# Diabetic Shortbread Fingers



## stonosnr (Jun 14, 2013)

I was diagnosed with type 2 around 5 years ago and immediatly ceased eating any cakes, biscuits etc. The only item in this category that I allowed myself a couple of times / week was a Boot's Diabetic Shortbread Finger. They were very popular and it was a always lottery as to whether they had any left in stock. Unfortunately the price / packet went up last year in line with many other items.
I've noticed that the stock situation has got even worse over the last few months, and having tried 3 different branches in two days without success, I decided to ask why.
The supervisor claimed that "The Diabetes Association" had advised Boot's that anyone with Diabetes could eat "any single biscuit from any manufacturer without any side effects", so production of this "Diabetic" line was being scaled down. I expect that they will eventually disappear from the shelves completely. So, if this explanation is correct, then this is why they are scarce? Compared with any other packets of biscuits, they were much more expensive / unit. I suspect that this might be the real reason and turnover has gone down dramatically during the recession!


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## Redkite (Jun 14, 2013)

Yes, Diabetes UK advise against eating special "diabetic" foods, as these are generally poor quality nutritionally.  Many have low fat at the expense of higher sugar content, or include artificial sweeteners in the form of chemicals called polyols, which contain as much carbohydrate as ordinary sugar.  Some of the sweeteners have unpleasant side effects such as a laxative effect - yuk!  The advice is to eat normal foods in moderate amounts, keeping a limit on your daily carbohydrate totals.  You should be able to enjoy a normal shortbread biscuit from time to time


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## Caroline (Jun 14, 2013)

I was advised to avoid anything labelled as diabetic. I have quite a sweet tooth and anything with things like xylotol and sorbital in them have a laxative effect.

My solution was to get ordinary biscuits and ration myself, which works quite well when hubby ad big boy are around as I am allowed one or two with a cup of tea a day if I fancy it.

As part of a meal cakes and biscuits are OK, and used as a bribe to eat healthier foods.

Although the idea is to reduced carbohydrates (sugar is a simple carbohydrate), it is a bad idea to give everything up as we tend to crave the things we enjoyed before. A small piece of cake after a meal is OK or as a snack treat every once in a while.

I found it quite helpful to make a list of positives I could eat, like more fruit and veg for example.


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## Copepod (Jun 14, 2013)

Welcome to the forum, stonosnr - and glad to hear that Boots are giving corrct advice about moderate intakes of normal biscuits by people with diabetes


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## everydayupsanddowns (Jun 14, 2013)

Hi Stonosnr

Welcome to the forum - and yes, you should be absolutely fine with an occasional shortbread biccie. In fact if you make sure they are 'all butter' ones the BG disturbance may well be lower than a 'diabetic' alternative since the presence of fat in food slows down carbohydrate absorption. 

Personally I'll be absolutely delighted if Boots *finally* stop producing their 'diabetic' food range. They were rapped on the knuckles about it once before and scaled it down, but then they seemed to re-appear.

My experience is that it was most often friends/relatives who used to stump up the (vastly inflated) price to give their loved ones a 'treat' while the people with diabetes had to endure the window-rattling gastric upheaval and generally sub-standard flavour of the products themselves. Bleurgh!


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## Caroline (Jun 14, 2013)

everydayupsanddowns said:


> My experience is that it was most often friends/relatives who used to stump up the (vastly inflated) price to give their loved ones a 'treat' while the people with diabetes had to endure the window-rattling gastric upheaval and generally sub-standard flavour of the products themselves. Bleurgh!



All done with good intentions. One of the few relatives that doesn't buy the rubbish manufactureres think we should eat is my mum who always says we need some sugar to make our mouths feel loved.


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## DeusXM (Jun 14, 2013)

The other terrifying thing is that most 'diabetic' products have less sugar but more carbs, making them worse for your blood sugar than regular products.

And this is on top of the, er, gastric distress.


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## Caroline (Jun 14, 2013)

DeusXM said:


> And this is on top of the, er, gastric distress.



I think it is gone with the wind and the flat lieutenants


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## itsallgood (Jun 14, 2013)

I have a dark chocolate hob-nob from time to time but I have a big problem trying to resist eating more than one, they just taste too good


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## Caroline (Jun 14, 2013)

itsallgood said:


> I have a dark chocolate hob-nob from time to time but I have a big problem trying to resist eating more than one, they just taste too good




I just eat one, one packet given half the chance, some things are just too nice to leave


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