Why are some LCer's so paranoid?

[Sunslyte]

I've been reading quite a few different low carb boards and there seems to be a pretty common theme among a significant portion of the LC population --

You say it tastes good -- it MUST have HIDDEN carbs! Don't EAT IT!!!!!

-or-

THAT isn't in the Spirit of Low Carb

-or-

I ate it and it was so good, I'm scared they are lying about the carb content!

-or-

Sugar Alcohols are bad for you....

and we all have heard a hundred more.

Why is it that people are so Paranoid? Do they honestly believe that the manufacturers in the world sit in their test kitchens evilly chuckling while they hide "secret ingredients" or <GASP> WHITE FLOUR in their products?

It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that if they ARE lying about the content of the food, that either the FDA or the consumer themselves would be on to them soon.

I realize that dieting brings out the obsessive/compulsive in most people -- YES, I said DIETING -- I'm not on a woe, or a wol, or whatever, I'm on a DIET to lose weight. I have changed my eating habits and I dont intend to revert to my old ones -- but I'm not going to try to convince myself or anyone else that I'm doing this because its some sort of noble cause -- its a DIET.

I realize my statements are pretty inflamatory, and I'm sure many will be glad to jump on them -- that's why I posted this in the War Zone.

I just think its pretty Sad that so many seem to think that Low Carb should involve eating substandard food in order to reassure ourselves that its good for us. I also dont think its necessary to devour pound after pound of cream cheese (YUCK) in order to lose weight.

There is NOTHING WRONG WITH LOW CARB FOOD TASTING GOOD!

[Colleen1]

Do you really see that paranoia on this board? I must have missed it.

My low-carb food does taste good, and you're right -- there's nothing wrong with that.

Sugar alcohols turn my stomach inside out, but I sure don't care if other people eat them.

I guess I just find this post puzzling.

[Lisa N]

Personally, I think that the phrase "Truth in advertising" is an oxymoron. Do I think that manufacturers would deliberately misrepresent the amount of whatever you care to name in their products? You bet I do, depending on who in particular they are marketing their product to. Look at how hard food manufacturers were bucking any federal requirement to list the amount of transfats on the labels of their products. Labelling laws are not as precise as we'd like to think they are; a label can be off by as much as 20% and still be within Federal guidelines. Hidden carbs? Yup...it happens, but I wouldn't use the guideline of "It tastes good, therefore it must be bad for me to be eating". I do the math to see if it adds up to the reported amounts. It was only within the past 18 months that manufacturers were required to list the entire carb count on the label, not the net carb count after sugar alcohols, glycerine and fiber were deducted. Lots of manufacturers got their knuckles rapped for that one.

Sugar Alcohols are bad for you....

Well...I wouldn't say that they are bad for you, but they can sure give some folks some very uncomfortable side effects. :p Also, some people react to them as though they were real sugar and have the full carb count on the package.

Paranoid? Nah...just cautious. I'm more of a "Trust, but verify" kind of gal. ;)

I just think its pretty Sad that so many seem to think that Low Carb should involve eating substandard food in order to reassure ourselves that its good for us.

I guess that all depends on what you definition of "substandard" is. If it's based on taste alone, a lot of low carb products could certainly qualify in that department no problem. If you base whether or not a particular food is substandard on its nutritional value, again, a lot of low carb products would fall short there as well being the low carb equivalent of junk food; great taste, no nutritional value whatsoever and just as much empty calories as their high carb counterparts.

[adkpam]

Well, you can call it whatever you like, but I like the way people refer to lowcarbing as a "way of eating" or "way of life" because in most people's lives, "dieting" is a mode of suffering we all hope will be over ASAP.
By acknowledging, publicly and often, that we have changed our way of eating, we confirm how much it is doing for us, and how much we enjoy it.
I know I do!

[LilaCotton]

Hmmm. Interesting thoughts! For me, though, this is a new way of life. Just about all our meals are now from scratch, whereas before all too often we were doing the processed food thing (chicken nuggets, mac&cheese, etc.). Sure, we actually ate pretty vitamin-rich foods a lot of the times, but not the 'whole' foods we're eating now. The way we now shop, cook and eat pretty much translates into a new way of life for this bunch! :)

Ummm, I also think sometimes people say there must be hidden carbs or what have you in something just because it tastes plum too good to be legal! :D

[Hellistile]

Sunslyte: You are dieting to lose weight only as you stated. Perhaps if your medical conditions were life-threatening and hidden carbs and hidden ingredients made the difference between living and dying, you would look at low carbing in a different light. My age and medical conditions place me into a constant state of paranoia as to what goes into my body via the mouth. Please do not judge all of us by your own personal, narrow, measuring stick.

