Healthy ways to deal with lows?

Status
Not open for further replies.
SilentAssassin1642

SilentAssassin1642

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hey - sorry for my hiatus for a few days. Just moved into a new place :D

Anyway, as you know I've just finished uni and thus want to start having a bit of a healthier diet that doesn't deal involve pizza and chips every day. Plus, I've been noticing that I've been putting on a bit of weight recently and I want it to come off. I'm guessing that alot of diabetics have weight issues thanks to lows?

Anyway, the point of this is: what's the best and healthiest way to deal with lows? Before this, I've been eating chocolate and various biscuits. Currently having a glass of orange juice and a banana to deal with the latest low.

Oh, also, does anyone have any decent ideas for a good excersise regime for someone who's really not very sporty? I was thinking of maybe taking a few walks up the local iron age hillfort just as a start :D
 
Yes, lows do prove to be a problem where weight loss is concerned! I would say that treating hypos with juice is a more healthy way than chocolate (which isn't recommended for a hypo treatment anyway as it sticks around in the blood for much longer than short acting sugar - like coke/ lucozade/ juice - due to the amount of fat in it.) I would always follow up with a digestive or 2, perhaps not as healthy as a banana but will (in my experience at least) help stave off another hypo.

As for exercise. Walking is a great start. But it depends on what you enjoy! I cannot motivate myself to go to the gym but love zooming around on a netball court!

Hope you're enjoying your new place 🙂
 
As far as I know, the best way of treating a low is with something sugary follwed by some carbs or a meal if one is due, so can't help much there.

Exercise, well I am assuming you don't want lots of expensive equipment or gym membership.

Do you have a garden? lots of people swear by gardening and I am told it can give you a good work out. Walking is brilliant. I do tai chi, mostly I follow a DVD, but you can join a class if you like. If there is a good pool near you, try swimming, or a couple of friends cycle.

On the food front, as it is summer there is a nice variety of salad and loads of fruit about. Food can be grilled or baked instead of fried, and oven chips are OK if you only have a few.
 
I would honestly recommend an exercise dvd for a good workout if you aren't very sporty! And also if you are self conscious about doing exercise in front of people or if you lack motivation in actually getting to the gym in the first place.

I do an hour a day of a 'boxercise' (kick boxing moves etc) and a 'legs, bums & tums' dvd. So far it seems to be working :D

Even though you feel really silly doing it in your living room at first, it's worth it hehe.
 
There is a new way of thinking, just to confuse matters, and I don't know much about it as it doesn't concern us but might be worth finding out. If your clinic is not much good then they won't be up in this at the moment. If you are on BB (now called basal/bolus rather than MDI) then they are saying you don't need the long acting at all which will help with the weight thing. I am not suggesting for one minute that you all suddenly stop your long acting after the quick acting but it might be worth finding out about. From where I'm not sure but that is definitely the new way of thinking.
 
Adrienne said:
There is a new way of thinking, just to confuse matters, and I don't know much about it as it doesn't concern us but might be worth finding out. If your clinic is not much good then they won't be up in this at the moment. If you are on BB (now called basal/bolus rather than MDI) then they are saying you don't need the long acting at all which will help with the weight thing. I am not suggesting for one minute that you all suddenly stop your long acting after the quick acting but it might be worth finding out about. From where I'm not sure but that is definitely the new way of thinking.
Click to expand...

It does sort of make sense to me - if you've had enough fast-acting carbs to 'mop up' the circulating insulin, why add in extra long-acting carbs? I think it depends on what sort of hypo it is too. If I'm hit by the sugar sloths (a slow decline) then a couple of jelly babies does the trick. But the glycoraptor ones I think need a 'base' of slow-release carbs as well as extremely fast acting as the BG is clearly more volatile.
 
Adrienne said:
There is a new way of thinking, just to confuse matters, and I don't know much about it as it doesn't concern us but might be worth finding out. If your clinic is not much good then they won't be up in this at the moment. If you are on BB (now called basal/bolus rather than MDI) then they are saying you don't need the long acting at all which will help with the weight thing. I am not suggesting for one minute that you all suddenly stop your long acting after the quick acting but it might be worth finding out about. From where I'm not sure but that is definitely the new way of thinking.
Click to expand...

That's interesting... And would kind of explain the high bouncebacks. But can I just ask... What does MDI stand for?
 
