SAUK & others,

The info you gave is mostly correct but there are some misconceptions being held here. I've been an insulin-dependent diabetic for 25 years, so I keep pretty informed on diet and nutrition issues. For the first 15 years of being a diabetic, every dietician I spoke with said to eat complex carbohydrates rather than simple sugars, because the rise in your blood sugar would be more gradual, and thus easier to control with insulin injections. However, the latest research shows that there is little differnce in the rates of conversion into glucose between simple sugars and complex carbohydrates. Your body only burns glucose, so whether you eat fructose in fruit, lactose in milk, sucrose in a candy bar, or something natural like honey, it ALL gets broken down into glucose before it's metabolized by your body. The same research group found that much of the "pick me up/slow me down" feelings people claimed from eating simple sugars was more phychological, rather than physiological.

What you DON'T get with simple sugars, is any nutritional value. A Coke and Baby Ruth will give you about 400 calories, 14 grams of fat, and 65 grams of carbohydrate without much nutritional value at all. So you're eating a quarter-day's (almost) worth of carbs/calories/fat without gaining any nutrtion. But, if you're not a nutritional-minded guy, like Robbo for instance, the only worse off you'll be is finding yourself a little more poorly nourished than your healthy-eating counterparts. Other than that, the "healthy eaters" have no advantage over the "Hostess Fruit Pie eaters".


Fish on.........