Topic: Squash and Diabetes question

[Squash64]

My husband has type 2 diabetes and really loves squash but finds that it raises his blood sugar level. 

I have recently cooked butternuts, Crown Prince and Tondo Padana and they all have the same effect.  I roast them with a little olive oil and herbs.

Does anyone else have this problem?  Are any varieties better than others?

[Vinlander]

I think you'll find that any food with high GI will raise anybody's blood sugar (though non-diabetics will control this).

The GI of squash depends on their sweetness (which will always work immediately) and starch.

I suspect that using squash that aren't sweet would disappoint your husband too much (unless you boosted them with artificial sweeteners).

Even so - unfortunately the starch in such soft cooked flesh as squash has would still be available too quickly.

It might be worth eating it raw to slow down the starch...

Cheers.

[Melbourne12]

I found this on the USDA nutrition database

Variety	Carbs%	Of which sugars%
Summer squash, crookneck or straightneck	3.79	2.48
Summer squash, scallop	3.30	1.50
Zucchini (courgette) incl skin	2.69	1.71
Winter squash, acorn (baked)	14.58	n/a
Winter squash, butternut (baked)	10.49	1.97
Winter squash, spaghetti	6.46	2.53

All boiled unless otherwise noted.  Percentages are of total cooked weight.

[goodlife]

Any food containing carbohydrates will raise blood sugar levels and squash is not exception. But just like with potatoes, your husband can still enjoy them but have to be careful with the quantity. Eating some protein and fibre based food same time will slow down the absorption of the carbohydrates and thus the effect to blood sugar levels will not be as drastic.
I'm using insuling myself and I have adjust the level of  medication for the amount of carbohydrates I eat.
As your OH is type 2, I assume he is on diet and tablet based control..so he does have to control the quatity of carbohydrates and how to slow the absobtion...or you can simply send him to do some digging after having carb rich meal and have him use them up.

[artichoke]

That's a good point about potatoes and diabetes. I came across it when my husband found he had type 2 and I was a little concerned (having looked it up) because he is a very traditional eater and likes potatoes every day. However, his blood sugar level does very well on pills and diet (cutting out processed foods, sugars, biscuits etc) so the potatoes cannot be doing him much harm.

I suspect the same is true of squash and other foods, but I'll never find out because he hates the entire Cucurbitaceae family apart from the cucumber. I'm not saying I don't sneak squash into stews and so forth, looking like carrots.....

[goodlife]

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I'm not saying I don't sneak squash into stews and so forth, looking like carrots.....   ;D What they don't know it doesn't hurt..sometimes it does help not to mention every incredient ;D ;)
Everybody's body react different foods differently..I can happily eat potatoes and squash without having to result extra medication, but milk and bread elevate my blood sugars like rocket launch ::) It takes time to find out what are 'tricker' foods but it doesn't mean we cannot eat them..just caution and appropriate treatment ;)

[davyw1]

I don't know if it is available on line but i read a very good book on diets called the South Beach Diet.
I remember that Acorn and Butternut squash were a no go for people with diabetes as they turn very quickly into sugars.

If you have not heard of this diet book then have a read i found it gave you a lot of information not just on what you should and should not eat but how it works for people with different problems 

[Squash64]

Many thanks for all the very helpful replies. 

I think part of the problem was that my husband suspected that the squash was raising his blood-sugar so in order to prove/disprove it, he had a meal of only squash!

I've shown him all your replies and he is going to be more sensible in future  ;)

He really loves squash the way I cook it as spicy wedges but he needs to cut down on the amount!

Thanks again.

[goodlife]

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I've shown him all your replies and he is going to be more sensible in future 
Does that mean that he don't fancy doing extra digging on lottie to wear all those cabs off;D...little bit of hard work don't hurt ;) ;D

[Digeroo]

If he likes squash perhaps he will have to cut down on other carbs in the same meal.  So less potato, fruit and roots etc.   

At one stage I did a diet which allowed 60 grams of Carb a day and I was amazed at how much there was in some things.  Peas, broad beans, fruit juice, beetroot, and carrots contain much more than I expected.   

[grannyjanny]

Did the diet work Digeroo :).

[Dandytown]

Squash64, slightly off  topic but one of my favorite dishes and a great one for diabetics and winter is a nice bowl of dal. 

Dal is so low on the GI index that it doesnt even warrant being on it.  The dish I cook tastes relatively sweet and has depth of flavour from the spices. 

Check out this link if you have not already discovered it. http://mendosa.com/chanadal.html

There are lots of dal recipes on the website.

I cook mine by simply throwing 300g of chana dal, 300 ml water 1 heaped teaspoon of tunmeric, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 - 2 medium onions (sliced ) into a pan.  Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 min.

Next gentle saute 2 cloves of crushed garlic with 1 teaspoon each of ground panch puren, ground ginger and chili (flakes or fresh and depending on how you like it).  After a few mins on a medium heat add 2-3 chopped tomatos and cook for a further 3-5 mins before adding to the dal.  Continue to cook for a further 20-30 mins or more until texture and consitency is to your liking.   

[Dandytown]

...... saute in a tablespoon of oil.   1 teaspoon of chilli  :o was an error in typing.  Just add as desired

[Squash64]

Thanks Dandytown. It's ages since I cooked chana dal and I'd forgotten about it.  I used to use it pretty much like lentils, we really enjoyed it.  Will have to buy some more this week....

[Dandytown]

hmmm if only there was a warm pot on the stove now.

I will have to try and combine dal with squash next year as my squash shelf is bare (poor planning I know).

Hope you enjoy them  :)