DWED on Radio 1 today

[Tina63]

Coming in here a bit late in the day, I wanted to add that I saw a headline on a Nursing Times a few weeks ago about T1 teenage girls and diabulimia. My first thoughts were of my son. This article very much specified young girls.

My lad was shockingly overweight - well obese - before diagnosis. He dropped around 7st in the 4 or 5 months before he was diagnosed, most of it going in the last two months. We were warned he would put some of the weight straight back on, but the dietician noted that it would be a challenge to my son to keep his weight down, but that he liked his new body shape.

He did rapidly put about 2 stone back on, then another crept on quite quickly, and up and up he was going. That's when he was injecting properly. He probably put about 4 stone back on in total.

I am in no doubt that he knows that by skipping injections he is managing to keep weight off, he has over the past few months come down quite a bit again, nowhere near where he was at diagnosis, but he only said the other day that he is the lightest he has been in 2 years (diagnosed just over 2 years ago). When you see what he eats, and knowing he is not injecting half the time, it's obvious to me what he is doing. He couldn't care less what he eats, he has his own money now so buys food out at lunchtimes, comes home with family packs of crisps, empty packets of Haribos (whole large family packs), family sized chocolate bars, and carbs are his thing. Having a ridiculously high HbA1c, eating what he likes, but weight coming off, it's obvious that's what he is doing.

On the up side though, after saying all that, he has suddenly announced he wants to go on a diet and start going to the gym. A friend has recently lost 3st apparently, and he has talked to him about his eating habits and wants to try and eat more healthy food, once the carrot cake I have in the fridge is finished (oops!) He saw the psychologist last week so I do wonder if any of this has come out of his conversation with him.

I have said I am completely up for us working together to eat more healthily, so I am hoping that he is serious. He did take brown seedy bread sandwiches this morning - that's a major step forward - he has always refused to eat ANY brown bread. He ate them, so that's a start! He has also eaten some fruit. I know it's not idea, as he can pig out on it, but then that surely is better than several hundred grams of Haribos, so I am all for it at the moment.

We were at diagnosis shown the plate in the picture, but just the thirds, a third carbs, a third veg and a third protein. We were never told anything about low GI, never told anything about how many grams of carbs a day, just told to carb count and inject accordingly. Even when my lad moved onto mixed insulin we were not given ANY guidance about carbs at each meal. He was just given a number of units to inject, and was told that would cover his breakfast and lunch, until he got home from school. When his HbA1c didn't come down they upped it, but of course if he was telling them he was injecting when in fact he was skipping probably half his evening doses well it wasn't going to come down was it?

I suppose I am just trying to get across a couple of points, that eating disorders and T1 are not restricted to just females, and that yes, it's logical, that if you don't inject you will lose weight as you did before diagnosis. It's not rocket science!

 

[trophywench]

Have you thought of introducing him to Burgen? or pointing out what an absolute carb-bargain Ryvitas are?

4 buttered Ryvitas (the most 'expensive' ones are 10g carb, so that meal is 40g of carb. For me, 4units. Some of em are only 6 or 8g each though, so cheaper!) and a HUGE Tupperware box of mixed salad - with mayo and the protein mixed in - HB egg, half a tin of tuna ....whatever.

One scoop of vanilla with a really good dollop of microwaved smashed up Fruits of the Forest (not the one with millions of grapes though, those are 😱) and Splenda to taste if necessary. About 25g carb and you've had a big fat pudding.

S/F concentrated Blackcurrant & Apple cordial. Really sweet and tastes as naughty as hell.

Thing about a MANAGED carb diet is this - no need to take huge amounts of insulin; no need to snack between meals if you don't want to (but if you do want to, yes it means bolussing for anything over 10g, so he needs to weigh that up, do I or don't I? - can I be bothered?) And not having to take huge amounts of insulin should mean, no unnecessary weight gain.

Oh and I've just thought of summat else too.

Lantus of itself sometimes causes weight gain. Not for everyone, but for some. The alternative is Levemir and for most of us, that does mean 2 jabs. But neither needs to be enormous. However I realise, that might be a step too far. But it's a thought to keep in your armoury.

Hey, someone told me this today ....

