Should bagels be added to the list of foods diabetics should avoid? Isn’t banning birthday cake and chocolate cream pie bad enough?
For many, bagels have long been considered a healthy food option. Surely chewy goodness is better for you than doughy white bread. But what if you knew what was worse?
Both bagels and white bread are made from flour, water, and a few other ingredients. White flour in standard bagels is the same as in white bread. Today almost everyone knows that white bread is bad for diabetics. Raises blood glucose levels as fast as table sugar.
So how could a bagel be worse than bread?
A single slice of white bread provides between 60 and 80 calories in the form of carbohydrates. Two slices of toast or bread for a sandwich equals about 150 calories. But what about a bagel? A mini-bagel also provides around 150 calories, but a regular-size bagel is between 250 and 300 calories, while one of the delicious oversized varieties can be as high as 500 calories. This is how a bagel can be worse than bread. You’re unlikely to sit down and eat 7 or 8 slices of bread, but that’s exactly what you’re doing if you enjoy a large bagel.
All bagels are not created equal in other nutritional aspects. For example, a whole wheat bagel may have about the same calories as a French toast bagel (250 to 300 calories), but contains only one-third the sugar but three times the fiber. Whole grains take longer to digest and therefore do not raise blood sugar as quickly. Dietary fiber improves bowel function and promotes a feeling of satiety (fullness after eating). A bagel loaded with melted cheese will have more fat than a blueberry or raisin bagel.
And what about the toppings? Two tablespoons of low-fat cream cheese adds another 70 calories, which isn’t a bad option for a light breakfast or lunch. However, two tablespoons of peanut butter (or butter or mayonnaise spread) equals an additional 200 calories, most of which come from fat. A better option would be an equal serving of unsweetened preserves (as low as 10 calories per tablespoon) or a few slices of lean turkey breast (about 50 calories).
People like bagels in large part because of the texture. You feel like you are eating more when you have to chew harder. That’s not a bad thing, especially for diabetics who feel deprived most of the time.
While it’s true that a diabetic should avoid eating a giant bagel spread with peanut butter (a 700-calorie feast), a whole-wheat mini-bagel with low-fat cream cheese provides less than half those calories and is a Easy target for the hungry diabetic woman who craves a carb fix.
