Maybe a stupid question....but snacks...

[lauraw1983]

This is kind of more aimed at Type 1's, or Type 2's on insulin I guess but was thinking about this today...

If you are on insulin, obviously before your 3 main meals you inject then at night, yes?

So say you are out for the day and you need a little snack, or stop for a coffee and have a small treat or something with it, a cake or whatever...or are at friends and want similar....

Do you guys just say no to these things and that's that, or do you have to check levels before you eat it and inject for that food accordingly too? Or can you "get away with it" because you will still have insulin acting?

Also, why are Type 2's told carbs are still fine, don't low carb, but basically that is the food that Type 1's need to take insulin for is the carbs in a meal? Should Type 2's not try to 'mimic' this more closely to keep from getting spikes after meals?? Or indeed between meals, as in the above scenario?

So much to get the head around with this blasted disease, it confuses me more each day!

 

[Robster65]

Hi Laura. Good question. 🙂

Many type 2s (most?) still have a working pancreas producing insulin, so they can still eat carbs but have to learn which foods and how much they can 'get away with'. If they're on meds of any kind, these will assist them in processing those carbs.

Anyone without their own insulin, T1s or T2s with duff pancreases, have to cover the carb snacks with extra insulin or make sure they exercise enough to include it as a correction.

The difficulty comes with working out how much to insulin to inject when you may already have insulin on board and possibly carbs still being processed. Experience will tell you wether a slice of cake at 3pm after a brisk walk is ok or not. It's very individual.🙂

Rob

 

[novorapidboi26]

I would inject, and sometimes test, although the reading is useless...............

if its within an hour of your last main injection, then a dose at the correct ratio would do, after though, on board insulin may need to be considered.......

if its a small snack though I wouldn't worry too much but that's just me.........🙂

 

[lauraw1983]

So do those of you who use insulin generally have snacks, or just stick to 3 main main meals??

I'm just thinking of 'real life' scenarios - normally we wander round a Xmas market at this time of year and would eat at possibly random times, or nibble samples of things...

I meet friends with kids for a coffee (well tea for me) and sometimes would have a cake or whatever with it...

Or popping into friends, they may offer something with a cuppa too.

Or at my desk at work, I may have a snack in the afternoon (usually fruit)...

I just wondered what most of you do in these scenarios - just say no or need to inject for it?

I know I'm not on insulin (yet) but it's been going through my mind....

 

[Robster65]

Personally I don't snack (on carbs) unless I know it won't send me high due to it being very low carb or I'm doing enough exercise to burn it off.

If I was out and fancied a coffee and slice of cake I would test and then decide what to do from experience. Recently, this happened while we were out walking and, as I'd had a hypo minutes earlier, I decided to go for it and have a slice. As it turned out the slice was more of a wedge, so I was a bit high before tea. But it's never a precise science.

Some people are more active than others and can fit in snacks. Some are very insulin resistant and can't risk it.

Rob

 

[Northerner]

Personally I don't snack and inject. I used to be a snacker pre-diagnosis, but got myself out of the habit because I don't want to have to inject a couple of units just to have a biscuit or two - some people do though, and it's a lot easier if you have a pump or a fancy meter that calculates 'insulin on board' from when you last injected. 🙂

 

[Vicsetter]

So do those of you who use insulin generally have snacks, or just stick to 3 main main meals??

I'm just thinking of 'real life' scenarios - normally we wander round a Xmas market at this time of year and would eat at possibly random times, or nibble samples of things...

I meet friends with kids for a coffee (well tea for me) and sometimes would have a cake or whatever with it...

Or popping into friends, they may offer something with a cuppa too.

Or at my desk at work, I may have a snack in the afternoon (usually fruit)...

I just wondered what most of you do in these scenarios - just say no or need to inject for it?

I know I'm not on insulin (yet) but it's been going through my mind....

As usual we are all different and while I believe most T1s will be on rapid insulin prior to meals, this is not the case for T2s. I think the majority of T2s that migrate from D&E to Pills to insulin will be put on a basal long term insulin like Levemir. This will be injected in the morning or evening or both. Some T2s will add rapid insulin to this.

If you are not on rapid insulin then you have to show restraint at the nibbles, so cup of tea fine, piece of cake NO. I like to think of Basal insulin as similar to a phone battery, start the day with 100% charge, each time you use the phone (eat some carbs) you reduce the charge. When the charge gets to 0 then you blood sugars will start climbing and staying high. Rapid insulin will replenish the charge and enable you to eat the extra carbs. However you should be aware that insulin will encourage your body to put on weight so you need to be careful not to eat too much. If you are on diet and exercise control then the same principal will apply, you only have so much 'charge' (insulin) produced by your body; once this is gone your blood sugar levels will increase.

