whole grains, can also be helpful for diabetes - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21483296/ - " Intervention with a short-term Ma-Pi 2 diet resulted in significantly greater improvements in metabolic control in patients with type 2 diabetes compared with intervention with standard diets recommended for these patients."

The macrobiotic diet they used is pretty alkaline, and even includes a Chinese remedy for high acid levels, umboshi plums. I suspect if your gut is more alkaline it changes the bacteria to ones that don't absorb carbs as easy. Umboshi plums alone are a traditional remedy for diabetes. They are also a traditional remedy for gout (high uric acid levels), which is also linked to diabetes.

 

[cyber888]

Are you all using sugar-substitutes. I use Stevia, and Splenda (before) for coffee or other drinks?

 

[audreyh1]

I ended up learning to drink my coffee with no sweeteners.

 

[cyber888]

I just got this low glycemic Flourless bread. The description looks fine.

https://www.foodforlife.com/product...lourless-sprouted-bread-32oz-double-loaf-pack

 

[Ian S]

We generally stick to high fiber bread and pasta. I'm surprised no one has mentioned soft drinks! And frankly, juices too. I haven't had a sugary soft drink in many years and now rarely even soft drinks with sugar substitutes. As for orange juice, I don't really care for it that much. Give me my half bagel with cream cheese and coffee with a little half and half and I'm set. 5.5 miles of walking every day helps keep my weight in check.

 

[CyclingInvestor]

Diabetic here.

Costco has a nice Keto bread - 0 net carbs. I use it quite a bit for sandwiches and salad roughage. It tastes and feels slightly dried out.

 

[bloom2708]

Google or Bing: "whole food plant based"

Read up. You need a lifestyle, not a fad diet. Good luck.

 

[Lawrencewendall]

Was diagnosed 6 years ago. I look for high fiber whole grain/wheat bread. I bake with almond flour and sucralose. I make a mean 90-second keto English muffin that even DW loves. We use spaghetti squash instead of pasta. Rice cauliflower instead of potatoes. Rice is a once a month treat. Lots of meat, poultry, fish and eggs. At one point they took me off metformin but I cheated with Chinese and non keto pizza. tons of keto recipes out there.

 

[euro]

Different people will find different approaches that work for them, but in general, keeping carbs low is a good idea.
For those who are scientifically inclined or "just want to know", the technology of CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitoring), can be extremely enlightening. You get instant feedback of how high your glucose levels go when eating certain foods. You also see how long it takes your body to clear that glucose which gives you a good idea of how insulin resistant you might be.
Absolutely fascinating for nerds like myself! It's a bit pricey unless you can convince your insurance to pay for it, but if you do care about your glucose metabolism this is money extremely well spent. You would be surprised how many foods (especially processed foods, of course) will cause a glucose spike. Even some that are labelled "gluten free", "keto" low carb", etc. I'm not diabetic, but I do try to keep a low glucose diet and after a few years of experimenting, I have pretty much found what works for me and what doesn't. That said, I still double-check with a CGM for a month or two every now and then - and STILL find the occasional surprise!

 

[JoeWras]

OP and others should visit the long multi-year thread: Low carb ideas and hacks

One of my favorite substitutions is using radishes for potatoes in dishes like stew. It works! The sting comes out, the red washes away, and you'd swear you are eating little potatoes. Except: 2 carbs vs. 25

 

[RetiredHappy]

My husband is Diabetic Type 2, actually he is Type 1.5 (LADA - you can look it up, autoimmune problem where it attacks his pancreas).

I was pre-diabetic when I first met him 16 years ago and I am now back to normal. I am also gluten intolerant. This is what we eat:
- More salads for lunch. Low carb dressing like Blue Cheese dressing for my husband. I take very little Caesar dressing if I would like some but I usually skip salad dressing.
- Pasta replacement - Edamame noodles https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H4LBM54/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1
- Bread (1 gm net carb) You can get from Whole Foods and Sprouts. https://www.carbonaut.co/product/gluten-free-loaves/
- Low carb pasta sauce Net 5g carb for 1/2 cup of sauce. https://www.classico.com/product/00041129077429/classico-spicy-red-pepper-pasta-sauce-24-oz-jar
- Burger protein style, i.e. no bun with burger
- Peanuts for snacks as they are low in carbs.
- Skinny Pop for snacks, net 7 gm carbs per bag.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KE1E7YA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Since I have normal blood sugar level, I do eat some rice and potato chips. I also eat pears and peaches in moderation.

 

[cyber888]

Thanks for the link and breakdown fellows! Looks great

My husband is Diabetic Type 2, actually he is Type 1.5 (LADA - you can look it up, autoimmune problem where it attacks his pancreas).

