# Carbs



## WendyB61 (Feb 27, 2021)

How many grams of carbs a day do people aim for with type 2?


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## Docb (Feb 27, 2021)

The best answer to this is that the wise ones aim for as many as their system can cope with!  Generally, somewhere around 80-100 g/day seems to suit many but some go a lot lower.


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## Newbie777 (Feb 27, 2021)

Hello @WendyB61,

I am eating about 70g a day (not precise but have a good idea now about carbs) which is very low for me, doing this to lose weight and also to reduce my Blood Glucose levels. However, my main goal is drastically  reduce my HbA1c reads in a few months time. I will start exercising soon so will be upping my carbs to around 120g a day.

I personally think it is not a good idea to go too low too soon on carbs, enjoy your food though and find out what foods/carbs work for you, as everyone is different, for example some people can eat porridge and others can't as it raises their Blood Glucose levels.


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## Maca44 (Feb 27, 2021)

Been around 80/90 for me but upping it as treadmill is getting some action 2 X 40 mins a day but getting some very low readings after.


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## SueEK (Feb 27, 2021)

This really is a very individual thing and will depend on your levels and how your body copes, not everyone does a low carb diet, but most do. Mine is approximately 130g a day and I know others are on this as well.  If you are newly diagnosed I would suggest you decrease your carbs slowly not drastically but please ask questions if you are unsure about anything


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## Annette&Bertie (Mar 6, 2021)

My big problem is that I am not someone who can be bothered counting carbs and I would love to know where to start.   I know and respect people who get good results by only having 30g per day, some have lost weight quickly and reversed their diabetes, which I would love to do but how do you know how many carbs you have in a day, do you have to weigh everything.     Incidentally I have this website’s excellent Diet and Carb book.


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## Kaylz (Mar 6, 2021)

@Annette&Bertie yes you do have to weight the things that you consume that contain carbs and unless you have the weight it provides the nutrition information for you also have to calculate what carbs is in your serving, for instance I'll use my breakfast oats as an example, so per 100g they have 56.1g carbs, I have 45g of them so to get the value for my portion you take the 56.1 divide it by 100 and then multiply it by the weight your having so in my case 45 so 56.1/100x45 = 25.245g carbs xx


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## NotWorriedAtAll (Mar 6, 2021)

I aim for 20g or fewer a day.  On a  not very careful day I have around 25 - 30g maximum.
I've been doing this for two years and not lost much weight until recently when I started doing much more exercise.
I did reverse my diabetes and have kept it at 'normal' numbers without meds for a long time now.
I enjoy the challenge of finding new ingredients and creating new recipes so I can carry on having the foods I enjoy but without the carb content.


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## Lars88 (Mar 6, 2021)

I have about 100g a day, sometimes less sometimes more, very rarely over 130g (I do have the odd takeaway though which isn't counted) I use my fitness pal to keep track and I do weigh my food out so I know I'm having a reasonable portion and its accurate for carb counting. This has really helped me keep on track and I actually enjoy it now. I tend to eat a lot of the same foods so I don't have to search for them every time. I was diagnosed in September and blood sugars now in non-diabetic range.


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## Annette&Bertie (Mar 6, 2021)

surely it depends from person to person, at least that's what I was told.  For example, if I want a slice of wholemeal bread that's 16g in itself.   I am pleased that everyone measures and weighs, but there's not enough life in me to go and do that.   I think if our diabetes was so serious, which we know it is, then I think I would have received attention from my gp practice.   
I know what you are all saying is what should happen, but I'm just not prepared to do it, it's hard enough looking at calories in foods without also having to look at every morsel on my plate.

Incidentally, I never eat junk food, have never had a takeaway, don't eat sweets and make all of my meals from scratch, which consists only of chicken and fish since the age of 5 (I'm now 72) with veg.  I love fruit in the form of berries and don't eat pasta white rice or potatoes.   To be frank I don't know what else I can do.  But heaps of praise for those of you who take it to the enth degree, well done.


