• zeppo@lemmy.world
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    8 months ago

    One thing about this “sugar = diabetes” thing is that people hyper focus on just sugar. Insulin acts on all digestible carbohydrates, not just sugar. Vegetable starch such as rice, corn, wheat or potatoes is just a chain of glucose molecules and is actually turned into blood glucose faster than sucrose. Eating 1 lb of potatoes is exactly the same as eating 1/4 lb of sugar, other than that it comes with some oil too.

    Also it sure is annoying having type 1, which has nothing to do with that, and type 2, which does, is 24x as common.

    • flicker@kbin.social
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      8 months ago

      Your overall point is very, very important and often overlooked but pure sugar does not take “longer” to turn into sugar in the bloodstream than simple carbohydrate.

      You don’t need to turn to hyperbole! Your point is already very important!

      • zeppo@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        Thanks, but it’s not hyperbole. Vegetable starch is, as noted, only a chain of glucose molecules. It takes 1 chemical step to turn into glucose - breaking the bonds. The only thing faster is pure glucose or maltodextrin. Sucrose is a disaccharide consisting of glucose+fructose. It takes a two-step process. The glucose is absorbed, but fructose takes a much longer pathway through the liver.

        There’s a dietary concept called ‘glycemic index’ which ranks foods on how fast they are absorbed into your blood stream. It’s moderated by fat, protein, and fiber content in meals, but still it’s worth looking at the basic food items. I had a hard time finding good charts that listed not only prepared foods but included sugar and starches, but check out this chart for example, or this one. Observe how on both lists, sucrose is in the upper middle, 60ish, while potatoes, corn, rice and wheat are among the highest around 100, second only to glucose and maltodextrin.

        • flicker@kbin.social
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          8 months ago

          I’m extremely fascinated and this is pertinent to my work so I’m going to thank you for it now (because it’ll take me a day or two to have time to really give it a good look.)

          • zeppo@lemmy.world
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            8 months ago

            Oh, cool! Like you said, the speed of absorption is a minor distraction from the greater point, which is that all carbs are essentially sugar. Slower absorption does help people with T2, but mainly eating fiber and protein makes more of a difference than the base carb source. This is just what I recall from researching this topic when I got type 1 a few years ago, and my main focus was on the most efficient way to treat low blood glucose.

        • Anony Moose@lemmy.ca
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          8 months ago

          Does this mean that you can get a boost of energy quicker by eating something like potato chips, rather than chocolate? Not that the former would be healthier

          • RubberElectrons@lemmy.world
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            8 months ago

            I… Think so. There’s a list of GI (glycemic index) for common foods somewhere. Greater GI=faster bg spike.

            Let me see if I can find it again.

            Eta: d’oh! Guy linked it above. Haha.

              • zeppo@lemmy.world
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                8 months ago

                i have type 1 and have to watch out for and treat oncoming or acute hypoglycemia. If it’s an emergency, like drooling and shivering with glucose of 35, you want the fastest possible, which would be glucose tabs/gel or honey. Pure potato or white rice potato is right up there. For preventative maintenance, if I seem to be dipping, I prefer things like cheetos or corn chips and salsa because it’s more enjoyable. If you were experiencing symptoms of hypoglycemia (which typically would not happen to a regular person without massive aerobic exercise stress or long starvation) you’d want the fastest method possible. I have type 1 so I have a CGM and manual blood monitor, and most people don’t have those insights. Anyway, I take potato chips with me everywhere I go.

                • Anony Moose@lemmy.ca
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                  8 months ago

                  Yeah, makes sense. My dad has type 2 and always carries around some candy or glucose in case he gets hypoglycemic

          • zeppo@lemmy.world
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            8 months ago

            The fastest would be the glucose tablets or liquid they sell for type 1 diabetics. Honey that is crystallized is very fast too, as the crystals are pure glucose. Some candies like US Smarties are sweetened with glucose. Fruit juice and sucrose are pretty quick, still, but if I’m in a hurry, I eat potato or white rice.

            Fat slows down absorption of carbohydrates, so chocolate, and to a lesser extent potato chips, are slower than pure potato or other candies with sugar.

            • Anony Moose@lemmy.ca
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              8 months ago

              Wait, so pure boiled potato would be one of the fastest sources of energy? Wow, that’s wild!

              • zeppo@lemmy.world
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                8 months ago

                Yeah, without the skin… or white rice, or one of those Asian noodles that is made from pure rice starch.

    • chicken@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      8 months ago

      Idk how to square it away with what you’re saying but potatoes are good for you and granulated sugar is bad for you.

