Blog

4

So I have cut out the bread, legumes, dairy and most fruit...

What are some other less obvious/often forgotten carbohyrate sources that people often miss? I want to make sure I'm not missing anything...

flag
you might start with that sugar bomb So Delicious brand "strawberry coconut milk" you say you drink a quart of daily. – g. Apr 19 2011 at 21:15

6 Answers

2

Rice, tubers, squashes, starch/sugar heavy vegetables like tomatoes, faux-grains like quinoa, certain nuts e.g. chestnuts are all significant sources of broadly Paleo carbs. But quite honestly I'm not really sure what you're asking; the title even made it seem as if you were looking for sources of Paleo carbs to add to your diet.

At the moment you're asking us to try imagining what you're doing or not doing with very little information to go on. Why don't you explain a little about your goals e.g. Are you trying to get into ketosis? How many grams of carbs do you want to eat on a daily basis? Perhaps you could post a few sample meals/the mainstays of your diet, which we could then look at.

I'm not going to downvote you because you're obviously very new, and I understand how overwhelming Paleo can be, but in the future I would respectfully advise you to consider better formulating your questions before posting.

link|flag
do you advocate zero carbohydrate, or VLC, as I thought that some rice, tubers etc were considered ok for both groups, as per Dr. Harris's recommendations ? – DudleyP Mar 21 2011 at 18:31
I'm personally a moderate carb Paleo, and don't advocate VLC/ZC for various reasons, except in the rare cases where severe metabolic/intestinal problems necesitate it. I was merely listing some safe Paleo carbs that Tim might be consuming, without being aware of it. – Simibee Mar 21 2011 at 19:08
For some reason I can't enter my comment.... – Tim Mar 21 2011 at 19:27
Please accept my apologies for not being clear. I'm new and I have been slowly transitioning into the Paleo lifestyle. Each month I find it easier to take more things out of my diet. Two months in, I've managed to get most of the OBVIOUS things out. Now I am more concerned about increasing my supplementation and "dialing in" my diet a bit more. The more I read, the more I find out there are things that I shouldn't eat, that I didn't know were that bad. For example I didn't know corn was bad. – Tim Mar 21 2011 at 19:27
Now I know not to eat tomatoes as well. 90% of my meals consist heavily of chicken and vegetables where I can. For example it's common for me to go to Chipotle and get a buritto Bowl, no rice, no beans, double serving of peppers and onions, double services of chicken, hot salsa and Guacomole. Chipotle is a common place where I work. However I've recently learned that chipotle's chicken is sprayed with Soy for cooking purposes...so I'm dumping Chipotle all together, in favor of local weighted food places. For example, just an hour ago I ate, steak, bbq chicken, asparagus and brocoli. – Tim Mar 21 2011 at 19:28
show 8 more comments
1

Some of these you may or may not still be eating: some dairy, chocolate, starchy vegetables (ie turnip, parsnips), and many nuts (ie almonds, cashews).

link|flag
Good thing I'm allergic to nuts... – Tim Mar 21 2011 at 18:05
1

Many things you eat in a restaurant can have hidden carbs even if you think it doesn't, which is why I've gone from eating out 5-6 times per week to a few times per month. Any kind of sauce or gravy, often soup, may have corn starch or flour to thicken it. Stay away from anything marinated as it probably has a sweetener of some kind. Even a chicken breast at a plastic menu restaurant is probably injected with sweeteners, starches to make it retain moisture, and God knows what else.

Any number of things you have in your home have more than you'd think, too. Balsamic vinegar, for example, is very sweet. (I'm not bashful about taking my own oil/vinegar vinaigrette to a resturant). Soy sauce is 40-60% wheat unless you buy 100% soy or Tamari. If you buy sausage be careful for fillers; I buy pasture-raised ground pork and spice it myself to make ground sausage. Don't use powdered "sugar-free" sweeteners like the blue and pink packets b/c they have sugars and carbs even though the package says they don't; either buy tablets and grind into a powder, or use 100% Stevia which is safe in any form.

One of the best ways to track this is to buy a home glucose monitoring system (Accu-Chek Aviva is highly rated) and take your blood glucose 60, 90, and 120 minutes after you eat. Even if you have a healthy metabolism your glucose will likely increase if you eat anything carby. If it goes up by much you probably ate carbs; I'm not sure how to define "much," but if mine increases by 20 points or more I examine what I ate.

link|flag
Thanks, I'm a Type 2 diabetic...so I already have one of these....I'll start carrying it around... – Tim Mar 21 2011 at 22:03
If you're type 2 Lee's advice is probably right on. It will be much less effective for some others like me: I drank water kefir with fresh fruit juice added this morning (about 6 oz juice) and 2 large mugs of coffee with heavy cream and honey (total at least 1 tbsp of honey) and my BG never went over 94. So testing won't reveal hidden carbs unless you have a reaction. I usually don't BUT my stomach definitely tells me later. – Nance Nov 29 2011 at 20:33
Restaurants either add sweeteners/gluten while cooking or cook with industrial oils. I only feel safe with a green salad (I take my own oil & vinegar) and coffee (I take my own cream & honey.) No matter what else I try I have issues later. – Nance Nov 29 2011 at 20:34
1

Unusual sources of carbs: look to drinks of all kinds other than plain old water. Booze and beer are loaded with them, milk if you drink it, sweetened drinks of all sorts, sweeteners of all sorts, even some fiber sources (like inulin). Have you checked your condiments? Ketchup is a giant offender!

They're everywhere--you cannot escape them. All you can do is limit them.

link|flag
1

I am Caribbean and I LOVE green plantains!! They are my favorite. I eat half of them a day and I mostly boil or fry them. Frying tastes better for me.

I am not that big of a fan of traditional sweet potatoes (the orange fleshed ones) but I love something called "batata" and they are so good. They have white flesh with a marbleized light purple, pink skin. WONDERFUL with fish.

link|flag
1

Here is a list of foods with hidden carbs, and the amounts:

http://www.lowcarb.ca/tips/tips009.html

I don't know how much copying is permitted, so here is an excerpt:

Kidney - per 4 oz cooked: 1.1

Liver - per 4 oz cooked: beef - 8.9 gm; veal/calf - 3.1 gm...

One large chicken egg has 0.6 gm carbs.*

link|flag

Your Answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.