Ain't No Thing But a Chicken Wing

Linda here!  I'm Derek's proud wife and am honored that he asked me to provide a little guest post for his blog.

Often, when I provide nutrition counseling to someone who has recently been diagnosed with diabetes, he usually tells me that he was advised to avoid all white foods (sugar, white bread, cake, potatoes, chips, etc).  While this advice is OK and partially true, I find it is inadequate. I think the more knowledge one has about the different foods in his diet, the better chance he has of staying on track with managing his disease.  (They don't call diabetes a self-managed disease for nothing).

So, where does one start?

Well, I think a good starting point is to know a little bit about carbohydrate foods, that is, the foods that turn into sugar when we eat them.

Most clients/patients I talk to know that sugar, potatoes, rice, white bread, pasta, and grits are carbohydrates, but when I tell them about wheat bread, fruit, milk, and yogurt also fitting in to this category, I am met with a good deal of surprise.  Before I go on, I want to mention, carbs are not bad; they are not the enemy; they are not evil.  In fact, out of the 3 main macronutrients carb, protein, and fat, our body most readily uses carb as a source of energy.  However, since diabetes can be defined as a problem with glucose metabolism, I think it is important to achieve the appropriate balance.

OK, so what are the foods that most directly affect blood sugar (aka carbs)?

Starches - this includes (but is not limited to) rice, pasta, legumes/beans, peas, corn, potatoes, bread (even whole grain, whole wheat etc), crackers, cereal, grits, oatmeal, hummus

Fruit - ALL fresh fruit, canned fruit, dried fruit, frozen fruit.  ALL juices.

Milk/Yogurt - Milk (all types, cow's milk, almond milk, soy, rice etc), yogurt, pudding, ice cream.

Sweets/Sugar - this seems like a no brainer, but this is a good time to mention that honey, agave nectar, brown sugar, sugar-in-the-raw, evaporated cane juice, and maple syrup are all considered forms of sugar, and they all affect blood sugar.

and lastly, a little something I like to call.....

Sneaky Carbs - these are the foods that many people think contain very little or no carbohydrate, but then are left with a big surprise when they check their blood sugar a couple hours later.

• Chicken wings, those delicious little bite sized treats, what are they covered in?  Some form of sauce that probably contains sugar (BBQ sauce, tangy sauce, sweet and sour, siracha glazed, bourbon maple, you get the idea).
• Other sauces - gravy, spaghetti/marinara, sweet and sour, teryaki 
• Salad dressings - while not all contain carb, think about honey mustard dressing and certain fruit based vinaigrettes.
• Carrots and other sneaky veggies - Vegetables are so good for you.  Most of us should eat more of them, but certain ones do contain significant carbohydrate.  
• Fried chicken/meat - the meat contains NO carb, but the breading does.  Bummer.
• Peanut butter/nuts - most will say these are very low carb foods, but if you eat a nice sized portion, and eat them often, they can be contributing to those higher blood sugar readings.

So, knowing the foods that affect blood sugar is the first step.  The next is knowing how to read the label and decipher how much to have.  But, not to worry, we'll have more on that another time.  Thanks Derek for asking me to blog this week.  I am happy to be your wife and little diabetes nerd/guru.  Aren't you glad you married a dietitian?! HA!

I tried to keep this post short and concise, however, I plan on elaborating more in future posts. Please feel free to ask questions in the comments.  Peace.