low carb pasta called Bella Vita

[joanstead]

Has anyone tried this pasta yet? It is at my local Big Lots for 40cents a box!!! that's cheap. Let me know if there is anything I should know about this pasta. It is only 10 net carbs for 1 cup prepared.

thanks.
JoAn

[not2late]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

Has anyone tried this pasta yet? It is at my local Big Lots for 40cents a box!!! that's cheap. Let me know if there is anything I should know about this pasta. It is only 10 net carbs for 1 cup prepared.

thanks.
JoAn

What are the ingredients?

10 net carbs is alot to use for 1 cup---unless you're at Pre-maintenance or Maintenance, imo.

[joanstead]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

soy protein isolate, wheat gluten, etc.


if anyone has tried this, let me know!

[Richt]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

What stage of the diet are you on, Joanstead?

[joanstead]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

i'm still on the induction phase. I have more than 20 carbs per day and I've been losing weight fast. Some days I have less than 20, but when I want to have some really good foods that have more carbs, then I go ahead and have it. I've lost almost 40 pounds in 3 months. i've tried dreamfields low carb pasta, but it kicked me out of ketosis after eating it. I guess 5g of "digestible carbs" didn't work for me.

I've tried the keto brand of low carb pasta which is made with soy and so it is very chewy.

I found out about this Bella Vita from a friend who saw it at a local Big Lots for only 40 cents, so just trying to get some inputs from people

[not2late]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

Some links about it:

Funny nutritional labelling:
http://www.lowcarbfreedom.com/2004/0..._joes_to_.html

This link has the ingredients list:
http://www.kingkullen.com/recipedtl....ASTA%20ALFREDO

Bella Vita low carb pasta:
One cup dry (2 ounces or 56 grams) = 160 calories, 18 g carbohydrate, 8 grams dietary fiber, 28 g protein, 1 g fat, and 40 mg sodium.
It is made with defatted soy flour, egg white, rice flour, wheat gluten and isolated soy protein.

Soy flour and rice flour qualify this pasta for appropriate rungs of OWL or Pre-Maintenance phases.

[drosa75]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

Interesting read!

Trader Joe's to Stop Carrying Bella Vita Pasta because of Nutrition Label Discrepancies

Trader Joe's has stopped carrying Bella Vita Low Carb pasta because, in a third-party independent test of the product, the carb count didn't match the carb count on the label. According to Dianne O'Connor, spokesperson of Trader Joe's in their Needham office, "There was a discrepancy in the last batch. The numbers were off. We don't carry that product any longer." It seems, according to the grocery manager, Trader Joe's was alerted by a third party to test this batch. However, according to Dianne O'Connor, Trader Joe's regularly tests vendor's products via third party labs.

The products were immediately pulled from the shelves after the testing so few, if any, customers purchased the product.

While trying to personally track down this product for the last six months, I can testify that it was a big seller. It sold out all the time. According to my local Trader Joe's manager, when it was labeled soy pasta years ago, they couldn't give it away. As soon as it was delivered as low carb pasta, they couldn't keep it on the shelves.

I called Racconto, the parent company of the Bella Vita line, to ask them why this batch was different from the previous batches, but they didn't return my phone call by the time I posted this article.

There has been a lot of arguments as to what is low carb, how to label low carb food, etc. Atkins got dinged a few years ago by the FDA so it and other companies have started using "net carbs" to try and distinguish between high glycemic carbs and low glycemic carbs. Many "established" groups do not recognize a difference between high glycemic and low glycemic carbs. (Read Atkins and the Aliens that Cause Global Warming for more background.)

There is even a new trade group that has just started to address these problems, the Carbohydrate Awareness Council. This reminds me of all of the "security labeling" that went on to try and clean up or make people more comfortable with internet shopping years ago. You could even pay for "audits" to get the label from some of the big 5 accounting firms. Truste is one of them that still remains. Who knows about this one?

I suspect that there is some fierce infighting among these companies because, with this new sector, new brands could be made to rival the established "high carb" companies like Kraft. Some companies are staking out a "carb is a carb" territory very directly like Betafoods.

This labeling problem also seems to have been going on for some time, according to the website Low Carb Luxury.

It is the dawn of a new sector! Let the battle begin! It only gets better for the consumer!

On another note, I talked to the nutritionist at Trader Joe's to ask her about the Trader Joe's Eggplant Parmesan label. It lists the total carbs as 4 but 5 and 6 carbs for fiber and sugar. Of course, this is mathematically impossible. She confirmed that the net carb count was 11 and that the new label was currently being approved. I was the second or third caller on this item. (At that carb count, we should try it! If you do "net carbs" like I do.)



