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Well this proved to be a very popular topic, many thanks to everyone  
who replied!  People certainly interpreted the kind of info I was  
looking for very differently, but all the replies were interesting and  
made in a spirit of kindness.  For those who missed the original  
question:  We have one person in the household needing GF (me), and  
another non-GF person (my partner) who needs to try the South Beach  
diet.  I was looking for suggestions for complex carb foods we can  
both eat, and inquiring about chebe's appropriateness for South Beach.

Because I did not explain clearly, there were some replies with  
suggestions regarding diabetes.  These included lots of tips about  
monitoring blood sugar.  Happily at this time we are not dealing with  
out and out diabetes, the problem is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome  
(PCOS), which is closely related to insulin resistance (IR).  At this  
time she is not even showing signs of IR let alone full blown  
diabetes, and part of the goal of this diet change is to prevent ever  
getting to that point.  There is a family history of diabetes, so we  
do want to be careful of avoiding that if possible.  One of these  
replies with concern to diabetes included the suggestion to get blood  
ferritin levels tested.  This was done recently as part of a larger  
look at her health, and was normal.

Several well reasoned responses suggested that we should just get rid  
of grain based foods and other carbs in response to PCOS and IR type  
diagnosis.  Paleo and primal diets were suggested along these lines.   
This is probably a healthy suggestion, but more extreme than we are  
ready for at this time.

There were a few responses that expressed concern about aspects of the  
South Beach diet.  One suggested that it was not a diet for the long  
term, I think this may be some confusion about phases of South Beach  
or with another diet.  As I read the book phase 1 of the South Beach  
diet is for 2 weeks only, phase 2 is for many months, and phase 3 is a  
more permanent lifestyle of healthy eating by most standards.  This  
was not an idea we had on a lark, but phase 2 was prescribed by a  
doctor for the specific diagnosis of PCOS for about 3-6 months, so we  
are at least going to give it a try for her.  In phase 2 and 3 a  
limited amount of complex carbs are allowed, what I am not sure of is  
whether the tapioca as prepared for chebe is a complex carb.  There  
was another concern about the sodium levels in the South Beach diet.   
Since it will be mostly home cooking we will have control over that,  
and as the household's primary cook, I can assure you that it will not  
be high in sodium the way I will do it.  I had not noticed that this  
diet appeared to be high sodium, but will look out for that as I  
continue to learn more about it.

Another response suggested figuring out how many slices per unit of  
chebe and do the math based on the carbs on the label, but I have  
never seen sliced chebe bread, so I am not sure how to apply this  
information to chebe.  It also does not account for how much cheese is  
added in varying recipes.  I can figure out how many grams of carb  
there are per serving, and then try to find out how the body handles  
that carb.

One interesting reply explained that there is some limited information  
that tapoica starch, which is the basis for chebe bread, may be a  
"resistant starch", meaning that it will not act like a simple carb in  
how it affects blood sugar.  I will try to look into that more and see  
what I can find out.

Another kind reply pointed out that this might be a situation in which  
it might be easier for the GF and non GF eaters in the house to eat  
somewhat different foods, and that is a solution we use some of the  
time.

Suggestions for complex carbs that might be good on South Beach, and GF:
Buckwheat Hot cereal by Pocono.  It is delicious, especially with  
raisins and walnuts.
Quinoa (we already eat this--yummy! )

Again, many thanks for all the kind replies!!
Wishing everyone a happy and healthy new year!!  --mel

Melinda Freckleton DVM
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