Am I the only one who uses glucose tablets for hypos??! 4 DextroEnergy tablets (which come in multiple flavours but Tropical is by far the nicest!!) sorts out a hypo in 5 to 10 mins).
 
i have them also never had to treat a hypo but if i did i would treat it with them
 
SamInnocent said:
Am I the only one who uses glucose tablets for hypos??! 4 DextroEnergy tablets (which come in multiple flavours but Tropical is by far the nicest!!) sorts out a hypo in 5 to 10 mins).
Click to expand...

hi I use DextroEnergy tabs as well for hypo's , um... and Lemon Lucozade , Glugogel ,Carbogel and anything else I can get my hypo hands on lol 😱😱
 
Im a juice and digestives girl - I always carry glucose tabs for emergencies but they arent my treatment of choice. They tend to make me feel a bit sick.

Plus theres nothign more disgusting than having to scoff glucose tabs at 3 in the morning! YUCK!
 
I use glucotabs usually to treat hypo's, and sometimes to boost my levels slightly if they need it i.e. before driving.
 
I always carry the small cartons of apples juice everywhere which I find really useful. It is also easier and more acceptable for me when say in a meeting or with people etc, to crack open one of those rather than the kitkat scenario. I find them really quick acting in a hypo scenario. Also its less likely to be pilfered by people. I don't know why I didn't think of them years ago but hey ho. They are at least a 'portion' as well so the calories go to good use. Also if I'm not really hungry they're easier to stomach and if generally need to top up a bit. Following up with something else all depends on what time of day/what I'm doing etc.
 
SamInnocent said:
Am I the only one who uses glucose tablets for hypos??! 4 DextroEnergy tablets (which come in multiple flavours but Tropical is by far the nicest!!) sorts out a hypo in 5 to 10 mins).
Click to expand...

They are the only thing I use. I feel like im the only one who doesnt ever drink lucozade!
 
Lainey said:
I always carry the small cartons of apples juice everywhere which I find really useful. It is also easier and more acceptable for me when say in a meeting or with people etc, to crack open one of those rather than the kitkat scenario. I find them really quick acting in a hypo scenario. Also its less likely to be pilfered by people. I don't know why I didn't think of them years ago but hey ho. They are at least a 'portion' as well so the calories go to good use. Also if I'm not really hungry they're easier to stomach and if generally need to top up a bit. Following up with something else all depends on what time of day/what I'm doing etc.
Click to expand...

The dietician at the hosp recommended that I start usin the small cartons of fruit juices as they are the best. I mostly use dextrose tabs and jelly babies but I hate havin to chew my way through the dextrose tabs, they are horrid and just hurt my teeth. 2-4 jelly babies usually covers me.
 
Last edited:
DextroEnergy tabs always make me cough and anyway I've got a sweet tooth so a low is one time I can eat naughty things without feeling guilty! yes I know all the drawbacks of chocolate but it just tastes sooo good!
Actually if I manage to avoid the chocolate I always find a mug of hot milk with 3 sugars does the trick, and it suits my sweet tooth too!
Where did the rumour about dropping basal doses come from? I think I want to find out more!
 
litto-miss-loz said:
The dietician at the hosp recommended that I start usin the small cartons of fruit juices as they are the best. I mostly use dextrose tabs and jelly babies but I hate havin to chew my way through the dextrose tabs, they are horrid and just hurt my teeth. 2-4 jelly babies usually covers me.
Click to expand...

Yeah, my dietician recommended I carry small cartons of juice in my bag - when I showed her the size of my handbag and how full it already was with my injection stuff, blood testing kit and obviously my purse etc. she backed down!! I'd also be worried about crushing the carton and ending up with a bag full of sticky juice - nice! Nah, it's glucose tablets for me all the way - fast acting, albeit chalky, and discreet.
 
I was out the other day and felt hypo, so reached for the dextrose tablets I always carry. I then remembered just how difficult they are to chew! When you feel yourself dropping like that, I think you need to feel that you're getting sugar into you straight away, and I don't feel that with those tablets - probably psychological. I now carry a sachet of 'hypofit' that my DSN gave me several months ago - will probably find that it tastes horrible eventually! If at home I always have jelly babies around, and since my recent fast-dropping hypo, also some lucozade with the cap loosened!🙂
 
I dont have anything like jelly babies because I would eat them all before I had a hypo hehe!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top