Snacking - drinks


(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #21

I think the real issue is that lots of folks have dairy intolerances to some degree with one or more dairy components. And or so-called A1 or A2. If you don’t, there’s no reason to avoid dairy. It’s not some magical or mysterious substance. Dairy fat contains mostly SFAs, a lot of MUFAs and very low PUFAs. Cream less than butter or ghee, of course.

Sure, if you’re a purist, our Pleistocene ancestors did not eat cheese and drink milk. I suspect that’s why many folks have problems with it - humans evolved to wean off mother’s milk as a growing child. So only some of us have the necessary enzymes and hormones necessary to utilize it. If so, I see no reason to avoid it. I think it one of the better results of the Holocene agricultural ‘revolution’. Butter, cheese and cream are a major component of my diet.


(H) #22

Well that makes me happy to hear. I love cheese so that is music to my ears for sure! I’ll go get the cream…:grin:


(Allie) #23

It’s an individual thing, you have to find what works for you. I have been eating masses of dairy over the last few months.


#24

It’s individual. There are no items having this power for everyone… It may hinder it and may not, it may do it when you need to lose a little or when your staples are less great or when you eat more meals a day… It’s quite complicated.

I avoid too much cream (and barely consume any dairy for multiple reasons) as I can’t afford not satiating items (it’s tricky enough not to eat too much using my most satiating items - and the bare minimum of others to make my meals very very enjoyable) but it’s me. Some people are sensitive to dairy, probably some gets triggered by it… And some people can eat a lot of dairy without any problem.
You can experiment with it but it’s quite possible that some dairy will be fine.


(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #25

There is no level of insulin that we need to aim for, just a general low level, with gentle rises and falls. Insulin is intended to rise as we digest our food, so as to store some of the energy for later use. It is then supposed to fall and allow the energy (stored as fat) to be released in a controlled sort of way to keep us going between meals. We want our insulin level to be generally low enough, however, to prevent fat from being trapped in our fat cells.

The problem with a high-carbohydrate diet is that it raises our blood sugar very high (which is dangerous and can even be fatal), thus provoking an insulin response to get the glucose out of the bloodstream and either used by muscles or stored as fat. Carbohydrate thus elevates insulin and keeps it elevated for a long time. As fat cells become stuffed with fat, they become insulin-resistant, and it then requires more insulin to have the same effect of clearing glucose from the blood. Not only does excessive glucose cause damage, but chronically elevated insulin does, as well. Lowering blood glucose by not eating carbohydrate helps to lower insulin and, over time, can even reverse insulin-resistance.


(Ian) #26

I’m formerly from the UK. I drink a tonne of tea. I now drink tea with whipping cream. The cream is more satiating, almost no carbs and adds a sweeter silkiness that helped me get off the 4 teaspoons of sugar/per cup, as did the sweetener Splenda for a short period of time.

I drink coke zero, and have never seen it move my BG in any direction using a CGM, therefore I do not think it impacts my insulin levels.

I have found the MIO water flavourings helpful to add some variety to my drinks. The lemonade flavour is particularly good IMHO.

https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/product/00043000000519/mio-lemonade-liquid-water-enhancer-162-fl-oz-bottle?categoryid=10260.

Adding strawberries or raspberries to whipping cream or low carb yogourt, with a splash of the strawberry sweeter, make for a nice low carb dessert.

HTH


(H) #27

Thanks for this! Whipping cream is something I’ve not tried yet. Double cream in tea seems to curl, especially the extra thick stuff, so I’m still working on that. But since starting this I’ve found I’m more thirsty so been drinking way more water and cut tea back to about 4; though two of these are at work so I’ve been having two cups with just less milk and counting the carbs. It’s worth the carbs since I can’t do without! :grin:


(Tracy) #28

I go through phases. I know aspartame isn’t healthy, but it gets me hydrated and I love this concoction I make. I use club soda, about a 2 teaspoons of chocolate or coffee flavored Torani syrup, then top it with unsweetened coconut milk. It’s such a tiny amount of sweetener I really don’t think it’ll kill me. Also, if I have a craving for diet soda, I will stop at gas stations that have soda water at their drink fountain, fill my cup with 90% soda water, and throw in some lemon wedges with about 10% diet soda. I get my bubbles, the lemon does most of the flavoring, and I can still taste the diet soda. So far no harm done. I also drink a lot of unsweetened almond milk.