[Zimms]

"Do they honestly believe that the manufacturers in the world sit in their test kitchens evilly chuckling while they hide "secret ingredients" or <GASP> WHITE FLOUR in their products?"

Of course not. However, when companies like KFC try to call their product low carb even though it has white flour, it makes sense to evaluate low carb claims closely. What some people may call low carb still isn't allowed on the plan I follow. Also, I simply don't lose if I consume sugar alcohols. Where you see paranoia, I see people who know what foods they need to avoid to make this "diet" work for them.

[PurpleStix]

I have seen:

low fat candy
medicine with ingredients in alphabetical order, to avoid putting sugar at the front
low cholesterol (not mentioning transesterified) oil

It's not lying, just avoiding the truth. :rolleyes:

And I think that they are not evilly chuckling. Causing harm to consumers is not the goal, it is merely irrelevant whether there is harm or not.

[DWRolfe]

Yes, I honestly believe that manufacturers will represent their products in the very best light possible in order to grab a share of a lucrative market segment. As a marketing professional, I assure you it happens.

It doesn't mean that anything illegal is being done, but it's just like when products (in the U.S. anyway) claim to have zero carbs. Legally, that claim is true, even if there is just a scootch less than 1gr carb. But if you consume 4 or 5 of that whatever it is, you've impacted your daily allowance.

I recall when I first started LCing, I went to a website that offered all sorts of baked goods that looked too good to be true. I ordered some bluebery muffins. They looked really good and tasted really good. It was hard to believe that the nutritional value was what they claimed. After the horrifying gas from the malitol passed, I contacted the company and asked about the carb counts. Turns out, what they had published on the package was open to interpretation. A "your mileage may vary" kind of thing. Well, that aint good enough for me. Not if I'm going to weigh in at less than 400+ pounds anyway.

So YES, I totally believe that almost every food maker in the world will soon be adding a low carb something or another to their product lines and that many of them will stretch the truth in order to wear the LC sash. And as cool as it is that we'll have new products to choose from, we'll all need to read labels more carefully than ever before.

Donald http://www.ameritech.net/users/dwrolfe/computerguy.gif

[TarHeel]

Sunslyte:

While I wouldn't go so far as to call it "paranoia", I kind of understand where you are coming from. When I first started this WOE or WOL (and I really do tend to think of it that way) and joined this forum, I too noticed all the posts about "hidden carbs" and almost panicked. Thought I was going to have to buy a food scale and weigh every slice of onion and tomato.

But after a while, I began to have more of an internalized sense of what my body can handle. There are still times when I have to lecture myself about "carb creep"....but those are times when I find myself thinking "Oh, how much can one potato chip hurt since the cook has misunderstood that when I asked for "no french fries" I did not mean "chips" instead?" (And if my order was as convoluted as that last sentence, it's NO WONDER he misunderstood!) I do not obsess about how much lettuce there is in my Caesar Salad when I eat out.

I don't like cream cheese myself. I bought a package last March. It has yet to be unwrapped. I do like some of the sweet things I have purchased which are made with it and Splenda....I'm just too lazy to make cheesecakes myself.

As someone mentioned earlier, there are lots of folks here who are running scared because they have health problems due to their weight. They are afraid of the consequences of failing. And trying very hard not to do something wrong. So while I don't worry myself so much---I read labels very carefully and hope for the best--I can be patient with the worriers.

And I can guarran-damn-tee-ya that what I've been eating for the past 6 months is NOT substandard food. I love it.

Kay

[SpecialK]

There is another subject that hasn't been touched upon yet. "Hi, my name is Karen, and I'm a *CARBOHALIC*. Actually, I have a carb addiction. If I happen to eat something that has hidden, refined carbs-I can easily go into a full blown binge without knowing what happened. My naturopath had a book that I read "Food Addiction" that nailed me on the addiction. For me a little refined carb is like giving a drug addict a little cocaine. That makes me very cautious. Blessings, Karen

[Zuleka]

Hello all!

