Net carb and snacks

(Scott) #1

My mom was a Walmart today and it the weight section and said she was talking to some woman who was buying keto snacks . She took a picture . I looked at some ingredients and notice that they were written about in here as stay away if you can . She is returning the box she bought for me of chocolate almonds . The lady told her they were only two net carbs , so my mom took a chance . The question is if something is 19’carbs and say 9’in fibre and 8 in sugar alcohol seems funny it only counts as 2 . I can see fibre is broccoli or fruits and veggies . But not fake candy . Ps I wish they invented zero carb green grapes . That is the hardest so far and taco chips ( I know I can shells and bake but bad habit with foot ball on

#2

“Net carbs” are basically “digestible carbs”.

Generally, there are three things to be concerned about for net carbs:

  • Fiber. Most forms are not digestible, so they can generally be subtracted out.
  • Sugar alcohols vary in digestibility. Some, like erythritol, can be subtracted out completely. Others, like Xylitol and Sorbitol and Maltitol, still have over 2 calories per gram, so should really only be half-subtracted. A comparison of Glycemic Index for sweeteners.
  • Allulose is a sugar, but has nearly no digestible component (1/10th that of regular sugar). But because it’s listed on nutritional labels as part of the carbohydrates, there’s no way to subtract it out (I think this is changing). But most products using Allulose will state the net carbs on their packaging.

Also, be aware that most countries outside of the USA already subtract out non-digestible carbohydrates on their labels, so you would do no subtracting. That’s why you can sometimes find nutritional labels where there are more fiber grams than carbohydrate grams.

P.S. I probably should mention that maltitol and sorbitol give a lot of people frequent bathroom trips.

(Scott) #3

Thanks so on this label cause it’s maltitol the sugar alcohol should only count as 7 not 14 meaning the actual net carbs are 8 carbs per bag not 2. Crazy how the labelling goes . They can put o carbs listed if the make the ingredient small enough in size and other tricks

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#4

Scott. Your instincts are correct. If it takes a university degree to decipher an ingredients list on a product, then that is a good reason to be sceptical.

What you are highlighting is nutritional accounting. Labelling something with a marketing buzz word “keto”, then baffling the consumer, if they read more.

People will use keto snacks as replacements for their habitual snacks that caused health problems. That’s the value of them. Then to eventually not need the replacement snacks and not need snacking, as a behaviour, at all would be the goal. When people are starting out it is very hard to see that not snacking is a possibility. It’s one of the nice discoveries to make if they stick with the plan.

You solved it right there.

Be kind to your mom. She is trying to help. It’s great to have that family support.

(Scott) #5

I know, she was excited she found snacks with the net carbs . Just told her that in processed stuff they trick people with labels . She Aldo bought me a cauliflower mash ( can’t return) but when you read labels it’s a lot of carbs for s little amount . It’s is 4 net carbs per 1/2 cup. Not sure about everyone else but 1/2 cup is not too much . So one cup is 8 carbs . Had one cup of broccoli today and it was 6.5 . But 1.5 carb is a good difference

(Laurie) #6

Good explanation you gave her about the labels. Nice of her to help. Keep it simple. Keto is meat, eggs, etc.–real food.

#7

It’s not even the portion trick, they simply consider maltitol 0 carbs… That’s a problem. But maltitol alone is a problem for many of us (no sweetener ever caused me any problems - I just hate their taste, usually - except maltitol, very easily, it seems. I don’t even feel it particularly sweet). Or the zillion ingredients, some I have no idea and opinion about but I surely don’t need them…
It’s ridiculously easy to make snacks so I personally do that. I understand the charm of just buying something especially if it’s special and nothing like what we can make but for very many of us, ours (or just some normal food but for the maltitol-sensitive ones, maybe even the sugary stuff!) is still superior.
At least the sugary ones are so carby we can’t fit much into our day :smiley: And the labelling is probably much more honest there…

Zero carb grapes? :smiley: I am realistic but low-sugar fruit would be nice (well it exists, I call them raspberries, mostly. but I love the variety of fruits and my fruit garden has that). Most fruits are too sweet to me (well a few grams work) so I consider them sugary sweeteners.

Broccoli and cauliflower are naturally carby, they are veggies, after all, I avoid those (maybe they are less carby normally, I can’t do anything with vague measurements like cups… but the numbers seem big, they surely put something else in it then?). But if I buy veggies, I buy them normally, nothing added. It was natural to me when I changed my woe, if I buy processed stuff, that’s cheese (JUST cheese, not shredded cheese with starch) or cured pork from a good farm. Not those complicated labels. Sometimes something tempts me, I just read the ingredients list and usually put it back, losing all interest. It’s useful to be this choosy.

#8

Atkins has been in trouble over it:

The crux of the issue:

Atkins reportedly informs consumers that … sugar alcohols “have a minimal impact on blood-sugar levels.”

However, Garcia says that two of Atkins’ most commonly used sugar alcohols, maltitol and maltitol syrup, significantly affect blood sugar levels and should not be deducted from the total carbohydrate count used in the Net Carbs calculation.

#9

Why? Why count something your body can’t/won’t digest. They’re only listed as carbs in the first place because the labeling rules make it that way. It’s still junk food but for most people it’s fine.

Quest chips my friend! Haven’t had a flavor that wasn’t awesome yet! Slightly overpriced, but good.

(Scott) #10

I know there is quest . I have tried the cheese not a fan . And the chilli and lime but onkyn4 chips as they were too hot for me . Also they are 5 carbs.

(Diana) #11

I like your dedication. I’m the same don’t waste the carbs unless it’s truly what you want. Better spent on true veggies to fill the void. I find recently I’ve been wanting crunch so pork rinds do the trick. You can use them to sub and make nachos. Top with all the same things you would normally on keto. So good.

(Pete A) #12

Not snacking at all is a wonderful state of being.

And then on the odd special occasion, it’s an awesome treat!

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #13

This is true under U.S. labelling laws and, I believe, in Canada. But other jurisdictions require, in addition to the list of amounts per whatever serving size the manufacturer considers appropriate, a list per 100 g of the product, which eliminates this particular dodge.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #14

There is apparently evidence to suggest that indigestible fibre may not be so indigestible as has hitherto been believed. Not saying it’s settled science, but something to be aware of. This is part of the reason that Dr. Westman famously insists on 20 g of total carbohydrate when working with his clinic patients. On the other hand, Dr. Phinney’s company, Virta Health, recommends a limit of 50 g/day total, in the hope, as Dr. Phinney has mentioned, that the patients will end up with 20 g net.

As many experts advocate, it is healthier to avoid any food that was not in the food supply before the beginning of the Nineteenth Century.