Veg*n, Sugar, Splenda & Diabetes

[WendySmiling]

I want to try to keep simple sugars to a minimum. Keeping in mind this is just day 2 for me. I like fresh fruit, but it's doesn't always satisfy. What do you all eat for a sweet? And being diabetic I have a small stash of splenda, but don't really want the chemicals anymore and now have a bottle of stevia, although it doesn't fill a recipe like muffins or something. Any tips? Thanks!:sunny:

[Percy]

Avoid splenda!!!!


It's totally poisonous!!!


Please, take a look over this post! I've wrote something that might help you. You do not need to seek my rules, but it helps to enhance a balanced raw vegan lifestyle. You can combine my recommendations with your vegetarian lifestyle!

http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=87689

[LifeDrngWartime]

Not only is it poisonous but it's produced by abhorrent animal testers. They don't deserve a cent of money.

I think they sell bigger containers of Stevia (don't quote me on that) but it's supposed to be sweeter so you're supposed to have to use less. I've never cared for Stevia, personally. I know there are other dry natural sugar substitutes out there, I've seen a couple at Whole Foods but they're expensive. One is called Zero, I think. I don't know if they still make it but they used to sell something called Sucanat, it was brown bits of like dry sugar cane juice... I don't know how appropriate that would be for your diet (also it wasn't the best in baking in my opinion).

Err, Agave is a great liquid sweetener, but I don't have alot of experience baking with it.

[hoodedclawjen]

i used stevia a lot in the past, but its not really easy or ideal in a lot of things.

i like xylitol now. its a sugar alcohol made from corn or birch, but its not like the other ones- its actually good for you (it starves bacteria so can help with avoiding tooth decay, e.n.t. infections, candida, etc).

xylitol is best used sparingly at first, cos although your body makes small amounts of it itself, it can be overwhelmed if you try and feed it a cupful and its not expecting it, and it'll go right through you. i started with a teaspoon here and there, and i can use it to make cakes and whatnot with no problems, a few months on. obviously i don't eat the whole cake at once, and sometimes i replace some of it with applesauce, just cos i can.

its just about as sweet as sugar, tastes slightly cold on the tongue, and has 40% less calories and zero net carbs per teaspoon full. it won't react with yeast, so you can't bake bread with it, it doesn't crystalise the same as sugar so isn't ideal for making candy, but beyond that, i really like it.

i'm thinking to try erythritol and when i see it around, too.

[LucidAnne]

I have type 1 myself...i have splenda lying around and i am shocked at how much sugar substitute i used to use, but now i cant stand it...a little packet is very potent to me now. it was almost like the more i used/consumed it, the more i needed in order for anything to be sweet enough for me.

i use plain sugar when baking, but i always cut back some...which you can generally do safely w/o screwing up a recipe.
definately try agave syrup! it is safe for pple w/ diabetes. agave syrup can be used in place of at least some of the sugar...3/4 cups for one cup of sugar.
there is also brown rice syrup, which has a slightly less effect on b.s. than sugar, but does have some.

[itsveggietime!]

I think there's a problem in just giving a sweetener, because you are diabetic and so what people use is going to not work the same for you. I think you just need to stay with things like unsweetened applesauce in muffins, and console yourself with knowing that everyone ate that way in years gone by. I mean, you eat so little, I hate to think what adding a sweetener in there would do to your blood sugar. Only someone in your same shoes, or your doctor can be sure their advice isn't going to go badly for you.

[Doktormartini]

Raw honey (very healthy but NOT VEGAN, also high GI)

Agave Nectar (Similar to honey, VEGAN!, and lower GI)

Dates (pretty cool for making raw treats)

Stevia (comes from a plant, so it's not a poison made in a lab)

Yacon Root Syrup (Like Agave but comes from the root of the Yacon plant. I've heard somewhere that is has little to no effect at all on GI).

www.rawfor30days.com
http://www.21daycure.com/

You can beat it :)

[lobsteriffic]

This thread is really helpful. My dad is a type II diabetic and whenever my mom bakes for him she does use Splenda...it makes me nervous.

