Unintentional Sugar

(Bacon, Not Stirred) #1

Oh, I’m so upset! Yesterday I went to a potluck, which I normally would avoid. However, I figured because it was an all-woman get together, and they all know my struggles with weight and eating, that they would “get it” about how I’m eating. Most of them did. However, there was another lady there that I hadn’t met before. She asked how I was eating, which I explained to her. She said “Oh, really, then you can totally have the broccoli salad I made. All it has in it is mayo, broccoli, cheese, sunflower seeds, bacon and dried cranberries.” I said “that’s it? Like, literally nothing else?” She assured me that was it, so I decided to have some and pick around the cranberries. It was bliss… heaven. Fantastic. It was so good that I had another giant helping of it. GIANT. I finished it, and then she said “Oh! I forgot to tell you there’s apple cider vinegar in that”, which I replied NBD to… It’s ACV… okay. She then drops the freaking bomb of bombs. It has 1/4 cup of white freaking sugar in it. WHAT!?! I seriously thought it was that sweet because of the cranberries. OMG I HATE MY LIFE I AM SO FREAKING PISSED OFF!

Rant over.

Today I’ve just picked up where I would’ve been before, and haven’t had a ton of issues… but I’m still pissed.

(A ham loving ham! - VA6KD) #2

Be careful of dried cranberries too…they’re about 50% sugars/carb.

(Ethan) #3

I understand! I had something similar (though not due to such terrible people) happen twice last week. I gained 4+ pounds overnight and took 2 days to lose it back each time!

I decided that is why I should fast twice a month for 3+ days. Fasting corrects any such situations. Yes, you lose a little, but its ok… KCKO! Oh, but also get even!

(Sophie) #4

I’d be pissed too! Especially if you TOLD her that you don’t eat sugar and she omitted that small factoid until AFTER you consumed her poisoned salad. That reeks of pure asshole to me. I mean jeez like it’s not hard enough to avoid all the sugar pitfalls as it is. You really do have to be strategic about meals and god forbid you are fasting at some get together. :roll_eyes:

I thought about fasting during a do for the eclipse but decided to make a huge country cole slaw that was keto that I could eat and share too. And I packed some drinks and a salad with hard boiled eggs for me in case there was nothing I could have. Turns out all I could have was grilled chicken and my cole slaw. The glass of wine made up for it though and I ate the salad for dinner. But yeah, social situations are getting trickier, no thanks to people who don’t divulge ingredients until it’s too late.

(A ham loving ham! - VA6KD) #5

Some people just don’t even consider sugar as an “ingredient” per se…to them it’s just something you throw into everything to enhance the flavours!

(Bacon, Not Stirred) #6

My gosh, I know. That’s why the “I’ll pick around them”. I just about fell on the floor when I saw their carb count when I was just learning. Gah!

#7

Oh man, that is annoying. You’ll get to the point where that first mouthful will scream at you if it has sugar in it and you can spit it back out - preferably on to the plate of the moron who gave it to you! :smiley:

(matt ) #8

Agree 100%. If you can’t smell it take a small bite. You will taste it right away after being sugar free a while. Sorry that happened to you.

(G. Andrew Duthie) #9

Went through something similar over the weekend. Had just finished a kayaking trip with my family, and we stopped at a little restaurant/store on our route home, mostly because they advertised pork rinds (turns out they were out, boo!!!). Given that it was getting late, we opted to have dinner there, and while we were ordering from the counter, I specifically asked about their BBQ, and said that I was avoiding sugar. The clerk assured me that it was a vinegar-based BBQ (from which I assumed Carolina-style), so I went ahead and ordered some BBQ, asking for essentially the beef brisket sandwich without the bread.

When our food came out, the BBQ was on a bun (sigh) but I figured I could just skip that. But after taking a bite, it was obvious that the BBQ was loaded with sugar. My wife, dear person that she is, traded with me for her pork BBQ which, while a little sweet, was no where near as sugary as the beef.

I made the best of it, but yes, it’s very frustrating when you make the effort to inform others of your dietary needs and they either ignore them or just don’t get it. At this point, I’m inclined to go with the suggestion of those who say we just need to tell servers (or well-meaning friends) that we are allergic to sugar and starch, so that they take the issue seriously.

On the plus side, while my wife isn’t fully keto, I did notice that she ate her BBQ with a fork, and skipped the bun. A step in the right direction. :slight_smile:

#10

While I completely understand the sentiment here, I choose instead to say “I need to avoid sugar/starch for health reasons.”

That way, it’s not a lie, technically. And, I want to avoid irritating/upsetting food staffs who should be reserving their meal prep anxiety for those serious allergies such as nuts, gluten, etc. I just feel funny using the word “allergy” in connection with sugar since it’s unheard of and knowing the anxiety the word “allergy” causes the staff. The chefs/staff I know take the word “allergy” very seriously and it freaks them out (justifiably so). That’s just my two cents and approach, not a criticism of yours!

(G. Andrew Duthie) #11

That’s been my take, for the most part. I don’t want to dissemble, but at the same time, while the health effects of carbs for me are not as acute as, say, a nut allergy that could cause anaphylactic shock, it is nonetheless harmful, and over the long term potentially deadly. The problem is getting wait staff to take that seriously.

(Bacon, Not Stirred) #12

I can vouch for that! I’ve spent my entire day just sick, bloated, sweating and in general feeling lethargic. This is all based upon the amount of sugar I consumed.

#13

Exactly. I’m with you on this. What shifted my paradigm was my niece who is an executive chef. She explained what her staff does when an allergy is reported. They change their aprons, gloves, wash their hands, sanitize prep areas, etc. and walk around telling everyone who enters the kitchen “nut allergy” or “gluten/celiac here.” It’s a complete pain in the butt for them, but they take it seriously. Sometimes when she’s gone out to get more details on the “allergy” so she’s sure what needs to be done or what can be made, she learns the person doesn’t have an “allergy” but it’s an “aversion” or “preference.” She said she’ll never change her approach and care, but it’s annoying to her.

(Andrew Anderson) #14

People suck. So many line up at the sugar trough without a second thought. A 1/4 cup is like a dash of salt to them.

(Jeremy Storie) #15

Make her a big batch of xlax brownies :grin: That will glue her to her porcelain throne for a while.

(Bacon, Not Stirred) #16

I would freaking love to. However, I am hoping I never see this bitch again. On the plus side, I no longer have diarrhea or the sweats… I think the nastiness has passed.