Yikes I see folks watching total carbs and net carbs - which is really best?
Also - when I look up total carbs for eggs I find 0.6 total carbs (internet) yet on the egg carton it says 0 carbs.
I see now that nutrition information lists total carbs for the most part so maybe I haven’t been as off track as I thought. Just somewhere I thought net carbs was important. Still a lot to learn.
The best sofar for me, is that in 108 days I have had no bread, no desserts, no cookies, candy, no croutons, no potatos, starch, no juices, no diet soda, no diet anything, etc. That’s got to be worth Something, plus trying to maintain 15g carbs per day and NOW really have to take a good look at HOW I am calculating those carbs. I love writing everything down it keeps me aware. I am grateful to be in a forum that is honest and kind. Thanks all.
Net carbs versus Total carbs and please comments on EGGS
No worries. We all had to figure this out as we worked through it. You got this!
Like everything else, depends on the person. I used to do net carbs, now I don’t even count. I also don’t bother counting or thinking about whatever incidental carbs are in eggs as they’re irrelevant.
Whichever one works for you.
If you use total carbs, you know that your intake is truly low. Dr. Westman advises his patients to eat no more than 20 g/day total carbohydrate. He calls it the “industrial-strength” treatment. Dr. Phinney advises Virta Health patients to eat 50 g total, in hopes that they will thereby manage 20 g net.
It used to be more confusing, since U.S. labels and European labels both said simply “carbohydrate,” but one was total and the other was net. I see that the U.S. now requires the labels to read “total carbohydrate,” which should help.
In low-carb, high-fat diets devised to treat Type I diabetics before the discovery of insulin, and in low-carb, high-fat diets going back to the time of the London undertaker William Banting’s Letter on Corpulence, the advice always flatly forbade eating sugar, sweets, grains, starches, and many fruits; allowed limited amounts of certain vegetables and fruits; and allowed unlimited quantities of leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, and meat, eggs, dairy, poultry, and fish.
As for the carb content of eggs, the USDA entry for large fresh whole Grade A eggs says that 100 g of eggs contains either 0.96 g of carbohydrate (a calculated number) or else 0.2 g (the sum of the analysed sugar, starch, and fibre content). I’d say that eggs are therefore quite safe to eat on a ketogenic diet. And on a carnivore diet, no one worries about the carb content of the animal foods they eat.
About 0.5 carbs per a normal egg for me if I remember correctly. I am aware about this but it doesn’t even matter.
To me, only non-animal net carbs seem to matter if it’s about how I feel… And only net carbs matter for ketosis (but IDK if animal carbs are the same or not).
Oh and while it’s animal, I doubt 30-40g lactose a day would be particularly good. I just can’t normally go near that high (unless I fancy milk, it’s super easy then). I know that 20g carbs from eggs and liver feels as good as 3. (I can’t go below 3 due to my eggs and even meat has a tiny bit in the database I use).
I may have other reasons not to consume fibers and erythritols willy-nilly. More like erythritols, I don’t believe fiber matters to me but it may to others. I went into ketosis and reached fat adaptation with very much erythritol and fiber, I know that. I didn’t feel as good as now but I did consume 35-40g net carbs every day and now I know that I am better lower (I just couldn’t do that right away).
I have a potential experiment plan to eat very low net carb and high total carb but it’s soooo artificial that I am not sure I will do it. Maybe for 1-2 days. I have days when I fancy biscuits, they can use a ton of total carbs with very low net if I do it right (I never could make any kind of biscuits despite my desires so it will be challenging…).
What is the difference? The main things I see are either subtracting fiber (which your body cannot digest) or subtracting something else (e.g. but not limited to) like sugar alcohols…malitol, sorbitol etc…Maltol has many aliases like hydrogenated maltose, hydrogenated glucose syrup, Lesys, Maltisweet, or SweetPearl. It has about 1/2 the calories by weight compared to other carbs . No expert but I expect almost everyone handles fiber more or less the same way but not so on sugar alcohols. I read that malitol absorption in the gut ranges from 5-80% so who knows how you react. Erythritol on the otherhand delivers essentially no carb impact.
SOOO, I do total carbs less fiber. You make your own choices.
There is no best, only preference, but net carbs are what actually has an effect, so for most that’s what we go by. When it comes to some things like sugar alcohols in some people it can go into a gray area, but as a whole, you’re usually good with net.
I chose total carbs to be sure I stayed well within my 20g carbs. Plus, I don’t trust the numbers on the labels. If they say under 2 grams, I counted it as 3. I always round up.
Read up on net carbs. These count more toward your insulin impact than total carb counts. The net carbs appropriately exclude fiber, sugar alcohol, etc.
Ignore calories – they are a joule calculation based on 4,000 degree oven incineration, which you don’t have in your GI tract.
If you desire biscuits, an American term or a British term referring roughly to bread or cookies, I have two suggestions for low carb substitutes:
Costco and other stores have refrigerated toastable (or not) Outer Aisle brand (Santa Barbara, CA) circular “pancakes” that are cauliflower and egg concoctions upon which to melt butter and soak up egg yolks for breakfast. Delish!
My very favorite is a two minute prep and two minute microwave breakfast bread. Fills your tummy. Line a shallow bowl with butter to prevent sticking. Pour in a slurry mixture of: Bob’s Red Mill flaxseed flour 5 tbsps, almond flour 3 tbsps, whole eggs 2, baking powder (not soda) 1 tbsp, and salt, a dash. Stir gently to totally blend. I usually add the eggs at the end of the stir so as to thorough blend the other ingredients first. After pouring the slurry into the bowl, smooth it out flat for an even rise. Microwave on high on a rotating platform for two minutes. Gently peel the edges of this raised pancake (usually 2 - 3 inches high) away from the sides and bottom of the bowl with a dull knife to maintain structural integrity. It’s textured, very slightly grainy, nutty tasting, firm and yet chewy. Slather on a nice chunk of room temperature butter and/or low carb fruit (berry family) and it’s a delicious low carb start to the day. Enjoy!
A little tip – intermittent fasting will really help. Jason Fung has lots of YouTube presence and books. I.F. is easy, cheap and not at all painful.
As to eggs, they are the perfect food. Every cell in your body is composed of cholesterol and it’s not the enemy. The 17 billion dollar (U.S.) statin drug industry argues otherwise. Do you know anybody over 45 years old NOT on a statin?
Sign up for Wm. Davis’ emails. He is a long-time bona fide cardiologist with several good books – Wheat Belly, Undoctored and Super Gut. I don’t have a dog in the fight. Watch his dozens of videos.
Cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels vary by the hour and so most blood levels are not good guides. However, a good start within the lab result sheet is the triglyceride to high density lipoprotein ratio which can be calculated from almost all cholesterol lab tests. With TG as the numerator and HDL as the denominator, the closer the ratio to the number 1, the better. The number 2 is OK-ish. I am happy with my 60 pound weight loss in three months after being shocked by blood sugar levels, changing vision, etc.