Posted by Katherine Prouty on January 14, 2004 | Permalink

[sunflowergrl]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

My advice would be to stay away. Eating those kinds of foods got you here in the first place, didn't it? If you want success, read DANDR and follow it to the letter.

[joanstead]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

thanks for all the information! that's so interesting about the product label.

you know, i can't say that everyone should stay away from this stuff because it is worth trying and then see how your own body reacts to it.

I tried Dreamfields pasta and it was just like the real stuff, if not better. But, my body treated it like regular carbs so i got knocked out of ketosis, I think. At least my urine test strips didn't show any color. After I saw that, I immediately went back to induction.

I don't think that we should go eating a whole box of this stuff. Yes, that was how I used to eat pasta. A whole box of macaroni and cheese, I used to eat it that way. Now, I eat sooooo much better. I've lost 40 pounds and I love the way I feel and look. I have 3 families who started low carbing because they saw how it worked for me.

I'll try this low carb pasta and test it with my glucose monitor to see if my blood sugar spikes up. I'm not diabetic, but I think it is a good idea to get one so you can test these so-called "low carb" products that claim to have few net carbs.

JoAn

[drosa75]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

Joan,

I dont necessarily disagree with you. I just think these foods should be added in at the appropriate rung...I have done this diet before and failed because I did not follow the rules. All of the admins on this board have been successful at this WOL because they followed the diet the way Dr. Atkins created it. We all know it works but to be a success at it you must understand each phase in its entirity.

Just be careful.

*note I am not the best speller! Forgive me.

[sunflowergrl]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

Great advice, drosa!!! I agree, maybe you could wait till you get to that level in OWL?

[Thinker]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

i'm still on the induction phase. I have more than 20 carbs per day and I've been losing weight fast. Some days I have less than 20, but when I want to have some really good foods that have more carbs, then I go ahead and have it. I've lost almost 40 pounds in 3 months. i've tried dreamfields low carb pasta, but it kicked me out of ketosis after eating it. I guess 5g of "digestible carbs" didn't work for me.

I've tried the keto brand of low carb pasta which is made with soy and so it is very chewy.

I found out about this Bella Vita from a friend who saw it at a local Big Lots for only 40 cents, so just trying to get some inputs from people

If you're on induction - then stay away from these. No good can come of it! I've had VERY BAD luck w/a lot of low car substitutes like the pastas. It's soooo hard to accurately measure one cup. Also, for me, I've found that they just don't taste right - making me wish I'd just eaten real pasta and gotten it over with.

If you're on induction - don't get fancy. Ride your weight loss until you're ready to get more exotic. Stick with the good doctors rules.

Good Luck!!

- Thinker

[doeskin]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

I'm with drosa75. It's not that anyone is saying you can't or shoudn't have it, just maybe not while you're still in induction. Actually if you're having these pasta things you aren't really doing induction anymore

Congrats on your loss though!

[Binsk]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

You could always buy the pasta and save it in the cupboard until you reach the appropriate rung of OWL. Pasta keeps for a long time, and at 40 cents a box that seems like a good deal. Here it is hard to find low carb products, and I have stock piled some BBQ sauce and some sugar free ketchup.

[joanstead]

Re: low carb pasta called Bella Vita

Well, what phase am I in if I am adding carbs over 20? I thought that once you do the 2 weeks of induction, that you could add more carbs until your body slowed down on weight loss? Is this actually OWL phase? I'm still losing weight at the same rate as when I was on strict Induction phase.

I don't want to stay on the strict Induction because I want to have a variety of vegetables. I ate a serving (1 cup) of that pasta. I just dumped some in a 1 cup measuring cup, so that wasn't hard to measure it. I tested my urine this morning for ketones and it was a very DARK PURPLE, so having the pasta must not have hurt me, plus my weight went down 2 pounds since yesterday.

Thank you all for caring and giving me your opinions about this pasta. I must confess, it doesn't taste very good--very chewy. But like someone else said for 40 cents a box, you can stock pile and use it later. I don't think I will be eating much of this because the taste isn't that good. Honestly, I like Spaghetti Squash better, which is so much more healthier and a GOOD CARB.

So on to my next question....I have lost about 40 pounds in 3 months. Can someone tell me if they exercised or weight trained and what type of results they saw. Because I feel good that I have lost the weight but I haven't been seriously exercising or weight training and I don't want to get flabby.

Thanks! Do I need to go to a different topic?