Over the last week I have been intensively monitoring my glucose readings and counting carbs and adjusting my bolus dose. It turns out I need a carb/insulin ratio of 1:1. Yes, one unit of insulin for every gram of carbohydrate I consume. This seems rather high? Does anyone have any idea as to whether this is normal or satisfactory? It seems higher than the advice on carb counting I read online
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Carb / Insulin ratio
- Thread starter Palmtree
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Ljc
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1.5 LADA
Hi @Palmtree , welcome to the forum. What a nightmare for you. That ratio is incredibly high and me being T2 on insulin, I tend to need a much higher ratio than people with T1. Others will be along later today who have more experience than me.
A few thoughts , though you’ve probably already thought of these already.
Have you done a basal Test recently?
Could it be your insulin has been compromised perhaps even before you recieved it , is it out of date, been out of the fridge for far too long , frozen , got too hot etc, try changing the pen/cartridge/set to see if that improves things .
If your using pens could your bolus one be faulty and not delivering enough units , do you have a spare you could use.
Could it be a problem with your injection sites, have you tried changing to a totally different area.
It would be a good idea to contact your DSN
Whatever the cause I hope find it and sort it out quickly .
A few thoughts , though you’ve probably already thought of these already.
Have you done a basal Test recently?
Could it be your insulin has been compromised perhaps even before you recieved it , is it out of date, been out of the fridge for far too long , frozen , got too hot etc, try changing the pen/cartridge/set to see if that improves things .
If your using pens could your bolus one be faulty and not delivering enough units , do you have a spare you could use.
Could it be a problem with your injection sites, have you tried changing to a totally different area.
It would be a good idea to contact your DSN
Whatever the cause I hope find it and sort it out quickly .
Hepato-pancreato
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 3c
Good grief if your calculations are correct that’s nearly a pen a day. Maximum dose per injection for humalog is 60 units.
How long have you been on insulin and did you go on a course for carb counting. It seems to me it might be 1:1 to 10 grams.
But if you are not hypoing regularly on such high doses go double check with your DSN as ljc recommends.
Hope you can sort it palmtree. Or it’s a trip to chemists every 5 days.
How long have you been on insulin and did you go on a course for carb counting. It seems to me it might be 1:1 to 10 grams.
But if you are not hypoing regularly on such high doses go double check with your DSN as ljc recommends.
Hope you can sort it palmtree. Or it’s a trip to chemists every 5 days.
Pumper_Sue
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Have you actually checked your basal? If that's not correct then obviously your bolus will be doing the work of both basal and bolus.
Bruce Stephens
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
missclb
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Yeah, that does seem very high to me but I am on the lower end of the scale when I compare myself to other T1s. Are you finding that your ratio changes throughout day? Breakfast was always different for me, but lunch and dinner were more or less the same.
So what would a typical dinner and corresponding dose be for you? And whay types of insulin are you using?
So what would a typical dinner and corresponding dose be for you? And whay types of insulin are you using?
eggyg
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 3c
I was on a DAFNE course back in March and they use 1 to mean 10 ( I know, confusing). One guy on my course had been diabetic for 35 years and have done previous DAFNE like courses and he just couldn’t get his head around it at all. So I am wondering is this a “ new” thing, calling 10 1? As everyone says that’s a lot of insulin for a type 1, my worry is you will over bolus and become hypo. Please call your DSN ASAP.
Bruce Stephens
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
I assumed it was an old thing. When I was first diagnosed, the estimates were all in units of 10g. Much more recently in the DAFNE-like course they explained that they no longer liked to do that, but then went on (I thought confusing themselves) by talking both in 1g and using ratios based on 10g, which got especially confusing when they were setting the ratios on the Freestyle Libre reader (which wants to be told 5g where they were thinking 2:1 and the like).
Matt Cycle
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi Palmtree. 🙂 If it's correct it is what it is but yes, that's high. How long have you been diagnosed?
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