 

[Tina63]

Have you thought of introducing him to Burgen? or pointing out what an absolute carb-bargain Ryvitas are?

Burgen we can only very occasionally get round here. We are a Tesco only town, and only smallish Tescos, so Burgen is only occasionally stocked there. Now he has eaten some Warburtons seedy loaf without too much complaining I will try and get some Burgen next time I go. I like it, but I have only ever found it occasionally. Ryvitas - a step too far for him - rabbit food in his opinion! He will only eat things like cream crackers and Carrs biscuits.

4 buttered Ryvitas (the most 'expensive' ones are 10g carb, so that meal is 40g of carb. For me, 4units. Some of em are only 6 or 8g each though, so cheaper!) and a HUGE Tupperware box of mixed salad - with mayo and the protein mixed in - HB egg, half a tin of tuna ....whatever.

Salad - errr - NO! He will pick at odd bits of yellow pepper, but that's as far as he goes with salad. Not for want of trying on my part, I frequently eat salad and put it up the table, but the pepper is the only thing he will ever eat. He'll eat the tuna and mayo, but invariably mixed in to a bowl of pasta, with sweetcorn added. Carbs fly up with that one.

One scoop of vanilla with a really good dollop of microwaved smashed up Fruits of the Forest (not the one with millions of grapes though, those are 😱) and Splenda to taste if necessary. About 25g carb and you've had a big fat pudding.

This boy can eat a large tub of ice cream over about 3 days, so one scoop would seem nothing to him, and as for the fruits of the forest, he would turn his nose up at them. He will eat fresh apples, oranges, satsumas, bananas, cherries, pineapples, peaches and pears and will eat tinned fruit, but not any berries.

S/F concentrated Blackcurrant & Apple cordial. Really sweet and tastes as naughty as hell.

The one thing he does adhere to is S/F squashes. He drinks all sorts of those, by the gallon! And Pepsi Max, his one real vice! I know it's not good for him, and his teeth, but as I say, I feel powerless to stop him given that he buys things for himself so much of the time. Bottles seem to appear from nowhere. Now he has started drinking lager, I wish it was just the Pepsi Max!

Thing about a MANAGED carb diet is this - no need to take huge amounts of insulin; no need to snack between meals if you don't want to (OH HE ALWAYS WANTS TO SNACK, AT ALL HOURS) (but if you do want to, yes it means bolussing for anything over 10g, so he needs to weigh that up, do I or don't I? - can I be bothered?) And not having to take huge amounts of insulin should mean, no unnecessary weight gain.

This is just the point though with him (ongoing) that he doesn't bother to inject half the stuff he should do anyway on a fixed routine (42 Humilin M3 in the morning, 8u Novorapid Dinnertime, 32u Lantus Bedtime), so bolusing for snacks? Forget it! He just doesn't.

Oh and I've just thought of summat else too.

Lantus of itself sometimes causes weight gain. Not for everyone, but for some. The alternative is Levemir and for most of us, that does mean 2 jabs. But neither needs to be enormous. However I realise, that might be a step too far. But it's a thought to keep in your armoury.

Yes definitely a step too far, but hey, it's definitely worth remembering for future ammunition.

I do appreciate your advice, but as I say, this boy has an unhealthy relationship with food anyway. As a youngster he would eat ANYTHING except strawberries, cream, chips and nuts. He has refused salad for many many years now, then over the past 7 or 8 years went off most veg (though that is starting to come back now). He has a very sweet tooth, seems to want to graze constantly, but his idea of a snack would be your idea of a proper meal. Food causes so many tiffs in this house. Him asking what there is to eat, me saying he can't possibly want to eat as we had only had dinner half an hour ago, him being adamant he does 'need' to, so I suggest something healthy, fruit, yoghurt etc, he strops off and raids cupboards for whatever, then half to one hour he's back again, going through the same routine. This goes on all evening long. If I do do any baking he's in and out of the cupboard until the whole cake is gone (usually about 2 days!) I rarely bake now because of that.

As I said, if he does get serious about this dieting business, it would be really good news. He did take a much better lunchbox today, brown bread sandwiches, an apple and a bag of crisps, but I don't know if he ate anything else whilst at college all day. I'd like to thing he's serious about sorting out his eating habits.