[LucidAnne]

one thing though, lobsteriffic...is that agave, while safe for type 1 diabetes, may not be w/ those who have type 2. Agave doesnt raise blood sugar much, however, it can illicit an insulin response, causing some issues w/ pple and type 2.
on the other hand,it is so potent that you dont need much, but its something to be aware of.

also, when removing sugar (or fat) from foods, it helps to use herbs, spices, (cinnamon is supposed to be good for type 2), and flavor extracts (like vanilla extract, coconut, etc)...it helps make food more interesting and complex w/o adding unnecessary sugar.

[Bios]

I go for a square of really dark, high quality chocolate.

It has actual sugar, but not much in a small block; and I find the highly concentrated taste of a good dark chocolate lets me be satisfied with that very small serving.

[ElaineVigneault]

Agave nectar is wonderful! I like it in oatmeal, in baking, drizzled over fruit, in tea...

I also use maple syrup and molasses for baking. And I use vegan sugar, too.
I try to keep sugar to a minimum, but man, I have a sweet tooth!

[lobsteriffic]

one thing though, lobsteriffic...is that agave, while safe for type 1 diabetes, may not be w/ those who have type 2. Agave doesnt raise blood sugar much, however, it can illicit an insulin response, causing some issues w/ pple and type 2.
on the other hand,it is so potent that you dont need much, but its something to be aware of.

also, when removing sugar (or fat) from foods, it helps to use herbs, spices, (cinnamon is supposed to be good for type 2), and flavor extracts (like vanilla extract, coconut, etc)...it helps make food more interesting and complex w/o adding unnecessary sugar.


hey thanks for the tip! Good thing to know. :)

[Dieselsmom]

You could try 100% maple syrup. Very nice if you are making a coleslaw and want to add something to your "mayo" for the dressing and I've also used it when I am doing a sweet and sour stir fry.

PS I forgot you are diabetic when I was posting this, so I don't know if maple syrup would be acceptable.

[hoodedclawjen]

i'm pretty sure that for diabetes, sugar = sugar. maple syrup, molasses, honey, rice syrup confectioners sugar, raw cane sugar, dextrose, etc are all still basically sugar, they're just different colours and consistancies and have different trace elements.

personally, i found that after a while with no sugar or sweetener, and limited fruits and starchy carbs, i kinda just got over it and didn't want or crave sweet stuff half as much. i also started to really taste the natural sweetness in foods a lot more- like in carrots. it was quite weird. whenever i had anything remotely sweetened it tasted way too sweet- to the point of freaking me out a bit. eg: once i tried a new splenda sweetened toffutti icecream product sample at a veg*n event, and i couldn't manage a mouthful, it tasted horribly cloyingly sickly sweet to me- yet the bf said it was fine.

[LucidAnne]

i agree jen...after i got off all/alot of the "sauce" (ie: sugar, or sugar alternatives, lol), i have noticed that i am more satisfied w/ just a little bit of sweetness...and i crave it less so. i still have my baking, but i can control the sweetness in my own things, not store bought items, which i also find too sickly sweet. sometimes i feel like my teeth are hurting. lol.

and you are right about sugar being sugar in all those forms. there is some debate about the glycemic index (how quickly/ how high it affects your bs) in the various forms. i really think it depends on the person...esp w/ those w/ diabetes, b/c there can be so many causes behind it (both type 1 and 2). for me, honey doesnt affect me as quickly as other sugars, but maple syrup really does a doozy on me.

[Doktormartini]

i'm pretty sure that for diabetes, sugar = sugar. maple syrup, molasses, honey, rice syrup confectioners sugar, raw cane sugar, dextrose, etc are all still basically sugar, they're just different colours and consistancies and have different trace elements.

personally, i found that after a while with no sugar or sweetener, and limited fruits and starchy carbs, i kinda just got over it and didn't want or crave sweet stuff half as much. i also started to really taste the natural sweetness in foods a lot more- like in carrots. it was quite weird. whenever i had anything remotely sweetened it tasted way too sweet- to the point of freaking me out a bit. eg: once i tried a new splenda sweetened toffutti icecream product sample at a veg*n event, and i couldn't manage a mouthful, it tasted horribly cloyingly sickly sweet to me- yet the bf said it was fine.
Yes but different sugars have different effect on the Glycemic Index.