      • zeppo@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        Whole potatoes have some vitamins and fiber. Brown sugar has some, processed sugar has none. Peeled potatoes have little more nutrition than white sugar, and the same or worse effect on insulin response, which is the key of type 2 diabetes. Mainly what I was pointing out is that something like mashed potatoes is the same as sugar, maybe worse, and that “type 2 diabetes happens from too much sugar” might as well be “type 2 diabetes happens from too much french fries” but the real issue is total carbohydrate intake. In practice, Type 2 issues combine with lifestyle, as in if you’re a marathon runner or body builder, eat as many carbs as you want. If not, watch all carbs.

      • ChatGPT@lemmings.worldB
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        8 months ago

        Yes, excessive sugar intake can potentially increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Consuming a diet high in sugar, especially sugary beverages, can lead to obesity, which is a significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes. However, it’s important to note that the direct relationship between sugar intake and diabetes is complex and influenced by many other factors, including physical activity, age, overall diet quality, and genetic predisposition.

        Keep in mind that while a meme might make this subject seem simple or humorous, it is a complex health issue. Using a balanced diet with limited sugar intake along with regular physical activity is a good strategy for reducing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. For personalized advice or if you have specific concerns, please consult with a healthcare professional.

        • MTLion3
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          8 months ago

          This is a way more articulate version of what I was gonna say lol The end result of mine is that it’s absolutely fucked how easily some people can develop it while consuming next to no sugar while others can go crazy with it their entire lives and never develop it

        • intensely_human
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          8 months ago

          Is this thing aware of the thread context here? It must be, talking about memes

          • Rikudou_Sage@lemmings.world
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            8 months ago

            Not about the context, but it knows who it’s replying to and what community it’s on. This is its system message:

            You are a bot replying to a Lemmy community called "%s". The community is hosted on instance %s. You are hosted on instance %s. The user's display name is %s, their username is %s and they're on instance %s.

            The %s gets replaced with correct values based on who (and where) it’s replying to.

            Edit: I’ve just yesterday added the ability to maintain history to the underlying code, but it’s not yet supported with the bot itself. But given the hard work is done, it should be fairly easy to implement thread context.

                • DallE@lemmings.worldB
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                  8 months ago

                  Here’s your image!

                  AI image generated with the prompt from the previous comment


                  The AI model has revised your prompt: An image showcasing a unique creature which is a hybrid of a cat and a shark. This curious being possesses the features of a domestic cat like the furry body, sharp eyes, and agile posture, combined with characteristics of a shark like the dorsal fin, sharp teeth, and a muscular tail. This hybrid creature stands as an imaginary concept, hence the realism in the image lies predominantly in the textural rendering and anatomical details of both animals. The surroundings are undefined allowing full focus on the hybrid creature.

                • Usernameblankface@lemmy.world
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                  8 months ago

                  You did this? I saw some examples in the “show me your best hearse if it were a ___” post, and I’m flabbergasted at the computer-based witchcraft it’s pulling off over there.

                  What image generator is it using? Is it using chatgpt to expand the prompts?

            • intensely_human
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              8 months ago

              What about the comment thread preceding the prompt? Could you include that too? Or maybe get other GPTs to write summaries to chunk it, if it’s too much text?

    • zeppo@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      Excessive carb intake in general can certainly contribute to metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance.

      • ShunkW@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        It can, but excessive sugar intake cannot directly cause diabetes is all. It’s much more complex than that.

        • zeppo@lemmy.world
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          8 months ago

          Sure, carb intake is only one factor. It’s a very important one though. Obesity and inactivity contribute a great deal, along with genetics. In essence people develop tolerance to insulin because their bodies are flooded with it, in an attempt to metabolize excess carbohydrates. Insulin resistance means the insulin stops working as effectively, resulting in the body putting out more and more, which doesn’t work either, and resulting in chronic hyperglycemia. High body mass means the body has to put out more insulin to maintain a certain blood concentration. Exercise plays a role in glucose utilization, also. Over time, the islet cells get exhausted, too. Type 2 can to some extent be turned around with a low-carb diet and exercise, unlike Type 1.

        • intensely_human
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          8 months ago

          I guess it depends on your definition of “directly”. Like does falling off a building directly cause death, or is that the deformation of one’s skull?

          • AngryHumanoid@reddthat.com
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            8 months ago

            The difference is the medical definitions of cause and factor. Lack of breathing will cause death. Obesity from eating too much sugar is a factor. If it was a cause eating too much sugar would CAUSE it to happen every time. It does not.

        • FUBAR
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          8 months ago

          You mean eating so much sugar that your pee becomes sweet isn’t directly caused by having excessive sugar?

  • intensely_human
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    8 months ago

    My Kroger eggnog’s got 30 grams of sugar per cup in it! No wonder I’ve been feeling miserable these last couple of weeks.