GLYCEMIC INDEX is this a hoax? For all TYPE 2 on INSULIN CAUTION!

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lebrecht Posted: Wed, Jul 8 2009 11:33 AM

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I have been going along thinking I am so well informed as I changed my eating to mainly LOW GLYCEMIC foods.  My blood sugar readings after two hours were so good, I began to cut back on my insulin. Great, I thought.

One day I forgot to test after two hours and it was now four hours after eating. SHOCK of my life when I saw that my blood sugar had soared. So I now started testing after 2 hours, then 4, then 6......The results were NOT GOOD.

I am on Humalog (fast acting insulin before meals, so in 4 to 6 hours all is gone, this meant another shot to bring down the high numbers.

NOW I wonder is this new glycemic idea really a good thing and has this really been tested ???? Or another FAD and a gimmick to sell books and make the authors rich?

I am so frustrated by this. In any case I intend to go back to a mix and eating all healthy food as before, then maintaining a level blood sugar reading throughout the day. I also take Lantus.

I hope I can get back to what I was. Of course I need to take insulin to cover th carbohydrates I eat.

What I have learned from all of this that a CARBOHYDRATE no mater what is a carbohydrate, and if I intend to eat it, I need to cover that with insulin.   Beans? Potato? white bread? etc......Cover it with insulin.   Low glycemic means the high will come later.

I post this so that others on insulin will beware!   TEST!   TEST!   TEST

Anne

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Simi_Papa replied on Wed, Jul 8 2009 1:05 PM

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Low GI has been around for more than a decade, so it is not new.  It is the basis for lots of diet programs including South Beach, Nutri-systems, Weight Watchers, etc.  Are you on a basal insulin like Lantus?  You may need this to stabilize your numbers between the quick acting shots.

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RobertIA replied on Wed, Jul 8 2009 3:46 PM

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Anne,

I am sorry that you are against the Glycemic Index.  I have been having great success with it.  I have all but eliminated white foods from my list of acceptable foods and found foods just as nutritious that have made my T2 much easier to manage.  Granted, I have also reduced my caloric intake as well to 1000 to 1200 calories and the weight is coming off (currently averaging about five pounds a month for three months.  However, because of neuropathy, I cannot get the exercise I need to bring the weight off faster.  I do a little walking.  I park away from the stores so that I have to walk and if I can find places to sit, walk more while shopping.

As Bill asked, are you on a base insulin such as Lantus or Levemir?  This makes a large difference in how well the low glycemic index helps.

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jen1229 replied on Wed, Jul 8 2009 5:05 PM

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Anne:

I'm glad that someone else finally feels the way I do.  I have been saying this for years but no one on this board would listen.  When food is digested slowly, it will eventually get into the bloodsteam and cause a rise in Blood Sugar.  It must.  The rise in blood sugar is the energy your body needs to live.  I have often thought about taking my insulin AFTER eating instead of before.  I am on a long acting insullin (Levemir) and it is very good at keeping a steady state, but it's purpose  is not to lower blood sugar from ingested  carbs.  That is the purpose of the fast acting insulin.  The same thing will happen when you eat a high fat meal.  The fat  which is last to digest, will keep the rest of the food from being digested quickly and then cause a rise later.  That is why we are supposed to eat small amounts of these foods.  You are right in that people test after two hours and think they are fine.  Perhaps because they are more able to exercise following each meal they don't see the rises like we do, because our ability to exercise is limited.  Obviously if you burn up that energy you won't see the kind of rise we are talking about.

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Ron AKA replied on Wed, Jul 8 2009 6:26 PM

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Eating a low glycemic index diet is most helpful to type 2 diabetes with a delayed but still strong insulin response to carbs. The digestion of the carbs is more in sync with their production of insulin (delayed), and they may get away with little or no meds. At the other end of the scale are type 1's on full insulin. The knowledge of glycemic index will be very helpful in managing their BG and insulin, but is nothing close to a solution. Since they are producing no insulin every carb they eat has to be covered with insulin sooner or later. A type 1 on Novolog which is very fast probably wants to stick with higher glycemic index carbs so the fast digestion will match their insulin activity. Those on Regular or a Mix, may do very well with lower glycemic carbs if they match the insulin curve. A type 2 with compromised insulin production is going be between these extremes and likely closer to the type 1 condition.

I take Prandin which stimulates insulin in a curve that is somewhat like Humalog. I have found especially in the morning that a very low glycemic index food can pop my blood sugar up about 3 hours after eating, when the Prandin has worn off. For that reason I switched from slow oatmeal to quick oatmeal in the morning. The slow was too slow.

So I don't think the glycemic index is a hoax at all, you just have to understand the implications and how to deal with them.

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nance replied on Thu, Jul 9 2009 12:49 AM

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Anne and everybody -- I remember reading or hearing a while back that the best way to use the Glycemic Index is to be able to better combine both low and high glycemic foods in a well-balanced, healthy way -- not just to eat only low glycemic foods exclusively.  You may be interested in reading this: http://www.glycemicindex.com/glycemic.index.ppt which I think does a good job of explaining and also presents some specific examples.  (If you don't agree with particular calories or carb amounts, they can be adjusted based on individual needs.)

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nora@joslin replied on Wed, Jul 22 2009 9:52 AM

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Dear Anne,

As the Nutrition Manager I know that managing one's blood glucose, no matter what method is employed can sometimes be frustrating, so don't give up.  The glycemic index (GI) is one tool to use as a small scale scapel on top of the basic guidelines for healthy eating and carbohydrate counting.  The GI tells you how quickly different types of carbohydrates cause the blood glucose to rise, it does not say anything about the amount of carbohydrate you are eating or whether the food is a "healthful" food.  For example, the GI of low milk is lower than skim milk yet skim milk is a better overall choice  In addition, carrots which are usually a medium-high GI food are a very good choice in the amounts generally consumed.

All carbohydrates cause a rise in blood glucose, lower GI cause a slower rise.   If you eat a large portion of lowGI foods, the operative word being large, you can expect that your blood glucose would be rise more, assuming that you didn't increase your insulin appropriately and distribute it appropriately.      

Eating a healthy balanced diet (lower saturated fat, higher fiber) and limiting (not avoiding) the amount of carbohydrate at a given meal is often enough to keep reasonable control for people with type 2 diabetes.  If you want more refinement than the GI index can give you that as long as you understand its shortcomings.

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tylersydney replied on Thu, Jul 23 2009 8:39 AM

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Anyone got a recipe using a sugar substitute for ice cream or frozen yogurt?

I borrowed an ice cream maker from friend when my grand kids visited and they had a blast making various ice creams (most had chocolate chips) but..I am wondering if anyone has used Stevia..etc.. for some frozen treats?  Granitas..frozen yogurt? etc.