I just started eating Fiber One original cereal for breakfast. One serving is a half cup the carbs are 26 grams and the fiber is 14 grams. Is this bad? I eat a few blueberries and a banana with it. I am new to IR and confused I have not eaten breakfast since I was 13 years old and I want to make sure I am doing all the right things.

I think one of the important things with people who are insulin resistance is to try to control blood sugar spikes to moderate insulin release. From my understanding you want to try and always combine your carbohydrates with a protein because this helps slow down the blood sugar release you would normally get from the carbs. I've had Fiber One and I can't saw I've noticed any particular problems associated with that. I would be more worried about the banana. It causes quite a blood sugar spike in comparison to other fruits and would definitely need to be combined with something that's got a decent amount of protein or fat (like a tablespoon on peanut butter).

Another cereal I really like is Kashi Go Lean Crunch. It's got something like 30 carbs and 10 grams of protein. (The Crunch version tastes way better than the original IMO.) It's a pretty good carb to protein ratio considering it's a cereal, and is quite filling compared to others. I'm not sure what the fiber content is.

Do you think if I drop the banana the Fiber one and blueberries would be okay? I have to eat fast in the morning so I don't have time for peanut butter or an egg. I'm just finding out about matching a protein and carb this could be a huge part of my problem and I am going to have to adjust all of my eating habits.

Does the golean have sugar? The reason I ended up choosing the Fiber one is it has no sugar. I gave up sugar thinking it would solve my problems but little did I know the carbs are just as bad.

From the point of view of a long-time diabetic -- I think you are just fine with the Fibre One and blueberries -- both have a good deal of fibre and the fibre helps slow the rate of impact of the carbs in the cereal. I would skip the banana (which is a fairly high-carb fruit) and make sure you have a serving of skim or 1% milk as well to add a little protein into your brekkie.

Thanks! I am so relieved that I can keep the fiber one. This is so overwhelming and I am just trying to read up on this and keep the foods simple. I am on Metformin 1000mg twice daily and I am not having cravings so far. I want to make sure I am eating foods that will benefit me.

Go Lean has some sugar but as long as it's getting paired with a decent amount of protein and it's not a ton of it you should be okay. It's got like 10g or something of "sugar". I'd pay more attention to carbs as a whole. Carbs and sugar aren't the enemy...you just want to make sure you're keeping your blood sugar and your insulin as stable as possible by incorporating protein or fat with them. Fibre also helps, and all of this keeps you full for longer. That's why I like the Kashi...as far as cereals go it's really filling by comparison. If you can afford the extra calories you might even consider going to 2% milk for the little bit of extra fat as well...

I hear ya about having no time in the morning. I'm a huge cereal person so the Kashi works for me. Sometimes I try cottage cheese with a piece of toast too (definitely not something everyone enjoys...haha). But if Fibre One seems to be working for you I would stick with it. Blueberries are a great choice so drop the banana and you should be fine.

Thanks for the info. I have question about instant oatmeal. Would I be better off eating a package of oatmeal in the morning? I have no problem eating oatmeal at all but I was thinking the Fiber one cereal would be better because of the extra fiber. Should I alternate?

I am also going to try the golean.

Oatmeal is wonderful . . . it's fibre is mainly the soluble type and that keeps your tummy from emptying quickly and therefore the adbsorption of the carbs is delayed . . . HOWEVER . . . you mentioned Instant Oatmeal and that is not your best bet by a long shot. The finer the grain is ground the faster the carbs are absorbed. Stick with "old-fashioned" oats. A serving cooks up in the microwave in about 3 to 4 minutes -- not quite instant, but almost.

Oh I did not know that. My mom has been eating instant to help lower her cholesterol and for weight loss I am going to have to let her know about this. Is Quaker brand okay?

Quaker makes at least three varieties -- the old fashioned/large flake kind; a 3-minute kind; and a very quick 1-minute kind -- any of these are better than the little 'instant' (just add boiling water) packets which are really almost just dust and often pre-sweetened as well. I use either Quaker or a store-brand and much prefer the taste and texture of the larger flake kind.

BTW, I cook it in water and do not add either salt or sweetener; but that's just me. I don't think there's anything wrong with a touch of salt and sweetener, or cooking it in milk (so long as you count the extra calories, of course. I tend to use less than the recommended amount of water and then splash on a little skim milk after it's done -- helpts to cool it off faster.

Oh . . . here's another thought for you -- not exactly the quickest thing, but worth it when you've got the time. Bet your Mother would like them, too.

I love these Protein Pancakes (you'll trip over them in lots of places around here). All the goodness of the oatmeal, plus lots of added protein.

1/3 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup egg whites
1/3 cup cottage cheese

Sweetener to taste, if you want -- I tend to add a little cinnamon and vanilla instead.

Whiz them around with an immersion blender until pretty smooth. Spray a pan with Pam and cook like any other pancake.

Throw a little fruit on top and enjoy.

Thanks for the pancake recipe that sounds really good. I always did eat oatmeal without sweetener so I will be okay with that. I don't know if I have ever had the large flake or not but I am going to buy it asap. Do you add any butter? I always added a tiny little bit of butter and I mean tiny.

No . . . I don't add butter (or anything along those lines) to either oatmeal or the pancakes. don't see it as a problem so long as "tiny" doesn't start growing into "teaspoon".