Well tonight I was going to make some dream field pasta (spaghetti). I got to looking at the label before cooking to check portion sizes and it really caught my attention.

Now I am pretty versed in LC but... this is the first time I have have seen this term protected carbs and the first time I have ever bought this brand of L/C pasta! I don't understand how this can be protected carbs and does it REALLY do what it says? I am sure it is a YMMV thing.. BUT.. I am just looking for a general consensus.

This is the label (not the nutrition label):

Carb facts:
Total carbs 41
Fiber -5
Protected Carbs -31
----------------------
Digestible Carbs 5

With a note above it that says: "Count 5 grams of carbohydrates per each 56 servings when controlling carbohydrate intake and blood sugar levels to promote good health and weight control. Dreamfields offers many healthy benefits and has been clinically tested to establish digestible carbohydrates levels."

BUT.. here is the actually nutritional label:

Cal 190
Fat 1g
Total Carbs 41g
Dietary fiber 5g
Soluble Fiber 3g
Insoluble Fiber 2g
Sugar 1g
protein 7g

My calculations is: Net 39 per serving!

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"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
- Sir Winston Churchill

Tanya

My current stats are: 285/257/240(2nd mini goal)/130

26lbs shed!

Down 28lbs!

This from their site:
Protected carbohydrates or "resistant starch": These are carbohydrates that resist being digested particularly in the small intestine. When they cannot be digested in the small intestine, they pass to the colon where they perform as dietary fiber. They may occur naturally, be created by chemically modifying carbohydrates prior to ingestion or achieve resistance through properly formulated foods being processed by the body. Resistant starches occur naturally at various levels in many foods, like cooked and cooled potatoes, unmilled grains, seeds, legumes, bananas, and high amylase starches. Most resistant starches are produced by concentrating naturally resistant starches and/or by chemically modifying carbohydrates in order to produce a starch with low digestibility. Dreamfields creates protected carbohydrates without chemical modification by utilizing combinations of standard food ingredients to "protect" digestible carbohydrates from being broken down by digestive enzymes. Carbohydrates resistant to digestion have been shown in scientific study to help control blood glucose, blood cholesterol and blood triglyceride levels, normalize insulin levels, and help improve the health of the colon lining, thus reducing the potential for ulcers and inflammatory diseases of the large intestine.


It's all Greek to me.

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Tom

I use Dreamfield's all the time. However, I do weigh the pasta each time before cooking, allowing 2 oz of dry pasta per serving. It is amazing how I have come to accept that as an adequate serving size considering how much pasta I used to eat. It does not have an adverse effect on me. I am aware that for some diabetics, the carb treatment that reduces the effective carb count does not work and they react to it as if it were regular pasta.

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Henry

dad2bike: yeah.. it's greek to me too. My issue is that I have seen many companies make claims that really are not true. Just like S/F stuff.... many times they say that it does not have any affect on the blood sugar levels, but in reality they do AND on top of that they create some undesirable "END" results in the bathroom.

Henry... thank you for post on how they affect you. This is helpful. I would still like to hear from other on how they affect them too.

I put them back in the cupboard and cooking a spaghetti squash until I am more informed.

__________________
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
- Sir Winston Churchill

Tanya

My current stats are: 285/257/240(2nd mini goal)/130

26lbs shed!

Down 28lbs!

Mmmm, I love spaghetti squash with olive oil and salt & pepper.

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Tom

I have used Dreamfields before (It's the only pasta I buy now) and will again. I won't use it now that I'm in induction, but when I was OWLing and maintaining, it did not effect my blood sugar the same way normal starches and sugars did. But as they say, YMMV.

Henry is right though. You need to be very careful about your serving size. It is very tempting to eat too much

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Sven

A new beginning:
1/5/09
262/252/200

The Old Journey (you can do it too!)
Start Date: 1/1/06
305/218/200


Welcome to low-carb eating.
The food's not bad here.

Thanks for the replies on this. I know all to well about the temptations of eating more than one serving!

__________________
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
- Sir Winston Churchill

Tanya

My current stats are: 285/257/240(2nd mini goal)/130

26lbs shed!

Down 28lbs!

maggie calls it "pipe dream" pasta based on her BGL tests with it.

I can eat it without issue and do NOT feel the same as I do if I eat regular carbs, and I don't have any adverse issues in, um, other rooms of the house. so I do use it and am glad to have the option.

But yeah, being careful is definitely in order.

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LOL.... I knew maggie would give the straight and narrow! LOL

TY..I appreciate your input goddess! Maybe I will get brave in a couple of weeks once I get a even tighter grip on things.

__________________
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
- Sir Winston Churchill

Tanya

My current stats are: 285/257/240(2nd mini goal)/130

26lbs shed!

Down 28lbs!

My understanding of how Dreamfields works is that it must be cooked al dente, if cooked more it loses it's "protection" and affects your body the same as if you were eating regular pasta. And as the digestion process continues, even if eaten al dente, it continues to break down and can affect your blood sugar the same as regular pasta. It probably depends on how fast you digest your food as to whether or not it affects your blood sugar levels. As with a lot of lc products, YMMV due to your own unique physiology.

The main reason I avoid Dreamfields pasta is because of portion control. If I make a pan of lasagna, one serving just ain't enough!

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Nita

So we should just eat it raw and uncooked for best protection from those nasty carbs??

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Tom

Well, Tom, don't you like crunchy pasta? LOL!

Actually, I use the spaghetti for soup noodles, just a few for a big pot. Don't get much pasta per bowl of soup.

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Nita

I love Dreamfields. It is made 55 miles down the road from me in Carrington, ND. Another great North Dakota Product.

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