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## EllsBells (Mar 6, 2021)

Like you, I'm not a fan of counting. It takes the fun out of things. That said, carb counting is much less stressful than calorie counting. I'm consuming around 80-100g carbs per day as I'm trying to lose weight. I don't measure much except big carb load foods - eg potatoes, pasta or basmati rice and bread. Pasta and rice I go for half a recommended portion so around the 30g mark per meal with sauces as normal but only at one meal in the day and not every day. I weigh any potatoes carefully and try to have 100g or less per plate. I prepare more so it can be reheated later. There are some good substitutes - cauliflower rice for example that you can use instead of rice or various alternatives for mash.

Take it slow and think it out one meal at a time. If you have some go to recipes, work those out first and build up your knowledge one step at a time. Want fajitas? You can ignore the chicken, cheese and veg components but look into the wraps (30g per wholemeal wrap) and sauces (good to go).


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## pat7762 (Mar 6, 2021)

hi everyone,i try to stick to 100 or lower,i started doing nintendo ring fit,mon 1 march,i could barely jog 1 mile when i started but am up to 3miles now,the thing i want to ask is i drink slimfast for breakfast and lunch and have a low carb dinner,the slimfast is,21 or 28 carbs per serving and 235 cals is this ok,my blood count is under 10 i'm on the old meter i don't understand this new measuring,i'm type 2.


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## Kaylz (Mar 6, 2021)

@Annette&Bertie I get what your saying and in every other comment the person is Type 2 and not on insulin but those of us on fast acting insulin kind of have no option but to weigh in order to calculate the appropriate insulin dose also taking into account the BG at the time so while you may not have it in you some of us have to whether we like it or not xx


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## helli (Mar 6, 2021)

After more than 15 years of “carb counting” in order to dose my insulin, I rarely use scales.
I have learnt to carb estimate. Considering how many approximations there are in crb contents and additional things which can affect our blood sugars as well as food (stress, exercise, illness, etc.), I do not obsess about the exact weight of my food. Instead, i look at my meal and visually count portions of about 10g carbs.
In non pandemic times, this is a necessary skill because I often eat out for pleasure and work where there is no set of scales (and the Carbs and Cals book/app drove me crazy) so I have to guess, measure my blood sugars regularly and correct.

So, despite having type 1 diabetes and dosing my insulin according to the carbs (or protein if I eat low carb), I do NOT weigh everything I eat.


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## Kaylz (Mar 6, 2021)

helli said:


> So, despite having type 1 diabetes and dosing my insulin according to the carbs (or protein if I eat low carb), I do NOT weigh everything I eat.


I wish I could be as brave but due to my eating disorder etc I'm not confident enough to just guess and deal with the consequences later  xx


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## rebrascora (Mar 6, 2021)

If I am going to have a carb rich food I usually weight it, so if I am treating myself to porridge, I will weigh the dry porridge oats but if I am keeping very low carb and avoiding carb rich foods then I estimate everything else and the rule of small numbers means I can't be too far out for it to matter. You soon learn how many carbs are in different foods.

Personally I think counting calories is much more difficult. For instance, if I have a plate of cabbage cooked with a good knob of butter with cauliflower cheese and bacon/gammon or high meat content sausages, I would have to know the amount of butter I put on the cabbage and the calorie content of it (pretty high) the amount of cheese I used on the cauliflower to calculate the calories in that (again huge) and the calorie content of the bacon/gammon or sausages (also high) whereas I can eat that meal and know that is is almost no carbs no matter how much butter or cheese I have so I don't need to calculate them or worry about them and unless I have a large amount of meat, I don't need to inject insulin for it either.


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## Pine Marten (Mar 6, 2021)

pat7762 said:


> hi everyone,i try to stick to 100 or lower,i started doing nintendo ring fit,mon 1 march,i could barely jog 1 mile when i started but am up to 3miles now,the thing i want to ask is i drink slimfast for breakfast and lunch and have a low carb dinner,the slimfast is,21 or 28 carbs per serving and 235 cals is this ok,my blood count is under 10 i'm on the old meter i don't understand this new measuring,i'm type 2.


I have around 100 per day too, and have learnt to roughly estimate different things - I actually like the Carbs & Cals book, and still refer to it.

Years ago I tried to lose weight by drinking Slimfast, but to be quite honest I found it very tedious, and my teeth almost ached with the urge to chomp on something rather than drink it! And if it's around 21 or 28 carbs per serving it's quite high for what it is. I'd advise some combination (if you're not veggie) of eggs, bacon, mushrooms with maybe a slice of Burgen or Nimble, omelettes, or yogurt & berries or nuts.

