Holy Ketosis Batman! Check that glycemic index!

[Robert_Johnson]

I’m not gonna stress over this. I’m not stressing… Ohhhhmmmmm… Ohhhmmmm…

So, as a public service announcement I will point out a mistake a made tonight…

… I Assumed something. As Felix Unger once said, (I saw this when I was a kid, and it stuck with me vividly.)

“When you assume, you make an {ASS} out of {U} and {ME}!”

The brackets are the literary visual aid for Felix putting it on a chalk board, and breaking it down. As a kid I laughed so hard. Almost as hard as when he greated his Eskimo friend Charles one day with, “WHATS UP CHUCK!” I rolled on the floor for a good 10 minutes after that. But I digress, back to my faux pas.

For some reason I assumed that ALL sugar alcohols were fairly benign. Very low in glycemic index. And not insulin spikers. So while grocery shopping I picked up a $2 bag of Suger free peppermint candies. I checked the bag, 0 sugars. 12 grams of carbs per serving from sugar alcohol. Sounds like a winner.

I was curious as to wheather so many carbs like this really didn’t raise BG levels. So I tested my BG before having one, and scored a 91. Which is very close to my new daily avg of Mid 80’s. I was happy with that number. An hour later, and 2 servings of peppermint candy, six pieces later I scored a 148

Worse yet, I had been slowly wining my wife over to low carb. She had been noticing my weight drop. It’s been a dramatic change. She noticed my pants. I have to wad up the waistline and hide it all in the back. I’ve got an extra 8 inches to hide on one pair, and 4 to 6 inches on most of the rest. And one pair that well over ten years old that I found in the back of he closet that fits perfectly.

So I had to fess up and tell her I really screwed the pooch on this. I showed her my BG, and she said test hers too. Of course hers was up from her reading of two hours ago from 103 after dinner to 124, and hour after having three candies.

So, as penance I decided to make a PSA about it, and link a helpful aid, which is probably on here somewhere. But since I never saw it before, I’ll bet at least a few others here as well missed it.

Keto Diet Plan: The Best and Worst Low Carb Sweeteners | Ruled Me

[Baytowvin]

Was it Malitol? That seems to be what most commercial candy used, and it’s the WORST. I made the same mistake a decade ago doing Atkins. I figured sugar alcohol was a freebie so I would load up on russel stouffers at Walgreens

[Robert_Johnson]

Indeed. Maltitol is pretty bad. It’s GI is 36. But in my opinion the worst of the bunch is Splenda. Granulated form. It has a GI of 80! That’s higher than table sugars 65.

Normally Splenda would be just fine. But, to make the product work in a powdered form, they need to add maltodextrine as an anti caking agent. Basically nullified the reason for using it.

Anyway, I checked my BG this morning. So 8 hours after my spike, I’m back down to 112. Barely into the healthy range.

On a positive note…

I had been considering testing my insulin sensitivity by doing some carbage, and seeing what the results were. So I unintentionally performed that test. Next is to see if I was kicked out of ketosis. At this point I don’t think so. I feel fine. I don’t feel hungry. I’ll continue my IF and try to extend it as long as I can. Maybe make it an EF.

Keto Vitae!

[shezfunn]

malitol must be very cheap to make if they stick it in lots of commercial products … im waiting for the day that they use actual low glycemic sweetners in products targeting diabetics

[Mangusdog]

We have a sugar free section in our bulk store and the price signs we put up have a laxative warning on them. I wish I could tell customers how crappy they are.

[PaulL]

If memory serves, it was maltitol that Haribo used as the sweetener in its notorious 5-lb. bag of sugar-free Gummi Bears. According to the reviews on Amazon, the results were hilariously dire.

[decreebass]

This is a sad fact of advertising; sugar-free doesn’t mean carb-free - it’s just an advertizing tactic to get diabetics to buy candy thinking they’re doing something healthy (well, healthier) for themselves. It kinda sickens me that so many people fall for this - buy this crap and wonder why they still have diabetes or whatever. I’m sorry you had to find out the hard way (although, you should have been tipped off by 12g carbs(!!!) lol, and then definitely not have consumend TWO servings, but I think you’ve learned your lesson).

It’s too bad, too, since sugar-free candy is actually pretty good sometimes.

For me, I like the Atkins treats; M&Ms, peanut M&Ms, milk chocolate caramel squares, peanut butter cups, etc. I’ve found it doesn’t really affect my weight-loss or keto in general but still quenches that occasional sweet tooth. And it tells you right on the package how many net carbs per serving. I have a big bowl of them all mixed so when I want a quick treat, I just grab a package or two and call it dessert. I will say, though, that if I eat too many (or much, however you want to look at it), I do get a pretty mild headace for a couple hours, so it’s not entirely benign, though I don’t think it’s affecting my blood sugar / insulin).

Anyway, good luck in the future. All those things have fillers and carbs; if you’re gonna buy it and eat it, have one or two; not six

[Robert_Johnson]

Like I said, I’m doing penance. I did something stupid, and I’m paying for it. I’m not one to brag about achievements, but I’m also not one to hide failures.

This was an EPIC FAIL. I think it did kick me out of ketosis for a few days. I began to feel very tired almost all day long. So I upped my fat intake. Then I began to notice the odd fruity smell in my urine again. Ketone production kicking back in? Judging by that it’s stayed high for a few days and seems to beach to normal. I don’t feel so tired anymore, and feel a bit humbled, and bit wiser. Thank you all.