If you know you are going to be tempted by snacks, cake etc then you can reduce your carb intake beforehand, another reason to test your BG levels, when you get to say a reading of 5 then you know you can have a small piece of cake.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I have found snacks tricky, but not impossible. Consequently I will occasionally have a snack between meals, count the carbs and inject for it. The tricky thing is that the dose will overlap with your previous/following meal (sjnce duration is prob 4-5 hours).

So I will snack from time to time, buti know that for me it's high risk and I expect a little BG chaos (in either direction) to follow

Other than that, a handful of nuts has to do!

 

[trophywench]

Well the general rule is not to worry about test/jab too much if the snack is under 10g of carbs. But frankly - how many snacks are? - well not the sort I'd fancy eating anyway! A couple of biscuits is anything from 16g upwards. Eg 2 Digestives is 18.6g. 2 shortbread fingers is 21g. One mince pie is 40g - I definitely MUST have a jab for any of that, as 10g carb increases my BG by 3.0.

UNless I'm going to take vigorous or prolonged exercise.

I don't usually have snacks unless it's something special - ie a quick coffee whilst shopping, no. Meeting friends for a leisurely coffee and a 'catch up' - yes.

 

[novorapidboi26]

at the weekends I do snack, maybe that's were I am going wrong.............lol................

in the crimbo context though, I would like to feel relaxed at this time of year, but don't make your self sick.............even though on insulin, as a type 2, you might find it difficult to make adjustments.............

 

[schmeezle]

Hi Laura,
I snack often when cgm is working correctly, which is most of the time. When it isn't (like earlier today), all bets are off as I'm out of my comfort zone.

The type of snack varies across the board from apple to potato chips to chocolate....with peanut butter topping the list. In between meal carb count probably falls in the 15-25g range. There's no easy answer regarding when I bolus, when I start to eat or how long it takes to finish - all important factors. If the snack is sweet (b-day cake at work), sometimes I'll grab a sliver - often it stares at me for a few hrs until my body's ready. Timing is always a factor and depends on BG levels going in and "speed"/GI of the snack. I'd say it's common for me to pre-bolus for 20'ish carbs, wait at least 15 minutes, then munch. It's not unheard-of to wait more than 30 minutes or more -or- to not even bolus if food is lower carb and BG is skimming along bottom of good range.

I should add, when it's been a few hrs since last meal, I start to feel off on an empty stomach - no matter the bg (high/low/perfect). This is why I like to snack.

Clear as mud?

 

[HelenM]

I mostly don't snack at home and in France there aren't any snacks in the cafes and bars where I have coffee so no temptation.
When I'm in the UK, I admit to deliberately not turning my pump down enough when I walk to the shops, then I can have a guilt free coffee and share a muffin or whatever with my OH before I walk home again
(sometimes I miscalculate though and have to have a dextrose half way there and that really annoys me)

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I mostly don't snack at home and in France there aren't any snacks in the cafes and bars where I have coffee so no temptation.
When I'm in the UK, I admit to deliberately not turning my pump down enough when I walk to the shops, then I can have a guilt free coffee and share a muffin or whatever with my OH before I walk home again
(sometimes I miscalculate though and have to have a dextrose half way there and that really annoys me)

Ha! Glad to know I'm not the only one who hasn't reduced bolus (on MDI) or TBRd (pump) in preparation for a shopping trip/wander about in order to 'earn' a treat! And I SO know the frustration of getting the timing wrong and wasting it on fruit pastilles 🙄

 

[Clarkey]

I've always been put off snacking on something that contains carbs. I mean 4 injections a day should be enough for anyone without adding to it for a snack. However, a few months ago I decided to start snacking on nuts, mainly at work. I've had nuts before but never really as a snack and these seemed perfect because I don't need to take an injection for this.

However, I soon discovered after a few weeks that I have an allergic reaction to nuts, and not just peanuts, in fact I wasn't snacking on peanuts but was more on brazil nuts, walnuts and almonds. I'd never really reacted to nuts before until I started eating a larger quantity of them. So now I can't even snack on them. Now I wish I could just live on air alone.

 

[lauraw1983]

thank you all......certainly "food" for thought here! 🙄

 

[D_G]

I can get away with 10-15g of snack between meals with no major blood sugar rises, so i have like a piece of fruit (not bananas tho) or a small pack of crisps, maybe a couple squares of chocolate or a dark choc kitkat!

I think its good to snack between meals on something healthy-ish as it keeps your metabolism going and if you have an active job like me, you may even need a snack to get you through to lunch!

If i fancy a snack when my sugars are a bit higher then i would like them to be i go for nuts, peppers, cucumber and cheese! (not all at once 🙂 ) !

But we are all different so the only thing you can do is test and see what effects you and what doesnt!

 

[FM001]

Only time I'll snack between meals is when I'm dropping low or being more physical than previously planned. When I was on animal insulin I hated having to snack between meals when not hungry and often felt really bloated as a result, MDI takes away the need to snack so most days I go 5 -6 hours between meals and feel better for it.