I know when I was eating my chocolates that had Sugar Alcohols ..... I was bloated all the time and couldn't lose the weight. Once I got off of them... I started to lose again.

One thing thou, when I went to put the ingredients for the chocolates that were stated on the package in fitday.com.... it told me the calories should have been 324 instead of 170 like the package stated. HHmmm something to ponder!

[NANCI B]

I am paranoid about one thing. I am afraid that the minimum wage employees of fast food restaurants will give me regular soda instead of diet. I cant taste the difference. It bothered me so much that I switched to Iced tea.

[chef]

I don't understand what you mean by substandard food unless you are talking about the various low carb packaged look-alike food that is turning up everywhere. I personally don't believe in trying to create low carb substitutions for most of the things that I gave up for this WOL. I would rather eat a side of zucchini sautéed in olive oil and Italian spices than some low carb pasta which tastes like crap. I relish in the good things that are allowed that I never ate before rather than trying to convince myself that this low carb pasta tastes a little "funny" but hey, at least I'm getting to eat pasta.

As far as I am concerned, substandard food is what I was eating before. Tonight’s menu is ribeye steaks, medium rare, with a topping of blue cheese, garlic, cilantro, cream cheese and onions. Tomorrow, maybe I'll fix Chicken Bryan, a Carrabbas recipe that I found online that is a perfect match. The foods that I eat now are much more flavorful and satisfying and I don't miss my old WOL one bit.

[sjkling]

sounds like a good recipe, not to get off topic, but could you post it, please?

[steveed]

I am not paranoid.

I take precautions.

One horror filled morning I had found that someone/something had crept into my room one evening and sprinkled all purpose flour on my pillow and placed a croissant under my pillow. I postulated that I had been targeted by the industrial/agricultural complex for Carbulation.

For weeks I stared at the ceiling tiles in a terror of the unknown forces that were arrayed against me.

Once at the meat counter a man in a white lab coat slammed his shopping cart into mine and offered to deep fry all my cutlets if I would follow him into a dark room and answer "a few questions".

Now I can see, now I know.

These pyramid people are everywhere...AND THEY'RE LOOKING FOR YOU!!!!

Now at bedtime I wear an ALL MEAT helmet to bed and smear bacon grease on the door jam.

I call it being prepared. :dazzle:

[Lisa N]

Now at bedtime I wear an ALL MEAT helmet to bed and smear bacon grease on the door jam.

Hmmm...now I wonder what that would do for my morning bedhead? :lol:

[cori]

Steveed - Your post earns the highest laughter rating. Spitting water on the desktop! :lol: Thanks! I needed that!

[windy]

I do not feel paranoid and I have a new WOE and I am not on a diet. A diet sounds to restrictive and I do not feel that way about this.

Yes labels can be misleading.

Windy

[windy]

I agree my cooking taste so much better now. This is not a diet but a WOE. I like the others am not paranoid.

This is a great plan for people that really are serious about getting health and losing weight.

Windy

[katwoman]

Substandard food? Not what I've been eating!!!!

[NANCI B]

Just because you are paranoid, doesn't mean they are not after you. :lol:

[Zuleka]

Substandard food? I tried WW before Atkins, spent almost $200.00 lost 2 pounds, I was always hunger. Most of the stuff I ate, was frozen. Now I eat great tasting foods.

[chef]

sjkling,
Here are both of those recipies.

Steaks with Blue Cheese Topping

4 steaks (Ribeye, Tenderloin, etc.)
3 garlic clove, pressed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
4 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
4 tablespoons blue cheese, crumbled
1 green onion, finely chopped

1. Make Cheese Topping: Combine all ingredients except steak.

2. Rub each side of steaks with garlic. Grill steaks until almost done.

3. Top each steak with an equal amount of cheese topping. Grill one or two minutes more to slightly melt cheese topping.


Chicken Bryan

Chicken:
6 large chicken breasts
2 tbs olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
8 ozs goat cheese, softened to room temperature. Caprino or other

Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce:
2 tbs butter
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tbs finely chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup lemon juice
10 tbs cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 jar finely sliced sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper

1. Prepare the sun-dried tomato sauce: Place 2 tbs butter, garlic and onion in a large skillet over medium heat and saute until garlic and onion
are tender and transparent. Add white wine and lemon juice. Increase heat to medium-high and simmer to reduce by half. Reduce heat to low.
Add cold butter one piece at a time. Add sun-dried tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper and stir to blend ingredients. Set aside.

