No Cake!

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bev

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My son wanted to put a post on, so here goes!

I went out today and we went to a cafe and my dad and sister had a cake and started to feel a bit sad because if i wasn't diabetic i would of had one too so i am just asking does everybody feel like this or is it just beacause i am newly diagnosed?:(

By Alex age 10
 
Hi Alex

I think in our hearts, most of us feel a bit like this. Probably because we are a bit older and understand that it can harm us, we try not to think about it and it's so much easier when you are a bit older.
Occasionally we have a treat and it tastes so good other people don't understand this.

We are special and get so much fun when we let ourselves have a treat.

You take care Alex. There are so many good things to do and have fun with.
 
Hi Bev and Alex

I feel the same too, im 25 and was diagnosed in dec and find lots of things not fair!! I keep telling myself it will all get easier, at minute im being extremely careful cos my levels are not yet stabilised but i know they will get there and my dietician is workin closely with me so i can have treats!

Keep ur chin up.
 
hi bev and hi to your son,new to diabetis my self.went shopping with my partner&mum in law&sis in law today.went for a coffee and the 3 of them had cake,so i went to boots and got some diabetic swiss choc,and sat there and ate that and it was lovely,so next time give it a go,or thorntons.
 
bev said:
My son wanted to put a post on, so here goes!

I went out today and we went to a cafe and my dad and sister had a cake and started to feel a bit sad because if i wasn't diabetic i would of had one too so i am just asking does everybody feel like this or is it just beacause i am newly diagnosed?:(

By Alex age 10
Click to expand...

Hello Alex,
You can eat cakes. I am assuming you do basal/bolus? Injecting before meals.
If this is the case then just count the carbs and inject to cover the carbs in the cake.
There is nothing that you can not eat as long as it is in moderation and you take insulin to cover it.

Sue
 
Type1_Sue said:
Hello Alex,
You can eat cakes. I am assuming you do basal/bolus? Injecting before meals.
If this is the case then just count the carbs and inject to cover the carbs in the cake.
There is nothing that you can not eat as long as it is in moderation and you take insulin to cover it.

Sue
Click to expand...
Hi Sue,
Alex is in bed now but yes he is on novarapid and levemeer so i think (?) this is basal/bolus? I do allow him treats, but the problem was that the cakes were all home-made and i didnt have a clue how to work out the carbs! By the way, is there an 'amount' of treats he is allowed to have in say a week? After 7 weeks of being diagnosed, this is the 1st time he has felt 'sad' about what he can/cannot eat. Bev
 
bev said:
Hi Sue,
Alex is in bed now but yes he is on novarapid and levemeer so i think (?) this is basal/bolus? I do allow him treats, but the problem was that the cakes were all home-made and i didnt have a clue how to work out the carbs! By the way, is there an 'amount' of treats he is allowed to have in say a week? After 7 weeks of being diagnosed, this is the 1st time he has felt 'sad' about what he can/cannot eat. Bev
Click to expand...

As I said above Bev, young Alex can eat what he likes as long as covered by insulin. It is obviousy better to have a routine but eating cakes which most children like doing is not out of bounds this is the beuty of the quicker acting insulin's. The trade off is that he needs to check his blood sugar and take into account insulin on board. IE he had novo 2 hrs before for covering a meal. So he would have another 2 - 2 1/2 hrs of insulin still circulating (Novo lasts 4 + hrs) and also take into account his blood sugar.
So you can guestimate how many carbs in the cake/bun look in collin's gem carb counter and see how many carbs in a shop bought cake. You wont be far out.
It might be worth making a list of fav things with carb values and carry it with you this way you have a very quick estimate reference on you.
Things with butter icing best to avoid. Cake with real cream (sponge/eclair)would be a lot kinder on the blood sugars.

Ps Alex next time you going eating cakes would you eat one for me too? :D

Sue
 
Hi Alex!

