Thanks for the link. Back when I had gestational diabetes (no prior issues) the educator's advice and what later made sense to my mind didn't line up. A year or so later I had some issues with low blood sugar and again the advice to eat more sugar just seemed wrong. My kinesiologist suggested Biotics Research Bio-Glycozyme Forte and I stopped taking them after a few months of eating my new way (my body had time to heal) and blood sugars stabilized. They're taken between meals to help with blood sugar drop. The description: A broad-spectrum product designed to support normal, healthy glycemic function. Product provides vitamins, minerals and organ/glandular support specifically targeting glycemic health.

I feel so much better without the grains and sugar.

You feel better WITH the grains and sugar? Not me.....

I tried a preparation like that when I was trying to lose weight, and it only changed my urine color.

Ack, no. That was a typo. Fixed!

I don't have time to watch it right now, but I gather she advocates eliminating many (most?) carbs and adding good fats? That's how I reversed my pre-diabetes a long time ago. I have a strong family history of diabetes and heart disease, and this was a big deal to me. Eating low-carb also brought my dangerously high triglycerides down to normal.

I've never understood why the standard diabetic diet has a starch allowance. I think it allows sugar as well, yes?

I think this is what Atkins was saying 40 years ago. My friend is diabetic and she has said her dr. encourages a low carb diet like South Beach. I think the reason that ADA allows carbs, sugar, etc. is because most people cannot adhere to a low carb, no sugar diet long term, so it's moderation with carbs/sugars as opposed to never eating them, which is pretty unrealistic and very hard to do.

For me, it was harder to eat carbs in moderation. When I went "cold turkey" about 20 years ago, I was no fun to live with for a couple of weeks, but after that I lost my cravings for sweets. What a great feeling that was! I ended up losing about 50 lbs. I've kept 40 of them off, but in the past few years have allowed more carbs into my diet. Still no sugar (and no artificial sweeteners), but I'm not as strict as I used to be about some other things. This has definitely reintroduced the carb cravings.

I had blood work done recently, and I'm curious to see how my blood glucose and triglycerides are doing. I may have to make some serious adjustments to my diet.

BTW, it was almost exactly 40 years ago that I was a patient of Dr. Atkins in NYC. I lost weight on his diet, but later gave up on it because of the emphasis on saturated fat. My dad had to give up saturated fat completely to eliminate angina, and years later I had to do the same thing.

Thanks Springroz. This might be just the motivation I needed. I stress eat so lately I've been over eating and it has to stop. I think this will be fairly easy for me, but for my craving of dark chocolate, but I'm going to give it a go.
Back when I was using My Fitness Pal, I noticed that if I went over on carbs I gained weight, but not when I went over on fat. So back to eating better again. Thanks!

Misformink, I am glad that is a typo, lol!!

Alisande, I don't have a problem moderating carbs, but I lose NO weight when I moderate. Cutting them almost completely out has resulted in 18 lbs lost, so far. That is close to 1/2 of my projected loss, yay!

Justgottabeme, you are most welcome! I eat a little dark chocolate, too. At least now that I am in menopause, chocolate is no longer life or death!

I've been past that type of life for quite a few years now and I still need my chocolate. I tried stopping before they came out and said that dark chocolate isn't so bad for you, but I when I "needed" it, I wasn't a very nice person to be around. I keep a bag of Nestle's Dark Chocolate Chips in my fridge for "emergencies". LOL

So, what do you eat? I am such a carb addict. Never a problem before, but now, I feel as though I should eat better. It will be so hard to give up cereal-one of my favorite "I am not cooking" dinners with fruit on the cereal. I also teach, so you can imagine my difficulty walking away from treats in the lounge. My instructional assistant has also gotten in the habit of giving me a granola or similar bar every morning. Help!

I try and eat a variety of meats, veggies, some fruits, nuts and other heathy fats like olive oil, organic coconut oil, grapeseed oil, and even butter. I absolutely stay away from margarine, vegetable, canola, and soybean oils. The book Deep Nutrition is an interesting read. Lots of info about how food relates to our genes, but basically sugar and vegetable oil are two of the worst things you can put in your body. I do eat sweet potatoes and organic brown rice occasionally. I think we're all different so there's no strict universal way of eating that works for everyone. I think the goal should be to eat whole foods vs. processed the majority of the time. And lots of water. I drink 1/2 my body weight in oz. of water a day. They say there are times when we think we're hungry and we're actually dehydrated. I believe this to be true. Start with small changes and I found planning plays a huge part in making this successful long term.

Is there a specific diet that Hallberg recommends beyond the 5 points in her slide? I'm just curious as to what carb limits she shoots for. I did come across this site on the Diabetic Mediterranean Diet where he talks about the Ketogenic Diet (extremely low carbs) and the Low Carb diet and how to add some healthy carbs back into the diet. The diet relies heavily on eating fish.