When you say your blood count is under 10 is that before/after meals, fasting, HbA1c or ...?


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## Annette&Bertie (Mar 6, 2021)

Kaylz said:


> @Annette&Bertie I get what your saying and in every other comment the person is Type 2 and not on insulin but those of us on fast acting insulin kind of have no option but to weigh in order to calculate the appropriate insulin dose also taking into account the BG at the time so while you may not have it in you some of us have to whether we like it or not xx


Now I never mentioned insulin, but I had a friend and colleague who had been Typ 1 all of her life, she was so good and weighed everything, she was a few years older than me, so careful and never let up or made any excuse to have a treat.  I admired her so much.   I totally get having to weigh if you are on insulin.

However, and please don’t take this as a personal slight, but to be honest on this forum, without reading signatures, my main comments are aimed specifically at Type 2s who are not on any meds that might cause a hypo, insulin being just one.

I am type 2 only on dapagliflozin [forxiga] 10mg which does not cause hypos.   I always remember in the past June, the Type 1 I mentioned, saying to me frequently that she was very careful because she was terrified of having a hypo.  So that I understand.

Sadly, my friend June having been so diligent died last year aged 75 of “diabetic complications”a term I hear frequently and one that terrifies me.    I worry because no way am I as diligent as June was all her life, if that can happen to her what chance have I got.

I still don’t think enough is done for diabetics, and make no mistake Type 1 is a completely different condition to type 2.    Three members of my family on my mother’s side had diabetes, but not my mother, so I think I would have become typ2 anyway.

As most of you might know depending on your age, Type 2 was never heard of in young people it was always called “Late onset diabetes” because it happened to older people.

I continue to be amazed that these days so many young folk have typ2, it mystifies me!


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## Sharron1 (Mar 6, 2021)

Hi, I usually sualy stick at 100-120 carbs a day. Nothing too fancy in the way of food. At diagnosis I did carb count and weigh stuff, but am now much better at using food labels, a little arithmetic and portion control.The scales  rarely leave their box.


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## Lesleym (Mar 6, 2021)

SueEK said:


> As This really is a very individual thing and will depend on your levels and how your body copes, not everyone does a low carb diet, but most do. Mine is approximately 130g a day and I know others are on this as well.  If you are newly diagnosed I would suggest you decrease your carbs slowly not drastically but please ask questions if you are unsure about anything


Sue pls can I ask you I’m doing LCHF but I think the fats don’t suit me as i have high bp ..Someone said the low fat food is full of sugar how do we get round this pls ?


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## Annette&Bertie (Mar 6, 2021)

We should only be eating full fat.   I use butter, full milk and cream ascwell as cheese the latter is great.   So called diet foods are loaded with carbs!


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## Lesleym (Mar 6, 2021)

Annette&Bertie said:


> We should only be eating full fat.   I use butter, full milk and cream ascwell as cheese the latter is great.   So called diet foods are loaded with carbs!


Thank you for your answer so surely high fat is not good for cholesterol I’m confused sorry


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## Drummer (Mar 6, 2021)

Lesleym said:


> Thank you for your answer so surely high fat is not good for cholesterol I’m confused sorry


Unfortunately all the things we are told about cholesterol seem to be dead ends - reducing cholesterol doesn't seem to have any positive consequences. Eating less fat seems to have little impact. Swapping to unsaturated fat can result in inflammation of the joints for some.


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## SueEK (Mar 6, 2021)

Lesleym said:


> Sue pls can I ask you I’m doing LCHF but I think the fats don’t suit me as i have high bp ..Someone said the low fat food is full of sugar how do we get round this
> 
> 
> Lesleym said:
> ...


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## Newbie777 (Mar 6, 2021)

Hello,

The choice is yours to carb count or not.

However, what I learned is that carbs are everywhere, I did not realise this.

As a Diabetic you wouldn't eat a cake or ice cream all the time, as you know it's bad for you, however I think carbs is actually  worse, as you don't realise how bad it can be.. for a long time I was eating more than 400g of carbs on so called  'healthy foods'.

I checked today full fat Greek yogurt has less carbs than the equivalent reduced fat Greek yogurt!

It is about trial and error and nobody is wrong on there approach or usage,  it is what works for you, talking about this is a good first step, then followed by trying things out slowly.


