Alcohol

[sharp00782]

Hi All,

Haven't posted in a a while. I think I posted something like this before but it would have been a long time ago!

My question is about the old vice alcohol! I have read everywhere not to take insulin with alcohol (I am talking about lager here with around 10g carbs per pint).

If I don't take insulin with alcohol, but blood sugars just rise and rise and rise. If I take insulin to match the carbs per drink and then have something carby before bed, I am fine and stay in range?

Anyone else find this?

 

[helli]

This is one of those trial and error cases.
Alcohol does make our BG fall but most of it (apart from spirits and dry wine) contain carbs so it is a bit of a tight rope.

For me, it depends how much I drink.
One pint will raise my BG. Three pints will see my BG falling.
Therefore, I tend to take insulin to match the carbs in my first couple of pints but let the alcohol balance out the carbs in any later pints.

In other words, I do not follow the advice to not take insulin with alcohol unless I am on a proper session.

If you find your approach to match insulin to carbs in drinks followed by carbs (without insulin) before bed, I see no reason not to continue with that.

 

[Eternal422]

I find that alcohol makes my BG drop. My DSN explained that the liver gets “busy” with processing the alcohol and temporarily suspends dropping glucose into the blood. Not sure of the biology behind this, but I always see a drop in BG when drinking. I don’t bolus for the carbs in the alcohol as for me this would cause a bigger drop.

 

[Inka]

I rarely drink beer but if I did, I’d take a small amount of insulin. Sometimes as little as half a unit does the trick. It’s all a balance. It’s better to be cautious than risk a hypo later.

 

[Satan’s little helper]

I find that alcohol makes my BG drop. My DSN explained that the liver gets “busy” with processing the alcohol and temporarily suspends dropping glucose into the blood. Not sure of the biology behind this, but I always see a drop in BG when drinking. I don’t bolus for the carbs in the alcohol as for me this would cause a bigger drop.

Hello, it is thought that during a low the liver does kind of respond in theory “cushioning” a drop in BG, but with alcohol to deal with the liver doesn’t? If I’ve insulin on board I can seem to drop quite fast & need to be mindful. (I wouldn’t rely on the liver theory if I was sober, always carrying hypo treatment on me.) If I do need to correct anything on after a night out? I’m pretty reserved on what I would use as a dose. I also keep in mind alcohol on the breath coupled with a low, could be misconstrued as “inebriation.”