#29

I also drink unsweetened Almond Milk pretty regularly. Either the plain or Vanilla, basically whichever one they have in. But I usually only drink one 18 oz. bottle a day, rarely drinking two, and some days none. But other then this, I mostly drink Decaf Tea more than anything else. (Both unsweetened and sweetened, depending on my mood or what I’m doing) And I do like a Zevia’s here and there, usually no more than 1 a day, but have done more at times. … I’ve always said the one thing about Keto, is the lack of choices when it comes to drinks. But it’s also an eye opener for some, when they realize just how much of their daily carb intake is actually in liquid form. - Water is always your friend though.


#30

I did that watering down thing when I wanted to try Coke after years on low-carb :smiley: It actually made that insanely sweet abomination drinkable! (It was sugary as I hate the taste of most sweeteners with a passion.)

My thinking is usually the same, if it helps me and it’s just a tiny bad stuff, I allow it… For a while or very occasionally… And work on enjoying some good stuff better! I trained myself a lot but it took time. And I am not anywhere finished, probably another 10 years and I will be pretty good… But carnivore seems to speed things up.

But what’s wrong with water?
Oh yep, it’s a tad boring to me as well… Unless I exercise, water is perfect then :smiley:
But we can drink so many things, drinks has quite easy recipes. I had unsweetened (it wouldn’t make it any better) lemonade with elderberry flowers today as it’s that season. And various teas. And coffee with various stuff in it. And carbonated water… I can’t get bored of that but I need to bring it from far away and the storage on the bicycle is for eggs… So I use it sparingly and try to like water. Sometimes our own water coming from our well isn’t clean lately, that doesn’t help things but at least it never has chlorine unlike tap water in so many places… And it’s tastier than most I tried too.

I didn’t drink soda and whatnots before keto either… It’s not just about carbs. I hate unnecessary garbage and zillion added things in a liquid that should be good for hydration and nice to drink. Okay, I am lucky to LOVE carbonated water… That comes in its own bottle I bring back.

Sometimes I did wonder what to drink… But I should learn to appreciate the big variety I actually have… Eggs make a nice base for certain drinks too…


#31

Nothing at all… never said it was. In fact, I probably drink more water than the average person does. Maybe sometime too much?

My point was, for someone switching over to low carb, and say, trying to keep carbs no more than 20g a day to maximize weight loss, minimize insulin spikes, etc. They will soon find that most of the drinks purchased at grocery stores, quick-stops-shops, etc., are actually quite carby overall. With some being well over 20g themselves in a single drink. Including drinks that some used to believe were better for them instead of drinking sodas, but can actually be even worse than drinking ones favorite pop. … So yep, Water is always a winner for keeping things low carb, and not to mention, keeping from spiking insulin throughout the day and in-between meals. (i.e., snacking. Some may forget snacking can be in liquid form as well as solid, but is sometimes easily overlooked since chewing isn’t involved.)

Then again, some don’t follow all this and do things their way, and if that works for them, that’s great. But I’m sure a lot of folks find drink choices can be quite minimized when trying to follow a low carb WOE for whatever benefits they are looking to gain from it.


(Allie) #32

You just need to let it cool a little first.


(H) #33

All great tips thanks. I’ve drank more water in the past 2.5 weeks than I have in years as I seem to be thirsty- though it is a lot hotter than it has been lately too! But as a lot of the for I’ve been eating is salty too- and I am a devil for salting my food though I’ve read it ok so hurrah!!!
I’ve also stopped drinking recently so that takes away my weekend treats so I think getting rid of the Diet Coke habit might just be a step too far at this point… maybe it will be a new goal to set myself once I have keto down!! :raised_hands:


(H) #34

Awesome thanks I’ll try that!!


(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #35

“Double cream” is the British term for what Americans call “heavy cream” or “whipping cream.” The British version contains a slightly greater amount of fat, I believe.

I always found that the taste of cream was too heavy for the delicate taste of tea, so you might consider using milk, unless you drink so much tea that using milk would overwhelm your carb limit.

Myself, I went through a phase of putting heavy cream in my coffee, under the influence of these forums, and I eventually stopped, because I much prefer the tase of unadulterated tea and coffee.


(H) #36

Yes that’s right and here (UK) you get extra thick double which is the consistency of clotted cream and is delicious.
I tried cream after a tip from someone on here but I’ve decided the better option is to curb my tea to 3/4 cups a day and then just have whole mile. That seems to have worked yesterday and today more or less.