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## Deleted member 25429 (Mar 7, 2021)

I am type 1 diagnosed at 52 , whilst I know I can eat anything I decided to go low carb who said less carbs, less insulin, less ups and downs.You soon build a list in your head of the carbs in your favourite foods . I don’t eat prepackaged food,pasta rice or potatoes .We all have to take responsibility for what we eat and how it affects our levels. I have much tighter control of my condition by eating low carb  and plenty of exercise, I have also found lots of very tasty alternatives to the higher carb foods


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## Gwynn (Mar 7, 2021)

Oddly, I really enjoy carb counting as I know that every carefully controlled meal drives me further into success...beating my diabetes.

It also gives me a big something to do by creating an extensive App to assist me. What else do you do in lockdown?

If I had to write it all down and work it all out I too would not want to do it. Thankfully there are Apps out there that can take all the slog out of it all.

Success? Oh yes. 27Kg lost. Fitter, healthier, more energy, HbA1c down to non diabetic level, eyes slightly better, no headaches,  no meds, enjoying food more, happier, clearer thinking, all diabetic symptoms gone.

Who wouldn't want to try to drive towards all that?

Well, my guess is that all the stresses and strains of life just wear us all down so that extra effort in something (like carb counting) can seem like a very big chore (and bore). And it seems that diabetes too can drain us and make us feel bad. However, looking beyond the now to the healthier, happer future is a great way to push though any block.

I suppose the deeper question might be 'what's the alternative'? Guess? Ignore it? Suffer the consequences of long term diabetes? No thanks.


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## Lady_Serenity (Mar 7, 2021)

Is this the carbs with sugar on the food labels?
I try to have as low as possible for breakfast and lunch. 
Then dinner approximately 50-100.


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## Sally71 (Mar 7, 2021)

Yes you need to count the “total carbs” on the food labels as they will all affect your blood glucose level.  The “of which sugars” bit is useless, that's only some of them!


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## Leadinglights (Mar 7, 2021)

Lady_Serenity said:


> Is this the carbs with sugar on the food labels?
> I try to have as low as possible for breakfast and lunch.
> Then dinner approximately 50-100.


I think others will chip in to answer but I would have though it better to even out your intake of carbs otherwise you risk having a huge spike for having that many carbs all in one go at one meal. Especially as you are more likely to me more active during the day rather than in the evening, unless of course if you go for a midnight run. The amount you are having in 1 meal is as much or more than many people have in the whole day.


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## Newbie777 (Mar 7, 2021)

yes I agree @Leadinglights,

For my 70g a day, I would keep breakfast a around 15g and my two other meals around the 20 to 25g, leaving a small amount for snacks.


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## Drummer (Mar 7, 2021)

I found that I could cope with carbs more in the evening than first thing, so I usually have about 10 gm of carbs in the morning and about 12 hours later up to 30 gm though not every day, that would be if I had fruit for dessert.
I do want my readings to be normal, and so I have tested and kept records to find my own limits - you might have normal readings after more carbs or different foods, but as long as you are getting good results that should do the trick.


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## Annette&Bertie (Mar 8, 2021)

every morning, probably just for ease and simplicity, my breakfast is 2eggs, boiled scrambled or poached.   Simples.   I love porrige, but don’t have it!


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## pat7762 (Mar 11, 2021)

thanks everyone for replies,something must be working for me,lost 2lbs in 3 days,was 185lbs now 183lbs,yes i weigh in lbs seems the weight comes off quicker.


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## Maca44 (Mar 13, 2021)

pat7762 said:


> thanks everyone for replies,something must be working for me,lost 2lbs in 3 days,was 185lbs now 183lbs,yes i weigh in lbs seems the weight comes off quicker.


I swear weight comes off quicker in Ib's, in kg's it doesn't, I also measure in feet & inches


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## trophywench (Mar 13, 2021)

I do know how heavy I am in kgs, but cannot grasp my height being other than 5ft 2ins.

When my niece was about 7-ish, my sis was telling her where to look for something in the barn, so go up the ladder, then a couple of yards to the right where you can see whatever, it's behind them - I think.  How far is a yard, mum?  Aaah - tiddly bit less than a metre Tori.

She said she didn't think it was worth saying 3 - 4 inches less than a metre to her!


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