Insulin & Snacks!

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JoJoC

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Type 2
Hi, I've just been diagnosed as diabetic (we think type 2 but waiting for blood test results on type 1) I've had gestational diabetes in the past and was on insulin and metformin, injecting huge amounts just to get through the day. I was on gliclazide and metformin once I was diagnosed and radically changed my diet for the first 2 weeks with not much success so have been put straight onto Novorapid before meals and Levemir before bed. No problems with dosing for food as I had to learn how to do that in pregnancy, but I wondered on the rare occasion that I want some cake or a packet of crisps between meals should I inject some extra insulin to cover this? When I was pregnant I knew it was only 9 months with no snacking so I just put up with it each time, but the thought of no cake for the rest of my life what does everyone else do? Have a couple of extra units or just put up with the spike as it's only on occasion?
Wpuld be great to hear from those with more experience
 
Welcome to the forum @JoJoC

That's a question for your clinic really... but from my perspective I am happy to add extra insulin for carby snacks between meals.

There are some things to bear in mind though...

Stacking insulin on top of a dose which is already active can be a little unpredictable. Some people have more challenges with stacked insulin than others... but it's best to be cautious. Sometimes the peaks overlap and seem to add up to more than the sum of their parts, and timing properly for the food becomes trickier.

Some people add the additional insulin to the meal dose before - but you do have to be careful with not leaving your snack too long... and you must remember to have those extra carbs once you've dosed for them 'up front'. I've never liked this approach myself, but it works for some people.

Some people find they can get away with a snack of less than 10g of carbs, or that the carbs in a snack can be offset with additional activity (I find this particularly on holiday where it's warmer, and we are generally more active - an occasional ice cream seems to not require insulin to cover it as it is 'soaked up' in other things).

As is often the case with diabetes it will end up being an individual thing that you will learn over time.

More often than not I aim for snacks like a handful of peanuts that don't need insulin... but if good cake is on the cards (what a US blogger used to call something that was 'bolusworthy') I'd dose for it. 🙂
 
@everydayupsanddowns thanks so much for your perspective. I feel like I'm on the phone to the clinic all the time at the moment reporting levels and dosage so asking about having a bit of cake seems a bit naughty lol for the most part I know I'm capable of passing up on the bad snacks, but I also know if I don't let myself have a bit now and then I'll just end up binge eating all the bad stuff. I'll bring it up with the clinic the next time I'm in there for sure, but if I do get desperate before then I'll try and see how I get on with and extra unit or two. It's so early in my journey that everything is still a bit trial and error anyway. I have been given the freestyle sensor though which is absolutely amazing, I'm a numbers person so I love how well it records and maps everything for you.
 
Some snacks (eg cheese, nuts, suar free jelly) are so low carbs you don't need insulin.
You can also look at low carb snacks/keto snacks. Generally i find snacks based on almond flour has little effect on blood sigars
Try low carb no bake chocolate shortbread...100g desicated coconut and 100g almond flour, spoonful sugar free peanut butter, blend until starts sticking together, press into baking tin top with 100g 80% or 90% cocoa or even 100% chocolate melted with a spoonful butter/coconut oil (add sweetners if you like to chocolate)
 
@Tdm thanks for the advice, that no bake chocolate shortbread sounds amazing, will have to give that a go 🙂
 
For snacks with carbs in we tend to bolus but not do a correction and we may do the same for the following meal depending on what the BG is doing. This is to avoid problems with stacking insulin. There are lots of snacks like a packet of wotsits or some snack bars that are around 10g of carbs that you might not need to bolus for. And obviously things like nuts, cheese, meat you don’t need to bolus for. Do your carb count, assess where your BG is at and how much insulin you have onboard from a previous meal and make the decision from there.
 
Thanks @Thebearcametoo lots of things to take into consideration, I wouldn't have ever thought that wotsits would be an agreeable snack if I wanted crisps so thanks for the advice 🙂 for the most part I'm pretty good at saying no to the bad stuff, but when I want something really bad I know I'll end up going for it! Like @everydayupsanddowns said when it's *good cake* XD
 
@JoJoC I advise you to try the snacks mentioned and see what they do to your blood sugars.
In my experience, if I ea something without carbs, my body will still break these down into sugars. So, unfortunately, I would have to inject for the no bake shortbread.
But, as is often said, we are all different so try it and see what happens for you.
Please don't start to see food that requires insulin as "bad stuff". Remember to look after your mental health as well as your blood sugars.

Oh, and if you like Wotsits as a snack, don't forget Skips!
 
Thanks @helli I suspect its going to be trial and error for a while, but the thought of hypos is really scary, I had a couple of mild ones when I was pregnant and they weren't pleasant. That's enough for the most part to keep me on the straight and narrow lol I'm loving the crisps suggestions though, I'm definitely more of a savoury snacker so the recommendations are great
 
helli said:
@JoJoC I advise you to try the snacks mentioned and see what they do to your blood sugars.
In my experience, if I ea something without carbs, my body will still break these down into sugars. So, unfortunately, I would have to inject for the no bake shortbread.
But, as is often said, we are all different so try it and see what happens for you.
Please don't start to see food that requires insulin as "bad stuff". Remember to look after your mental health as well as your blood sugars.

Oh, and if you like Wotsits as a snack, don't forget Skips!
Click to expand...
Yez, its weird, if i have a low carb dinner, say a mushroom omelette with rocket, and no insulin, perhaps 3 or 4 carbs, as you say i will get a slow increase in blood sugar over the afternoon. Yet this doesn't seem to happen with keto/almond flour based snacks. Dunno why, though almond flour is supposed to have a 0 gi.
 
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