sugar Alcohol what the heck is this....
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sugar Alcohol what the heck is this....
| Wed, 05-05-2004 - 4:20pm |
As some of you may know I have a crazy sweet tooth, well last night while I was at the store I noticed cream savers now come sugar free. Well I was in Heaven thinking as soon as I get home im going to pig out on this bag. As soon as I showed my hubbie he turned it over and said you can’t have these. There is Sugar Alcohol in them but it says sugar 0g.What is this just a big teas or what, is this some evil was of torturing me. I want to eat them but im not sure is its ok to. I woke up to a fasting sugar level of 60 not to low but still low so im really trying to watch every thing.

Now, a question though..if you don't mind. You said your number was 60. So for me thats a 3.3. Why are you trying to keep it so low? If I was at a 3.3..I'd be eating right away. The lowest I've ever had ( that I'm aware of) was 3.7 and that was sooo scary. Your numbers should be higher then that...no? I mean there is normal high and normal low. I beleive my dr said it was 3.5 to 10 depending on time of day and what you ate. Anything above or below is not normal and needs to be fixed. Am I missing something here with you? If I am I do apologize...I don't mean to be ignorant. Just please fill me in again (if you don't mind) about what is up with you. Thanks
As soon as i do get lows i do eat right away i have only known a month that i have hadthis so im still learning as i go.Im glade to see that im not the only one who does not understand the labels!
If I remember correctly (and forgive me if I actually get this wrong, I've been feeling "off" all day long), sugar alcohols are byproducts that don't actually affect the BG levels, so technically they should be OK to eat.
Blueliner4
(aka The Pixie Princess)
The thing about labels and carbs is this... they list the break down of carbs and how many.
There are three sugar alcohols. The most common are sorbitol and mannitol. The third one, which you may see is, xylitol. They are used in candies and cookies found in the diabetic food section. You may also see sorbitol as a "bulking ingredient" in fat-free, sugar free foods. They have fewer calories and raise the blood sugar less than sugar. Let me be clear, they will raise you blood sugar also. But they are really no better for you than calories containing sweetners, such as sugar. They also cause stomach distress if very much is eaten. They can cause diarrhea and because of this should not be given to young children.
I like the peppermints that are made with sorbitol but I limit myself to one candy per day. Foods that are made with the sugar alcohols are not free foods. They are just less in calories
I am glad you are starting to read labels. It will go a long ways towards helping you manage your diabetes.
The first carbohydrate number that you see listed is the total carbohydrates that are found in one serving of food. The other numbers that are under this number are the different kinds of carbohydrates found in that particular food. Some type 1 diabetics subtract the fiber from the total carbohydrates to determine how many carbs there are which can raise the blood sugar. It used to be the recommendation that diabetics not eat a food which contained more than 9 grams of sugar per serving. But the latet thinking is that sugar is a carbohydrate and it raises your blood sugar the same as any other carbohydrate. 1 carbohydrate exchange is equal to 15 grams of carbohydrates.
One word of caution. You need also to look on the label and see what the manufacturer considers to be one serving. In items with a high carbohydrate content it usually quite small.
This was a really good question and I am glad that you asked it. If you have more questions please feel free t ask them.
Mary Frances
cl-maryfrances40
Co-Cl Diabetes Board