Carb Options

aj · Wed Jan 21, 2004 5:42 am

I was shopping at Ralphs tonight and saw a whole line of food products call "Carb Options" which is food with very low or no carb at all. Does anyone know whether or not these products can be used for phase I? I am just starting to learn about SBD and am not sure what is OK or not. The address for Carb Options is www.carboptions.com. Thanks.

munkie · Wed Jan 21, 2004 6:01 am

hey if its no carbs or low in carbs why not??

Guest · Wed Jan 21, 2004 3:26 pm

munkie wrote: hey if its no carbs or low in carbs why not??

Munkie... not sure if I quite agree with that advice. Alcohol (vodka, rum, etc) has no carbs and is clearly to be avoided on phase 1

AJ... I also saw those new Carb Option products... and bought the steak sauce and fudge bars for my hubby. He can't live without his A1 and his night time sweet, so I figured they're the lesser of two evils. Use your judgement... if the Carb Option item falls in the guidelines of the items allowed on phase 1, go for it!

cherylal · Thu Apr 22, 2004 4:42 am

This post deserves a 'BUMP' so one of the elders can see it. I also need to know more about the 'Carb Options' brands. They have ketsup, mayo, steak sauce, and salad dressing and it all taste as goood as the real stuff. Too good to be true? :shock: I hope not. Please let us know asap! I hope it is not like the 'fat free' products that turned out to be replacing the missing fat with sugar, ie. replacing the missing carbs with some ingredient that is just as fatening. Can an expert label reader check it out? Thank you so much Team South Beach.

Sincerely,
Cheryl :)

TLC · Thu Apr 22, 2004 4:53 am

I always thought that SB was less about carbs than about sugars and processed foods. Alot of "low-carb" foods add other junk or could still have sugars. SB isn't a "low-carb" diet. It's more between the GOOD and BAD carbs, sugars, etc.

TLC · Thu Apr 22, 2004 4:54 am

Just make sure to read ingredients. Labels can be deceiving. I've never seen these products.

shar80 · Thu Apr 22, 2004 1:59 pm

hi guys,
in my opinion, the carb options stuff is okay in moderation. the thing is, a lot of it is high in fat, even though its low in carbs, which is a no-no. :( however, i think if you eat smaller quantities of it on an infrequent basis, you'll be just fine. for example, i actually had some of the carb option double cheddar sauce last night. ( which was delicious, actually). the serving size i think called for 1/4 cup, but i found that 2 tbsp was MORE than enough to drizzle over my chicken breast. i've maybe had the carb options stuff 4-5 times since starting the SBD diet almost 2 months ago, and it hasnt seemed to hinder me at all. just watch that you do go overboard. good luck! :)

onthelose · Thu Apr 22, 2004 2:28 pm

I don't think some people realize that sugars ARE are form or carbs. thats why people often call this a low carb diet. its really low sugar, while other carbs are allowed. sbd brings the low fat into it as well, which other low carb diets do not. in my opinion, what you really have to check when looking at those low carb foods are these things:

1. if its something sweet, whats being used in place of sugar? (some of the sugar alcohol stuff can give you an upset stomach, etc.)
2. what is the fat content?
3. what are the calories? (it may need to count against the 75/day limit for extras)

early on, i bought some carb smart ice cream bars. i ate 2 of them before realizing they had a TON of fat and calories. later i bought some low fat no sugar added ice cream which had a fraction of the fat and calories and was sweetened w/ splenda. its a much better sbd friendly choice, i just don't go nuts on it.

there are so many low carb options out there now, we really have to be careful to look at the whole picture.

SBD: 3/23
189/178.5/140

scarlett · Thu Apr 22, 2004 2:47 pm

I am in week 12 of SBD and am down 30 pounds. We discovered Carb Option fudge bars and ice cream a couple of months ago. I would say 3-4 nights a week we have a treat after dinner, and we've still lost. I am a huge sweets eater and this is my one treat. Obviously not over-doing it. I haven't tried a lot of the other stuff because I am really trying to stay away from processed food and "low carb" processed stuff. But the Carb Options ice cream bars have been a life saver for me.

jerrylt · Sat Apr 24, 2004 8:17 am

You can't just look at the carbs. You also have to look at the saturated fat. Many "low-carb" foods have a whole bunch of saturated fat.

Kimboroni · Sat Apr 24, 2004 9:08 am

Right--avoid saturated fat and trans fats as well.

Some of the Carb Options products are just like the real thing but with Splenda (sucralose) instead of sugar. Those seemed fine, but some may not be. Just read your labels carefully.

I reviewed a handful of them in my FAQ thread below:


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