What does a carbohydrate addict do when all her favorite foods are off limits?  I now literally walk down the bread aisle telling myself, “Poison, poison, poison . . . ” because that’s the effect all those wonderful goodies have on my body.  So here’s how I’ve been managing the desire for certain foods that used to be the biggest part of my diet:

Potatoes – Oh boy, do I love potatoes, but at 60 grams of carbs for 1 that’s way beyond what my body can handle without a bunch of medication.  Enter Blaine’s Low-Carb Kitchen from FitTV with a vegetable I had never heard of before – a Daikon Raddish – and something remarkably similar to boardwalk fries (cooked in olive oil of course which is also good for diabetics) – 3 grams of carbs, 1 gram of fiber for 2 net carbs.  I’ll have to see if there’s anything else I can do with these things to satisfy the potato tooth.

Spaghetti – I had spaghetti and meatballs tonight, but not with pasta.  That stuff has over 40 grams of carbs for just a little bit.  Enter Shirataki noodles made from tofu.  I don’t normally care much for tofu, but the shirataki noodles soak up the low-carb tomato sauce (read labels – some brands don’t load it up with sugar) the same way a pasta noodle does for next to nothing in the way of carbs.

Bread – I’m a bread freak.  I love bread of any kind, the fresher and hotter, the better, but when 1 slice, even the whole grain stuff I favor, has an entire day’s carbs, well, it’s just not worth it.   Enter all kinds of homemade quick breads made with flax meal, almond meal and/or soy flour.  Very low carb, very high in fiber, but satisfies that need for something to throw a slab of lunchmeat on.  I’ve also made muffins, cookies, pancakes, and the like with these three flours or various combinations.  I noticed that both wheat germ and wheat bran are pretty low in carbs, so may be adding some of those to the mix.  Still looking for a good yeast bread recipe, but the quick breads do fill the bill nicely in the meantime.

Tortilla chips.  I probably have diabetes (besides the genetics on both sides of the family) because I raised myself on Doritos and Coke and never kicked the habit until after I was diagnosed.  Enter low-carb tortillas.  Again, very high in fiber.  Not only do these make great sandwich wraps, but they can also be cut into triangles and baked or fried (in olive oil) for my chip fix, although I really don’t have too many chip cravings anymore (a side benefit of eating a low-carb diet).

Ice cream – Homemade freezer ice cream with real heavy whipping cream, splenda, and vanilla. Sometimes I shave a little Lindt 85% cocoa bar over the top (low carb, high fiber).  I discovered way in the beginning of the diabetes journey that ice cream (even the sugared kind in the stores) was not nearly as bad on my blood sugar as a single bagel.

People who don’t understand what low-carb eating is all about are put off by all the “fat” that people say they eat, but that’s totally not what low-carb eating is all about.  No, all the things I’ve mentioned above increase the dietary fiber while reducing the carbs.  Yes, I use real butter and cream.  Yes, I eat bacon, meat, eggs, and cheese.  But if you look at my diet, it’s actually much healthier than what I was doing before.  I’m eating LOTS more vegetables, but no corn, potatoes, rice, wheat, or oats.  I cook exclusively with olive oil.  I get lots more fiber.  Blood sugar and triglycerides are right where they need to be WITHOUT medication, and for me that’s the point.  When this most recent doctor had me on the 3 medications, my blood sugar was going up and down like a yo-yo from hypoglycemic to the 300′s.  Too crazy.  If I learned anything working with Dr. Schaefer all those years, it’s that metabolic diseases are best managed by avoiding the foods that the body can’t process properly.  And if there’s any disease that falls into that category, it’s diabetes.  When I follow that approach, I maintain a nice even level that’s near normal and doesn’t vary much throughout the day.  I start overloading myself with stuff my body can no longer handle, and I’m back on the blood sugar roller coaster and heading for insulin.