When cutting carbs, look beyond the obvious sources

Even though cutting back on carbohydrates can result in a desired weight loss, I’d never tried low-carb eating. Brown rice and whole-wheat pasta, both containing a substantial number of carbs, were foundations of my vegetarian diet.

Then an A1c blood sugar test indicated I have type 2 diabetes. “Cut back on sugary drinks, sweets, alcohol, and carbs,” my doctor advised. 

The first three were already rare. I went on a carb-reduction mission before repeating the A1c test. My conclusions may interest anyone with reasons to cut back on carbs. That includes diabetics, who are advised to stay under 150 grams of carbs a day, about half the amount the average American consumes; those with other medical conditions, such as metabolic syndrome; and those trying to lose weight. It’s not healthy, however, to severely limit the body’s main fuel source.  

At first my focus was on finding alternatives to the brown rice and whole-wheat pasta that I thought were the culprits. 

I couldn’t identify any grain alternatives with significantly fewer carbs than brown rice. Vegetable options like riced cauliflower and riced broccoli are very low in carbs, but they don’t fill me up. After a few days of dissatisfaction with riced cauliflower, I decided to eat less brown rice and more of the vegetables piled on it. A serving of brown rice (22 carb grams) is a half-cup cooked, which is enough with stir-fries and curries. Only the dishes where rice is the main attraction — like fried rice and risotto — are off limits.

A reduced amount won’t work for me with pasta. A half-cup of cooked spaghetti is not a reasonable serving, despite what the USDA says. Vegetable-based zucchini noodles and shirataki noodles aren’t filling. I tried edamame, chickpea, and lentil pastas. Edamame won the taste test and is also the lowest in carbs, 20 grams per cooked cup. Chickpea and lentil pastas have about 35 grams, not much less than whole wheat.

Only after stocking my shelves with five boxes of edamame spaghetti did I think that I might be looking at the wrong foods. I was blaming rice and pasta while ignoring that I ate sweetened vanilla yogurt (20 carb grams) with granola (15 grams), a banana (27 grams) with oatmeal, and fruit spread (20 grams) on toast. Trader Joe’s stir-fry sauce (35 grams) went on stir-fries, and potatoes (25+ grams) complemented omelets. On any day I was taking in twice as many carbs from other sources as from rice and pasta. Where I should make changes was clear. I’m now putting berries (4 grams) instead of a banana on oatmeal, a little peanut butter (3 grams) on toast, and teriyaki sauce (7 grams) on stir-fries, eating plain yogurt (8 grams) with berries and nuts (about 3 grams), and snacking more on cottage cheese (7 grams). 

My search for alternatives to whole-wheat pasta and brown rice was a fool’s errand. Moderate portions of whole grains fit within a low-carb diet. If I’d consulted the American Diabetes Association’s website, I’d have seen whole grains endorsed as superfoods for being nutritious, fiber filled, and slow to digest so you feel full longer. The ADA recommends that a quarter of a “diabetic plate” be whole grains. 

Next month the A1c test will be repeated. The test averages glucose level over the previous three months. The first test was taken when I was recovering from surgery and getting little cardio exercise, which is important to blood sugar management. Eating low carb and returning to exercising, I hope that my glucose level will be down in the second test. 

Whatever the result, I intend to stay aware of carbs. Carb management may produce weight loss if I don’t have diabetes, prevent diabetes if I have prediabetes, and help control my blood sugar if I have diabetes. 

I may go back to whole-wheat pasta — a one-cup serving — after the five boxes of edamame spaghetti are gone.