sugar, that was a fast reaction

[Zoe Girl]

I very rarely eat sugar, a teaspoon in tea twice a day. If is in cookies or other items I usually cut the amount down or it is mixed with oats. I also eat anything sweet after a good meal with protein. This morning I went to the gym and then stopped by the store and decided to get spice drops with my other things. I had eaten breakfast but ate the candy by itself. At the end of church I was ready to fall asleep. I am staying awake now to eat some brie with crackers and a couple fresh tomatoes from the garden, then I will have to nap. I recall being like this before when I ate more sugar, it is really a fast reaction to sugar now. Fructose is undigestable to me as well, raisins, grapes, apples, and of course high fructose corn syrup. My body dumps it for lack of a more delicate way to put it.

It is obvious out bodies are not equipped to handle how much sugar is available to us. Does anyone know if spending years eating very low sugar affects your chance of diabetes? I assume so.

[Yarrow]

With diabetes there is a genetic component - it seems to run in families. It does run in my mother's side of the family, but some of the relatives that eat the healthiest are still the ones that have it in spite of a good diet/low sugar. I'm sure eating low sugar is helpful, but eating high carb is not helpful if you are predisposed to this disease, and not being overweight which is another risk factor...
But I know several people that are obese, eating terrible diets, very high sugar, high carb, and do not have diabetes, and will probably never have it because they don't have the genetic component for it.
Diabetes just isn't as simple a disease as some make it out to be, as far as the cause of it...

[ApatheticNoMore]

The problems with fructose that causes you to avoid grapes and apples etc. is possibly this - fructose maladsorption (I guess a true diagnostic test for it does exist):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fructose_malabsorption

It's not universal any more than say lactose intolerance is universal (and it's probably a lot less common) - but that's pretty irrelevant if it's your body that reacts that way. Even with those who have no problem eating an apple because they don't have fructose maladsorption (me), the body can only process so much fructose easily (iow yes a couple cans of coke will tax the liver).


Does anyone know if spending years eating very low sugar affects your chance of diabetes? I assume so.

this is my understanding (I'm not a nutritionist, I just read stuff ok): technically blood sugar levels aren't affected by fructose only glucose as fructose is shunted directly to the liver for processing. However overtaxing the liver with excessive fructose might very well help to contribute to diabetes. Weight seems to have a great deal to do with diabetes, and I'm sure heredity has a role. Now if one wants to talk glucose which is the starchy not sweet stuff, it's not certain that super low carb diets actually produce the lowest blood sugar.

[Zoe Girl]

Yes ANM, I believe it is fructose malabsorption. I cannot have the natural stuff even. Pretty immediate reaction. I read up and one understanding is those with northern european ancestry are not designed to have a lot of fruit in our diets, some months of fresh fruit was available and limited dried fruit through the winter. Now dairy is awesome for me, I get along with that wonderfully. And I found I can handle berries and bananas, so I eat those and a lot of bright colored peppers.

My mom has type II diabetes now after years of high cholesterol, It is very genetic. The cholesterol started for her and her sisters in their 40's, now the diabetes in her 60's. She has always taken very good care of herself. We were raised with healthy food, then I went on to be vegetarian for 16 years the first time, almost a year this time, and low meat in the middle. My DR just told me this year that I do not need to have my cholesterol tested every year, it has always been fine so I can stop over-worrying. I wonder if I just dodged the family bullet (my sister has moderately high numbers but if she eats very carefully she is fine) or if all those low fat years made a difference.