Adventures in grocery shopping

[Rogar]

jp1, you're probably aware that there are pastas made from alternates to white wheat that would be lower on the glycemic index. I buy pasta made from quinoa or chickpea routinely and it's suits me fine. I'm not sure of the details for someone with diabetic concerns.

[JaneV2.0]

It's not like you're alone, jp1--I've read that 88% of American adults have some degree of metabolic syndrome.

[jp1]

jp1, you're probably aware that there are pastas made from alternates to white wheat that would be lower on the glycemic index. I buy pasta made from quinoa or chickpea routinely and it's suits me fine. I'm not sure of the details for someone with diabetic concerns.

Yes, we've been trying out some of them. Varying degrees of success that seem dependent on how much carbs they have. The chick pea pastas are pretty mediocre but I could eat them every day without concern... So we keep trying in the hopes of finding something we both enjoy. Because honestly pasta with red sauce is one of my very favorite things to eat. And it's absurdly easy to make.

It's not like you're alone, jp1--I've read that 88% of American adults have some degree of metabolic syndrome.

True. Although as a friend of mine who is 20 years older than me so she has multiple relatives/friends with at least some level of diabetes said she commonly hears from them, "I just have a touch of the sugars..." And my friend's response to them "No. No. You have diabetes and need to act accordingly..."

But in any case, thank you both for your concern. I will be fine. I may not have the dedication that mom did to follow the dietician's advice to a T and avoid needing meds for several years, but I will be doing the best I can and if need be will take metformin or whatever med is best able to help me. I"m just thankful that effective treatments and monitoring exist today, unlike when my grandmother became diabetic. The only blood testing available back then was for her to go to the doc's office, do a blood draw, and a few days later get the results. Nothing close to the continual monitoring available today with technology like the Freestyle Libre.

[frugal-one]

So, back in April I went for my annual "wellness" visit with the doc. My A1C has been in the low end of the prediabetic range for years. (Thanks mom! Grandma had gone blind from untreated diabetes back in the early 50's but lived another 20+ years and 5 out of 8 kids in mom's generation eventually were diagnosed with it including mom.) This visit my A1C was at 6.5, right on the cusp of a full blown diabetes diagnosis. So I decided to cut back carbs as much as possible and we'll be testing it again in 3 months. Previously breakfast was a bagel and cream cheese and lunch was normally a sandwich made with some sort of leftover from dinner the previous night or just the leftover dinner outright if it was something like pasta. Now I'm having plain yogurt with fresh fruit for breakfast and usually a salad for lunch. Dinner I'm still eating some carbs because SO just isn't willing to go full into the low carb diet thing and I'm not willing to deal with making two separate dinners every evening. We'll see how this plays out when I get my A1C checked again in early August after three months of this new diet. In the meantime it's become clear to me why a high carb diet is so common. Besides the fact that it's easy and tasty, it's also cheap. Replacing all those carb calories with non-carb stuff like cheese or meat to go on salad, or even the fresh veggies that go into salad, is more expensive than what I was eating before. I haven't gone through and tracked the numbers but I feel like my grocery budget has basically doubled because of this change. If it ends up helping my health I'm ok with that, but if I were struggling to make ends meet this would be a really tough situation.

Went for wellness physical today. Was REALLY happy with blood results. Took JaneV2.0 recommendation for berberine! It has lowered my cholesterol, moderated my blood sugar levels and helped with heartbeat regulation. My blood results are better than they have been in years. In reading, berberine acts similarly to metformin???? The benefits of this natural supplement has been amazing for me. Thanks Jane!!! YLMV

[JaneV2.0]

Went for wellness physical today. Was REALLY happy with blood results. Took JaneV2.0 recommendation for berberine! It has lowered my cholesterol, moderated my blood sugar levels and helped with heartbeat regulation. My blood results are better than they have been in years. In reading, berberine acts similarly to metformin???? The benefits of this natural supplement has been amazing for me. Thanks Jane!!! YLMV

I'm really good at recommendations of items I have absolutely no personal experience with. A friend of mine recently thanked me profusely for turning her on to a Portland food cart called Mole Mole. I love mole, and I'd read good reviews...I'm kind of the idiot savant of advice.

[JaneV2.0]

...

True. Although as a friend of mine who is 20 years older than me so she has multiple relatives/friends with at least some level of diabetes said she commonly hears from them, "I just have a touch of the sugars..." And my friend's response to them "No. No. You have diabetes and need to act accordingly..."

...

Your friend is absolutely right. Diabetes--and metabolic syndrome* in general--is taken far too lightly, maybe because you don't see the damage it's done until you're in the thick of it, and it's totally or nearly irreversible. (Continuous glucose monitors are an excellent tool to demonstrate how your body metabolizes different foods, though they can be spendy.)

I've ramped up my fat and protein intake and mostly avoided carbs over the last ten months or so, hoping increased muscle mass would combat arthritis and sarcopenia (as well as the aforementioned metabolic syndrome), but so far the only benefit I've seen is noticeably thicker hair. Which is nice, but not really helpful. I'm hoping there have been additional benefits below the surface.

*Implicated in conditions from various dementias to heart and circulatory disease, fatty liver disease, obesity, cancers (especially solid tumors), and numerous life style diseases.

[Rogar]

I wonder if “metabolic syndrome” is as common in other parts of the world and if there is a lesson there.

[JaneV2.0]

I wonder if “metabolic syndrome” is as common in other parts of the world and if there is a lesson there.

I wouldn't be surprised if "we're number one" in the world in metabolic syndrome. The processed food industry in this country is very powerful, and carb-rich foods are cheap and profitable.

[Tradd]

I’ve heard India has a high number of diabetics. They might be vegetarian/vegans, but the amount of fried carbs is amazing.

[JaneV2.0]

I adore Indian food, but it certainly is carboriffic.