I am pre-diabetic and extremely sensitive to carbs. I am interested in eating a vegan diet but need to keep the carbs down to a minimum even too much of the good ones can effect my blood sugar and triglycerides. Does anyone have any tips?

I don't think anyone knows WHAT to say to you. I really don't either. I am certainly not qualified to give you advice on this. I do have opinions. Just make sure you are approaching your pre-diabetic condition from the right angle. I personally find it hard to believe that whole grains could cause problems for anyone unless they are allergic  or have intolerances such as some people have with wheat gluten. I do advise you to google Rocco the Cowboy on YouTube and to check out the book The China Study by T. Colin Campbell PhD. Good Luck.

Wow has no one experienced or heard of this?  There are people out here who are genetically intolerant of carbs.  I am surprised with the epidemic of diabetes this has never been discussed.  Below is an example of a vegetarian that became diabetic and had to change his diet.  I also found a book on this at Amazon.  I had no idea it was so rare.  In the past when I have tried to go veg I have gained weight.  I am trying to find a way to become and vegan and not gait weight.  I know there is an answer because I have no doubt that this is the best way to go.  I am just trying to figure out the smartest way to do it. I am hoping to find someone else out there like me who has been down this road.

http://www.healthcentral.com/diabetes/c/17/20763/lowcarb-vegetarian/

I am of Native American descent and was told by a physician that metabolic syndrome and intolerance to carbs runs in this group.  I was also told by another physician, and endocrinologist, not to eat beans, which I cannot accept.  I love beans and they are so healthy.  Basically I have been told to eat meat and nonstarchy vegetables. 

After reading The Kind Diet where Alicia talks about the animals fear response when going to slaughter and how cortisol and adrenaline is released, this makes so much sense to me.  I really want to give up meat after reading that.  I will keep looking for answers and share what I find out.  There are more of us out there I am sure. 

Gena- have you tried a Naturopath?  I started seeing one several months ago and I just love the approach- it make so much sense.  I went for chronic congestion (so bad at times I could not swallow)- she had me eliminate things from my diet and finally I got relief when I cut out dairy and wheat.  My "regular" physician wanted me to take all kinds of meds and nasal sprays. 
My 12 year old now sees my naturopath  for his chronic migraines and it is working- again the neurologist wanted to immediately medicate him.

I guess what I am saying is - if you don't like or are not satisfied with what you are hearing from these doctors- keep looking!  There should be someone out there that can work with you to find the very best diet for you!

Thanks CD!!  You must have read my mind.  I have an appointment this Thursday with one.  Maybe she can give me some answers.  I am so excited to hear what she has to say.  Maybe finally I will get some answers. 

Hi Gena!  I too am pre-diabetic so I understand what you are going through.  I have been trying to focus my meals around veggies, like spinach, artichokes, mushrooms, etc, with a portioned controlled size of quinoa product.  I also have eaten spaghetti squash with marinara sauce, which is low carb and delicious!  I have been limiting fruit until summer.  You should look into eating sweet potatoes, which are known for stabilizing blood sugars.  Buckwheat also stabilizes blood sugar, and possibly lowers it too.  Just watch if you buy soba noodles because it has added wheat, so they can form the pasta.  Also try lentils.  They tend to be less starchy than other beans, especially black beans.  One big thing to remember is portion control!!!!!  Too much of even healthy food can be a bad thing!  Watch with eating processed foods, because almost all of them have some form of sugar.  With all the fiber in a veggie diet, your A1C should be lower in no time (mine was)!!!

Thank you so much Kelli!  That was so helpful.  I am writing all of that down.  Nice to know I am not alone!

Angela Usher 

Hi Gena!  Don,t know if this will be of any use to you...."The Vegetarian Low-Carb Diet" by Rose Elliot.  She does talk about diabetes and many of the recipes are vegan friendly.  Good Luck!  I also think the way to go is with a naturopath.......maybe I should go too?  Bye from Down Under :)

Hi Gena,
I am also  prone to blood sugar spikes. I must avoid all grains and fruits. Most starchy vegetables also contain too many carb units for my metabolism.
 a
 There are two main approaches for people in this group to take.

 One approach is to go with high fat high-protein low carbohydrate foods. These foods do not create a blood sugar spike after eating them. I do a lot of testing and have found six or seven things that don't spike my blood sugar much. It is considered healthy to not have blood sugar spike. It is not covered idea to eat huge amounts of fat and protein, since this diet increases comorbidities as well as insulin resistance itself.


 Another approach is to go with low glycemic vegetables. These are usually green vegetables that are grown above ground. We then measure the amount of beans carefully that we can tolerate based on careful  blood sugar measuring and trial  and error. After every meal I get on an exercise bike for 30 minutes. I never skip this step because I would have a spike.

 I am a guy so I eat the same thing basically every day. It's not yummy or pretty but it has  maintained my quality of life. Over 10 years ago I was extremely ill and this sort of dietary change has reversed all that.


 My favorite book on the subject was " the 30 day diabetes miracle"  by Dr. House. is the book I choose for the skinny type two diabetic. " Preventing and reversing diabetes" by Dr. Barnard  is easier to follow and often effective for the overweight type 2 diabetic.

Thank you so much for that information!  I am definately going to do the exercise after every meal.  That is a wonderful idea, and to know that it is working for you is encouraging.  I also found a product called Quorn.  It is a meat replacement that is low carb.  I have tried the chicken and the beef replacements.  They are not vegan but they are vegetarian.  I was considering trying the product Field Loaf too?  Have you tried any of these?  Are there certain products in meat replacements that you try to avoid?

I'm so glad people are finally starting to answer you. I just didn't want you to go unaswered even if I didn't really know what to say!! But still reading The China Study is a good idea.

I eat a block of tofu almost every day and have avoided meat replacements because they all appear to have sugar of some type.  When avoiding all carbs I avoided spikes but found my overall numbers borderline. When carefully measuring carbs and exercising afterward I experience a brief spike but the numbers are lower overall.

Because I have gone off all blood sugar lowering medications, I am also able to fast.
http://www.thekindlife.com/forum/thread/fasting
Check it out!
Justin

http://www.house-foods.com/Tofu/tofu_shirataki.aspx
Shirataki Noodles

Seitan is low carb too.

Question - how long have you been following a vegan diet? I am just thinking that maybe in time, your body won't react quite as much to the carbs once you get all of the other "junk" out of your system. Just a thought.

Good luck!

I am definately new at it.  I have been cutting back on meat for awhile but have been confused about how to cut it out entirely and follow a low carb diet.  I can say that I am definately feeling better since I have started.  I have much more energy and sleep better.