2. Prepare the chicken: Preheat grill. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill chicken until cooked through.
Divide goat cheese evenly between chicken breasts, placing some on each breast for the last two minutes of cooking. Place cooked chicken on
serving platter and spoon sun-dried tomato sauce over chicken.

[Fat]

Zuleka you have truly tickled my funny bone..I know it was not meant to be funny, but it was...LOL.

Anna

[catfishghj]

I consider myself on a diet. I think the word diet just means what you are eating. I think most of us are either trying to lose weight or maintain our weight loss by the diet we have chosen. Some of us also have health concerns that we are trying to address with our diet. This is my way of life. I dont think that weather you want to call it a "way of life" or a "diet" is important.

[sjkling]

thanks! going to try the steaks first! can't wait!

[Kristine]

>>"THAT isn't in the Spirit of Low Carb"

The spirit of low carb is to eat the way our ancestors did - how much phoney frankenfood did neanderthals have access to? Where do sugar alcohols occur naturally?

>>"I just think its pretty Sad that so many seem to think that Low Carb should involve eating substandard food..."

I think it's pretty sad that some consider real, whole food to be "substandard" to processed junk.

Sunslyte, if you're one of those few who can chow down on RS chocolates and Atkins bars without stalling, all the power to you - but if you read carefully, most people who act "paranoid" are so because they're not losing.

[nikkil]

I totally agree with Chef. I get kinda nervous about LC products that mimic the original, high carb food. Ie: rolls, bagels, bread, pasta...on and on. That's because they may trigger cravings for the 'real' thing if I don't have LC around. Also, what's in that stuff? I'd rather find ways to prepare veggies and create/find recipes that fit LC without causing cravings.

I am also one of those people who's body can't recognize the difference between sugar substitutes and the real thing when it comes to feeding my addiction. I am super-addicted to sugar and have to stay away from sweet PERIOD in order not to trigger a binge or even a minor derailment of my plan. I am restarting Induction after a long absence from LCing (where I regained all the weight I lost) and am on Day 4. I'm also PMSing, so the cravings are thru the roof sometimes, but I know they will pass.

Anyway, I love the food I'm eating and find it to be 1000% HIGH standard, way higher than what I ate before (junk, junk, junk with loads of sugar and carbs!).

Good luck in however you want to follow the plan--no problem with your comments above, just the substandard thing, which I may have misinterpreted??

Nicole

[JudyMH]

I agree with the person who said she was a carboholic. If I get one taste of refined carbohydrates, all bets are off. You take Christmas,I decide a little mashed potatos wouldn't hurt. Well, after the potatos, I went for the stuffing, then desserts, I over did the sparkling apple cider, dove into the chips, and before you could say cheese cake there went my carb count for the week. The only way I was able to get back on track the next day, was to do strict induction for the next couple of days. So ingredients are very important to me. Hidden carbs could undermine my entire program. I don't know if I'll ever get in the position to be able to handle them. I have to treat it like a drug addiction, because I think of refined carbs as a drug, at least for me. So I probably don't spend enough time worrying about secret ingredients, but can see where vone could get concerned. Judy

[RCFletcher]

Why is it that people are so Paranoid? Do they honestly believe that the manufacturers in the world sit in their test kitchens evilly chuckling while they hide "secret ingredients" or <GASP> WHITE FLOUR in their products?

I went shopping today. I found beefburgers. 100% beef splashed across the front. On reading the breakdown I discovered they had carbs in. Strange?
same thing with some salami I found: 100% pork - but they contained maltodextrose and sugar amongst other things. I used to test commercial salami and sausage with iodine - a normal test for starch - and yes, sometimes they do lie! Now, I just don't buy them.

[kimberlyw]

I used to test commercial salami and sausage with iodine - a normal test for starch

Hi! Can you tell me how this is done? In Germany - the meats like packed sausages and so on are not labeled with the "Nutritional Values" label like they are in the U.S. and to make sure, I would like to test a few meats that I have not bought because I have no way of knowing if they have sugar, flour or starch. If they do, I can give them to someone who can eat those things - but I'd like to give it a whirl! ;)

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer! :D

~Kimberly