fresh figs: high or lower sugar fruits?

[samariah]

I'm trying to eat mostly lower sugar fruits to help keep my blood sugar more stable, clear up my skin, etc. Are figs a high or lower sugar fruit? I've been reading contradictory information about them and am not sure. Thanks! I would think they aren't because they aren't super sweet but I'm still not sure.

[Riiiya]

hm well they're definitely quite sweet! i do know they're a less sugary substitute for dates (from one of David Wolfe's interviews) sorry can't help too much more :(

[aililiu]

figs are sweet but they have so much fibre in them that theyre recommended for diabetics! even dried, theyre supposed to be good for diabetes. the fibre slows the sugars down. i eat them all the time &im insulin resistant. theyre brilliant!

[samariah]

sweet, i'll be eating lots of figs then bc i loveee them. i do notice i don't feel bad after eating them the way i do other high sugar things like dates, too many bananas, mango (oh mango kills me lol). i also read that figs are high in potassium, have one of the highest mineral contents for a fruit and are a mild mild natural laxative (good for regular bowel movements).

just curious, whats your typical diet like aililu? do you avoid lots of overly sweet things?

[aililiu]

i avoid overly sweet things, or i try to combine it to lessen the negative effects. i used to follow a STRICT low-gi diet but ive loosened up since going raw and its been okay. i never used to let myself eat carrots before but i do now, especially now that its autumn, but its always combined with oils and avo and things to slow it down. i avoid things like mangos and most tropical fruit and melons. i avoid seedless things too, like seedless grapes, because they are wacky in their sugar content too, not the same as natural grapes. i DO eat bananas (eventually i want to cut them out as they are seedless and seem unnatural, but i think they might be useful getting me through my first winter) and i ONLY ever eat them with hemp seeds or powder to slow it down, and usually with a green food powder mashed in as well, and/or coconut oil. i eat A LOT of fats, like 2 avos, at least 60 grams hemp seeds, a few table spoons hemp seed powder, 2-3 tablespoons coconut oil, 2-3 tablespoons other oils, like hemp ... all in a day, everyday....... i never gain weight from it. eventually id like to have a higher ratio of greens to fruit but right now im having a hard time with it, but i like to stick to local, low glycemic fruits like apples, pears, berries, cherries, plums, things like that. oh. and i eat LOADS of seaweeds. MM!

whew, that was lengthy. but yeah, i eat constantly, allll day long, or else i get dizzy. i use to faint and black out all the time but its been a lot better since i changed my diet. and even though i never stop eating, ive never been this slim! yay!

[youraw]

Thanks for posting all of that! I am hypoglycemic and know I need to watch out for things that are high on the GI, but haven't done a lot of research yet. What you shared is very helpful!:D

[aililiu]

glad i could help :) i dont know if youd be the same as me then: because of the insulin excess i gain weight on fruit and lose it on fat. interesting :)
i know a lot about the low-gi diet so if you have any other questions you can ask me :) thats what i was doing before raw... since before i was vegan, actually. it made a big difference in my dizziness. but like i said, since going raw ive been able to be a bit more flexible eating things like carrots, peas etc, and ive been fine. :)

[samariah]

yeah i seem to gain weight on fruit too! i've been eating high fat the past few days and i feel like im losing weight.

[StarFire]

Yep... all of the above... although - I can't eat figs --fresh or dried. :( and I loove fresh figs!

I find that I have reactions to them - but it's not as bad as when I eat something like a mango... but subtle enough to cause me discomfort. I gain weight very rapidly on fruit -- and lose weight on fats ... like coconut oil!

gosh - it's interesting to read all this - cuz I thought I was the only one! :D


http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/naked.jpg

[samariah]

yeah, ive been reading up on grain free diets, low GI diets, grain free diets and am figuring out how to incorporate some of the aspects of those into raw eating so i can feel my best.

[Angelina]

glad i could help :) i dont know if youd be the same as me then: because of the insulin excess i gain weight on fruit and lose it on fat. interesting
i know a lot about the low-gi diet so if you have any other questions you can ask me thats what i was doing before raw... since before i was vegan, actually. it made a big difference in my dizziness. but like i said, since going raw ive been able to be a bit more flexible eating things like carrots, peas etc, and ive been fine.



ahh..finally someone with insulin issues and having good results on raw!! I have an adrenal disorder and my insulin and glucose levels are always all over the place!!! I do seem to have a problem with excess fruit. I haven't lost any weight on raw (just started last month) but I had put on about 15lbs since june on a healthy, non processed veg diet :eek: and was hoping the raw would take it off...

my main question is do you think its the fat that helps with the insulin? you seem to have a good amount of fruit which I also try to keep it to low glycemic...i know everyone is different, but its soo hard figuring out what works for every person!! I haven't gotten there yet.....

and how much weight have you lost on raw? and in what kind of timeframe??
the last time I went raw was right as I was coming down with all this major adrenal stuff, so no weight loss, but now as I am on meds & I was figuring my main obstacle to weight loss was the insulin??

any advice is greatly appreciated :D

[aililiu]

hmm.. for me, definitely fat helps the weight loss. im not sure exactly why, but pre-raw i followed a low-gi vegan NO FAT low calorie diet and was STILL a bit plump BECAUSE all my excess insulin was converting all the carbs into fat on my body. once i started eating FAT, it just started to come off! this was right before i went raw. shortly afterwards i went raw and more came off. im 5'8'', 20 years old. i was about 155 to start, my goal weight was 135 because i had never been that light, and i went down to about 120 instead and felt wonderful. this was eating mostly fats and greens and working out (cardio &weights, 3x a week & some biking). this all happened in a couple of months, which is really quickly considering i was never obese.
in the summer i injured my back and had to stop working out, and i also couldnt stomach greens for quite a while. my diet was almost COMPLETELY (low gi) fruit and nuts- and COPIOUS amounts of nuts, let me tell you. still my weight hasnt gone about 125, which is where im sitting now... although i probably gained more than that in fat because i would have lost some muscle. but raw is miraculous, truly.
im not too concerned about the number at this point... but i would really love to lose the stubborn fat pockets because i know they contain old toxins, and id like to regain some muscle tone. my fat HAS gone a lot .. looser... which a lot of people have mentioned happens before it comes off, so im crossing my fingers.
at the same time my body is becoming more seasonal and has been craving more dense food like carrots and squash and it may be that my body will want to gain a little bit of weight for the winter, and thats okay with me if thats what my body needs. i have this feeling by next summer ill have a stunning body, lol. seems a ways away but its not really, not in the terms of the rest of my life.

i <3 raw.

[samariah]

yeah, if i eat really low fruit and high fat and veggies i seem to lose more quickly too. i've had days where i would go eating continuously guacamole, coconut oil fudge, avocado chocolate pudding, fresh cococnut, etc and i lose. however, if i mix high fat and high fruit i gain. i know fruit is good for me though so sometimes i will do all fruit cleanses for a few days to get the nutrients in fruit without bloating up and gaining.

[aililiu]

wow we seem to be the same, then.
although im still having issues with digestion,
and cant figure out which food it is that makes me gassy,
&why my BMS are all over the place :confused:

i cannot WAIT to have perfect digestion! haha.

[samariah]

yeah, i'm trying to figure out the perfect way to clear up my skin. it seems certain foods cause breakouts more but i haven't pin pointed it yet. sometimes it seems like high fruit is good for my skin and other times it seems like high fat.