Having Diabetes makes almost everything food and fitness-related more difficult. That’s why when I find something that boasts being “sugar-free,” I jump on that shit like, well… me! I’ve been fooled on a number of different occasions, where things like sugar-free candy still have carbohydrates that affect overall blood sugar levels. This is part of the struggle that most people don’t understand. That’s why, when I found a bottle of wine boasting “0g sugar,” I couldn’t help but grab a bottle. Although several different blends were available, I opted for the Pinot Noir, since it was on special and a couple of dollars cheaper. What can I say? I’m cheap…
Bask is a Canadian-made wine that appears to be recently featured at my local liquor store. Sitting at 12.5% alcohol ( as though you couldn’t tell from the photo), this pinot noir has a pleasant taste and a light finish that goes quite well after stuffing my face with buffalo chicken dip and nachos. But I digress… Unlike most other wines, there’s a full nutrition label on the back of the bottle, which boasts 7 grams of carbs per 188mL, which means approximately 21 grams of carbohydrates for the entire bottle. If accurate, that’s almost more than double the carbs in the bottle of shiraz I usually purchase.
So, the irony here, and what’s difficult for most Type-1 Diabetics, is that many are often fooled by a claim that something is “0g of sugar” or sugar-free. Although sugar in and of itself may be low or excluded, the total carbs will still affect one’s overall blood sugars. It will be interesting to see how this bottle affects me. I’m not bolusing for the drinks I’m having but rather, I’ll correct for any rises in blood glucose that I note in the next hour or two. What’s funny is that the nutritional label even talks about the sugar content that MAY be contained within…
By that count, there could potentially be 2 grams of sugar within one full bottle. This would be included in the total 21 grams of carbs, based on the nutrition label’s count. It’s a decent wine, the flavour isn’t my favourite but it’s good enough for the experiment at hand. Plus, it gave me a reason to sip wine. Not this morning, mind you. But let this serve as a PSA for all my fellow Diabetics out there. “Sugar-free,” “No Sugar Added” and “All Natural” may mean nothing, in terms of total carbohydrates and how it may affect one’s blood sugar. Food for thought… (pun fully intended) ☯️
The Blogging Buddhist 