I've been seeking a substitute for coffee since the 1970s, when I was drinking about 16 cups a day, which didn't seem to keep me from getting diabetes.
I haven't found anything that works for me. Tea is insipid, and who knows how safe a lot of the herbal teas are. I had two friends who were into herbal teas, and they both died of cancer. Doesn't prove anything, but there's no control over the ingredients in herbal teas, many of which contain ingredients designed for short-term use in illness, not for everyday drinking.
Coffee and regular tea, on the other hand, have been used for centuries.
One drink that I sometimes tolerate is ginger: Add a slice of fresh ginger to boiling water and steep. Good with a little added lime juice too.
But coffee also has oils that give a smoothness to the drink. I tried adding a bit of hazelnut oil to the ginger tea, and this was nice.
But I always find myself going back to the coffee. It's good both hot and cold and I like its "bite"
I've read a few posts recently where PWD have said that their blood sugar goes up when they drink black coffee with nothing in it in the morning. I have noticed the same thing for sometime now and I recently switched to decaf just to see if it would have any effect on my blood pressure. My blood pressure didn't changed but my blood sugar still goes up. Maybe it also has something to do with the "dawn phenomenon," since in most cases coffee is consumed in the morning.
My solution has been to take a 2 unit combo bolus 70:30 over a 2 hr period in the morning while I drink my coffee, read the newspaper, check my email, and watch the early AM business news. It works for me.
Florian (Type 1, dx 1967)
Animas 2020 + Apidra
Mr. Mendosa,
So would you recommend switching to decaf? We have already noticed that Dr. Atkins strongly cautioned use of coffee as an insulin increaser in his literature.
Is there any evidence that caffeine itself is the culprit - meaning that caffeine diet soda would have similar results?
Thanks for your thoughts.
Elegiamore
Spooky timing. Over the last 2 weeks I tested the effect of coffee on my blood sugars and in my case, I've seen a 10ish point across the board reduction in my readings. Ordinarily I would consume decaf coffee after each meal.
I've been a low-carb dieter for many years and have been a bit frustrated that over the last year or so my morning numbers have been just over 100 (FYI: I follow Dr. Bernstein's solution, which lowered my A1Cs from an all time high of 10 to the 4-5 range). I've been blaming dawn phenomenon (cinnamon didn't help in my case).
For some reason this Holiday season, I wondered if coffee could be causing my slighted higher results. I normally test more aggressively over the holidays, so I decided to eliminate coffee and see if it made a difference. My recollection is that I started my coffee habit a year or so ago. Prior to that I didn't drink coffee at all.
After eliminating coffee, my fasting BG's are in the 90s and I'm under a 100 within 3 hours after eating with a peak typically under 130. I've kept myself coffee-free for 2 weeks now so in my personal case I'm pretty convinced that coffee raises my BGs. Even though I hate the idea, coffee is now off of the menu for me.
Any non-diabetics out there want to buy a nice espresso machine! ;)
All the best, Barry C.
Type II, 1,500/day Metformin,
20-40 carbs/day
Dear Barry,
Most interesting! You confirm several other comments that it is not the caffeine in coffee that causes the BG increase. But I had been wondering if it might have been operative only in the presence of a high carb level. That you were drinking decaf coffee on a low-carb diet blows that theory of mine out of the water! So even when you are on a low-carb diet and drink decaf coffee it will raise your BG! Thanks for sharing your story.
David
I had been drinking quite a bit of coffee (at least 8oz three times a day). As I understand it, decaf is not completely free of caffeine, so perhaps the caffeine is to blame - don't know.
Do you know what the caffeined coffee drinkers in the study were compared to? I noticed that the title of the study implicates caffeine. How did the researchers make that conclusion? Was the comparator group drinking decaf coffee?
Thanks David. I didn't realize that coffee wasn't a part of the study. I doubt that my total caffeine intake approached 500mg/day. There are so many variables it can be really hard to discern cause and effect. Perhaps in my case cream and artifical sweetner played a role, or perhaps my BG's have been better during the past two weeeks because I've been on vacation with less stress. Maybe I should keep the coffee and give up work! :))
Best wishes for a healthy new year!
Barry C
Hi Barry and David,
I found this thread while searching this morning for why I am so hungry after drinking my coffee. First, there is a decrease in hunger, I'm all pumped up and usually I go to the gym with all that energy. BUT, if I miss that sweet spot and linger too long at home, that feeling of wanting to move turns into hunger. I tried to not listen to the hunger, but it got louder and I finally relented and ate breakfast.
I have just started a low carb diet 15-20 carbs a day (and quite scientific about it; everything I eat is in a spreadsheet with its nutrient equivalents). Atkins does say to nix the coffee, but if indeed I DO need to do this (and please, I ask for both of your opinions on this), I will need to wean myself off.
AND at the same time, probably wean myself right on to decaf. Who can live without coffee? What else is there?
Thanks,
Diane Verderame
I mean, as a diabetic, I've been told I have to fear everything I eat, everything I touch, everything within a 500ft. radius that may or may not affect my BG levels. Why should I worry about every little thing all the time?
While I agree that gorging on pizza & chili-cheese fries every day is certainly bad, am I going to run screaming into the night every time I down a couple of iced Cafe Americanos at my local coffee shop? Heck no! Life's too short to worry about every piddly 10 point spike in a BG reading.
We can spend all of our time afraid of food and drink, denying ourselves even a small moment of joy, or we sneak the occasional Hershey's Kiss, or enjoy our Cuppa Joe without fretting about it.
Besides, one study is far from conclusive evidence anyway. I say it's hardly worth the bother.
In my experience it was the cream , milk or other non dairy creamers that were added that raised bg level .Now I used unsweetened almond milk and stevia and or blue agave to my coffee and do not see any notable increase in bg level.
Dear Timony,
You may have been right about the additives to your coffee that were causing your BG spikes. Unsweetened almond milk and stevia are great choices that I use myself (albeit not for coffee, which I like black). But agave is one of the worst possible sweeteners. It is practically more fructose. Please read "The Trouble with Fructose" at http://www.healthcentral.com/diabetes/c/17/16479/trouble-fructose/
Best regards,
David
All you coffee drinkers will be glad to know that there is now a coffee available that not only allows your insulin leavels to remain low but burns fat too!! It's 100% organic & you can learn more at: http://www.idrinkfatburningcoffee.com
They have a low glycemic sweetner that tastes WONDERFUL too! Hope this helps!
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I think coffee triggers the release of adrenaline, which is a counterregulatory hormone and increases insulin resistance. This is what causes "coffee jitters" in some people.
As a result of the adrenaline, the liver pumps some glucose into the blood, and this is one reason we get a "lift" from coffee.
Note that the research said that coffee elevates BGs when taken "before a high-carb meal." Another obvious solution is to stop eating high-carb meals.