At the end of his ketogenic diet he notes the following:

Very low-carb ketogenic diets have been associated with headaches, bad breath, easy bruising, nausea,
fatique,[sic] aching, muscle cramps, constipation, and dizziness, among other symptoms. ―Induction flu‖ may
occur around days two through five, consisting of achiness and fatigue.

Very low-carb ketogenic diets may have the potential to cause osteoporosis (thin, brittle bones), kidney
stones, low blood pressure, constipation, gout, high uric acid in the blood, excessive loss of sodium and
potassium in the urine, worsening of kidney disease, deficiency of calcium and vitamins A, B, C, and D,
among other adverse effects.

As one Dr said, protein is bad for your kidneys, carbs are bad for your blood sugar and fats are bad for your heart, but you have to eat something. The other thing is that diet should be geared toward the individual...their needs, their metabolism, their medical history, etc.

Being a pasta lover, it is hard for me to give up carbs completely, but as a runner it is also important for me to have an intake of complex carbs. I try to keep those in my diet as much as possible in the form of veggies and whole grains (a piece of toast for example in the morning, or some gluten-free or whole wheat pasta before a race). It's hard though. Giving up sugars is no problem for me, but I do treat myself to a little dark chocolate now and then. A square of Lindt is enough to satisfy. I'm more of a salty snack fiend. Give me a bag of cashews, nuts or certain chips and I'm a goner.

Looking at my package of Lindt Extra Dark chocolate (85% cocoa), it's not very carb-heavy: 15g for four squares. There's no way I would eat four at once. It is heavy on fat, much of it saturated, but I haven't noticed a problem with it. I get an immediate reaction to other saturated fats, including coconut oil.

The best way I have found to personally lose weight is to tract my food intake on My Fitness Pal. You can add ingredients to track if they are not on their basic tracker. They also have an app so all you have to do is scan the UPC and then add the amount you had. Great when traveling. I shared information from this video with my hubby, who is knowledgeable on what food does to your body and he didn't agree with her.

This is about so much more than weight loss - such as mentioned above, reserving diabetes. I know I feel SO much better when I cut down/out the white stuff. I do love carbs and don't deny myself them at all times, but they are more like a "treat" for me. Or at least when I am really eating on track. Lean meats, veggies, fruits, whole grains work best for me.

Tinam61, The doctor in the video says NO grains (or potatoes or sugar). I'm not saying I agree with her, just pointing out her version of a low carb/ to reverse or prevent diabetes diet means no grains.

Per the Mayo clinic website, low carb means no to most grains, legumes, fruits, starchy veggie, and sometimes nuts, seeds.

What would I eat? I don't like meat or eggs enough for them to be main focus of my diet. I do limit my breads and pasta but I can't imagine I could sustain a low carb diet if I had to severely limit by fruits and veggies.

How are the low carb eaters getting enough fiber?

I guess the bottom line is everyone has to do what works for them. One size does not fit all in clothing or diets.

HH, I'm confused. I thought maybe I'd responded to something you said earlier in the thread, but I see not. I didn't watch the video. I'm not agreeing with the dr.'s programs, just generally agreeing with the thought of low carbs. As I posted before, I do eat whole grains. I don't (or try not to!!! It's hard!) eat alot of the "white" stuff. White bread, white potatoes, white flour, sugar, etc. I am not a big meat eater myself but I do eat chicken (breasts), some cuts of pork, and lean beef. Beef only occasionally though. They are not the main focus of my diet. I eat ALOT of veggies and maybe more fruit than a true low-carb diet - but I never said I eat low-carb, just cut out the bad carbs (again - try as I am a sweet lover!!!). I don't severely limit fruits and veggies. I get fiber from grains, fruits and veggies. I also eat nuts, although not daily, popcorn, sometimes flaxseed added to dishes, etc. I think I'm getting enough fiber. What I probably should cut down on a bit is dairy, cheese specifically. We did that a while back as my hubby's cholesterol was creeping up. We cut back, his numbers fell. We've probably gotten a little lax on that. Ha - I see I had a typo in my response earlier. REVERSING diabetes as someone mentioned above is what I meant. I cannot say what works for everyone, nor am I trying to, just what makes me feel better. I wish I was a bit more strict!

Sorry Tinam61, only the first paragraph was directed at you. I thought you hadn't watched the video because she says NO grains so I was just pointing out *her* method of reversing/preventing diabetes since it was the focus of the original post.

The other paragraphs were just me thinking out loud on the idea of a low carb diet.

You don't need to defend your diet. :-) If it works for you, then it's the right one.

Personally, I'm hoping my exercise regime, general activity level, and decent diet will prevent diabetes and other maladies. Only time will tell.