[swangirl]

I wish I would have read this yesterday. I just bought some Russel Stover Sugar free Peanut Butter cups. I bought a mini bag of them, and they're almost gone.

I was craving chocolate. It was that kind of day. I need to reprogram my head to not eat these things.

I guess I'll start Phase 1 again. : /

[nelie]

If you are craving chocolate, the fudgesicles are a really good treat. I know some people mix them (slightly melted) with pb and whipped cream. Also, in phase 2, you can have sf chocolate pudding which i imagine might taste good with pb mixed in.

[Bunnababy]

If you are on Phase I and ate the Russell Stover you will need to start your two week PI over again. If on P2 you can just resume where you are. I have just resigned myself to eating the hard candies only. The CreamSavers are good and Lifesavers are good too. I know they are still Frankenfoods but less harmful to our eating plan than others. Remember too only 75 calories in goodies a day.

[swangirl]

Waaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Darn you Russel Stover, darn you!

Hi nellie,

I will have to try the fudgesilcles and whip! That sounds yummy!

Are there any good low carb whipcreams?

[nelie]

Most people eat Cool Whip Free, which is probably the best choice? You are allowed 2 Tbsp a day. I don't actually eat whipped cream because all the commercial ones have corn syrup in them to make them sweet I am a bit picky about added sugars, but it is allowed on SBD.

[beachgal]

You can use either Cool Whip Free (not the regular or lite), and only one serving (2 Tbsp). It counts as a sweet treat, too. You could also use heavy cream and whip it with splenda (or any other artificial sweetener). Again, only 2 Tbsp. With the first, you get some sugar and a bit of really bad fats, with the other, you get bad fats. Neither is great, but since you only use a tiny amount, it's okay on the diet. Just don't get carried away!!!

In speaking with Sarah today (Adia Faith), I realized that we might be coming across as confusing here!

Here's the lowdown on sugar alcohols:

Many of us hate them and think they are evil. The reason for this is that they make most people sick. In addition, who knows what's in them? They are chemicals and therefore a bit scary.

On the other hand, they are allowed on SBD. You need to limit your sweet treats (anything of non-nutritional value that is sweet) to 75 cals a day. If you do this, you are unlikely to eat enough of the sugar alcohols to cause diarrhea, the most common result of over-indulging. However, you may find that even that small amount will make you sick, so try things carefully and see how you feel. For instance, I have no problem with sorbitol in small amounts, but I can't have any malitol. It makes me violently ill. So watch it and be careful. Read ingredients.

Most of all, try to stay away from those processed foods. If you are on SBD to become more healthy, as most of us are, you need to learn to eat things that make you feel healthy and strong. A mint or hard candy now and then won't kill you, but bags of SF chocolate may lend to an evening of pain! Your call.

[nelie]

Laurie,

I think a major problem with a lot of the "low carb" tailored products out there is that they assume you are on a standard low carb diet and don't care about your fat. I decided to look up a popular (carbolite) pb cup (single pb cup), just to see how much fat was in it. It had 14g of fat with 7g being saturated.

Sure there are sugar alcohols, which are allowed, but the items that are made specifically to be low carb are really highly processed foods. I am trying my best to stay away from processed foods, but that is a personal goal that is important to me. I would just encourage people to be careful about their choices if they do start heading into the "made to be low carb" arena because those items usually have a lot of fat, especially saturated fat.

[beachgal]

Nelie, that's a good, and important, point!

Watch those ingredients and fat levels, ladies! We're getting a decent portion of saturated fat in our dairy, so there's really no need for any more!

Thanks, Nelie! Personally, I don't touch the stuff...I am, like you, interested in eating as little processed food as possible. My sweet treats are the only processed things I'm eating right now besides the odd pita or slice of WW bread.

But some people here feel the need or desire to eat processed food. I want them to know that it's not banned because of sugar alcohols. It's your choice...just watch what works for you.

[kissyjoy]

There are a couple of Carb Options products that I eat like the pasta sauce. There are no evil ingredients in it and it is sweetened with Splenda, not sugar. I had that last night poured over with a little l/f mozarella on top. I like the Carb Options sauce better than the regular stuff.

I also like to use a little of the Ranch dressing, the steak sauce and the Asian marinade. You can check out some of the ingredients at www.carboptions.com. They make plenty of products to stay away from on SBD but there are some good things as well.

[nelie]

Last time I bought pasta sauce was actually before I started SBD. I looked at Carb Options (because I was watching my carbs) and I compared it to some various pasta sauces. I actually ended up buying one of the regular pasta sauces because it didn't have sugar added and had less carbs than the carb options one.

I've tried a few of the carb options stuff, before I started SBD and they do have some good stuff.

[1busymomma]

I am going to have to find an updated book. I've screwed up again on phase 1 without realizing it. Sigh. Live and learn I suppose.

There's nothing like learning something new everyday.