I was pre-diabetic when I first met him 16 years ago and I am now back to normal. I am also gluten intolerant. This is what we eat:
- More salads for lunch. Low carb dressing like Blue Cheese dressing for my husband. I take very little Caesar dressing if I would like some but I usually skip salad dressing.
- Pasta replacement - Edamame noodles https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H4LBM54/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1
- Bread (1 gm net carb) You can get from Whole Foods and Sprouts. https://www.carbonaut.co/product/gluten-free-loaves/
- Low carb pasta sauce Net 5g carb for 1/2 cup of sauce. https://www.classico.com/product/00041129077429/classico-spicy-red-pepper-pasta-sauce-24-oz-jar
- Burger protein style, i.e. no bun with burger
- Peanuts for snacks as they are low in carbs.
- Skinny Pop for snacks, net 7 gm carbs per bag.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KE1E7YA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Since I have normal blood sugar level, I do eat some rice and potato chips. I also eat pears and peaches in moderation.

 

[Phroig]

Another pre-d here. My blood sugar’s been just under 110 for several years; HbA1c was under the threshold at my last checkup.

I have always exercised regularly, and eat mostly right. Diabetes runs in the family on my mother’s side. My maternal grandfather had it, and my mom and all my aunts have it, so mine’s probably genetic/hereditary.

I’ve made a few dietary changes, e.g., sweet potatoes instead of regular, whole wheat bread and pasta, no more OJ. One thing that’s hard for me to give up is white rice, though we eat quite a bit of brown now. I never had a sweet tooth, though now, ironically, I sometimes crave a bit of chocolate or dessert. I also take Cinsulin, a cinnamon/chromium combo I get at Costco.

I have also (not intentionally) lost weight over the past few years. Thanks for all the suggestions.

 

[Surewhitey]

With your ratios the way you showed them, I would completely ignore your total and LDL cholesterol numbers.

But your glucose and A1C numbers are concerning, so I would certainly cut back on the sugar as much as possible.

I feel for you, as ice cream is also one of my big weaknesses.

Yeah, I agree on the ratios, I just need to get back on the wagon with my intake. I'll be checking again in a few months to keep the doc from wanting to prescribe Metformin...

 

[caninelover]

I ended up learning to drink my coffee with no sweeteners.

Same here. It took a few weeks to get used to it but after that it was fine. Artificial sweeteners are not good for you.

 

[cyber888]

OP - What was your A1C and what was your fasting blood glucose?



A few years ago I had a higher A1C than I liked (5.9%) although I wasn't diagnosed as pre-diabetic. It did alarm me a bit so I did a lot of reading. I decided to get a glucose monitor and to test before and after meals to see what foods raised my blood sugar and which ones didn't and to see how quick it came down. I did limit my carbs somewhat (although not truly low carb). I found that for me some foods would really spike blood sugar for a considerable time while others didn't.



Here is a thread where I talked about my experiment and what I was doing:



https://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f38/a1c-and-carbs-and-me-75852.html



About 10 months after that post and using my research data for almost a Year I went back was tested again with an A1C at 5.44%.

It’s bad now. I just got results. It’s 6.5%

 

[Chuckanut]

FWIW, I am not pre-diabetic, but like many I have seen my weight creep up year after year as I age.

One way of eating I found useful is in Dr Ludwig's book "Always Hungry". If you're not ready for full-on very low carb diet, this might help. I call it lower-carb as you eliminate the worst offenders while being able to eat other carbs that are still very similar to how mother nature made them. It works for me. YMMV.

Note: I suggest getting the book from the library for free. If it works for you then buy the accompanying cook book.

 

[GoodLife59]

I crossed over and am officially Type 2 by a fraction as of a couple months ago. I haven’t eliminated carbs and sugar but cut way, way back. I’ve tried riced cauliflower vegetable blends (frozen vegetables section) and cauliflower pizza. Both are surprisingly good. Also using an app called Lose-It to track calories in and out. Easy to use and helpful.

 

[Chuckanut]

I crossed over and am officially Type 2 by a fraction as of a couple months ago. I haven’t eliminated carbs and sugar but cut way, way back. I’ve tried riced cauliflower vegetable blends (frozen vegetables section) and cauliflower pizza. Both are surprisingly good. Also using an app called Lose-It to track calories in and out. Easy to use and helpful.

Costco sells a cauliflower crust pizza that is perhaps the best frozen pizza I have tasted. It's still rather mediocre, but not just plain awful like most are.

 

[RetiredHappy]

It’s bad now. I just got results. It’s 6.5%

Yikes. That will put you squarely as diabetic. If it is any consolation, my husband has been diabetic type II (now 1.5) for the past 24 years. His most recent A1C, taken in Sep 2022, was 5.7. He was 9.0+ when first diagnosed. Cutting off most carbs is the trick. His total carb intake is no more than 50 gms a day.

 

[RetiredHappy]

Just be aware that cauliflower pizzas that you find in Costco and most grocery stores are very high in carbs. On the other hand Cauliflower wraps may be much lower in carbs. Knowing how many carbs your body can take and reading labels are extremely important to keep diabetes under control.