I think it was mean of your dad and sister to sit and eat cake in front of you! The good news is that you can eat cakes occasionally! When I was first diagnosed I thought that I would be saying 'goodbye' to many of the things that I liked to eat. I even gave away the jars of jam and honey that I had in my cupboard to my neighbours!

After learning more about diabetes and how insulin works, I discovered that it was fine to have these things if I wanted them, as long as I didn't have them too much - like anyone else, I don't want to put on too much weight or lose my teeth! Some people just eat chips and chocolate all the time - you probably know people like that - but I think we are much cleverer than them. We have to think about what we eat and know how it will affect us, so we end up much healthier than people who just stuff their faces with any old thing:D

As your mum says, the tricky thing when you are out is that you don't know how much carbohydrate is in a shop cake - you don't want to have too much insulin and then have a hypo - so you might have to have something you do know about, like a chocolate bar that has the numbers on the packet. As time goes on you will learn more of how to estimate carbs so things won''t always be this way.

How about trying some of the recipes on the Diabetes UK website? I'd recommend the chocolate courgette cake - sounds weird, but yummy!

http://www.diabetes.org.uk/Guide-to-diabetes/Food_and_recipes/Recipes/Chocolate_courgette_cake/?nt=1

Best wishes,

Northerner
 
Hi Alex,

I know where you're coming from as do most people here. I've been diabetic since I was five, I'm now eighteen. It's alright to eat cake occaisionally, you just need to make sure that it is covered by your insulin. However, you can't eat it as often as other people. I'm sorry to say that but this is how it is. It won't do you any favours to eat alo of cake. For me I know that if I don't eat it I'll be better for it in the long term.
But do treat yourself every so often. Rules are there to be broken from time to time...

Tom H
 
thanks everybody that has realy cheared me up and i think i will try the chocolate for diabetics bye:D
 
bev said:
thanks everybody that has realy cheared me up and i think i will try the chocolate for diabetics bye:D
Click to expand...

Hi Bev,

If you mean the diabetic chocolate and sweets that they seel in places like Boots, don't bother. They're expensive and still contain carbs so there's no advantage to them. They also contain polyols that can upset the tummy. Regular chocolate is fine and easy to carb-count🙂
 
Hi Alex and Bev, I know just what Alex means - it's NOT fair when you want cake and can only have it sometimes. Last week the family had choc croissants for breakfast and so I had one, and then another - and I felt very funny for some of the day until my levels got back to normal again. So next time I shall know better (perhaps).

Good luck to you both - keep on being well, Alex, and you can have treats when you and mum agree to it.

Love
 
Hi Alex and Bev,

I feel sad too when I can't eat chocolate and everyone else is eating it. The good news is treats are allowed sometimes. If it is any consolation whenever I tried to loose weight when I was growing up my dad used to tease me with cakes and sweets. I got very angry with him because he did not understand how I was feeling

Another way of having a treat is to have a new CD or DVD or game. It will last longer than a cake (you'll also be able to enjoy it more than once too) and will be something your sister and dad wont have.
 
Type1_Sue said:
As I said above Bev, young Alex can eat what he likes as long as covered by insulin. It is obviousy better to have a routine but eating cakes which most children like doing is not out of bounds this is the beuty of the quicker acting insulin's. The trade off is that he needs to check his blood sugar and take into account insulin on board. IE he had novo 2 hrs before for covering a meal. So he would have another 2 - 2 1/2 hrs of insulin still circulating (Novo lasts 4 + hrs) and also take into account his blood sugar.
So you can guestimate how many carbs in the cake/bun look in collin's gem carb counter and see how many carbs in a shop bought cake. You wont be far out.
It might be worth making a list of fav things with carb values and carry it with you this way you have a very quick estimate reference on you.
Things with butter icing best to avoid. Cake with real cream (sponge/eclair)would be a lot kinder on the blood sugars.

Ps Alex next time you going eating cakes would you eat one for me too? :D

Sue
Click to expand...

Sue this is sound advice, I can totally understand why the little chap felt sad, this will only lead to making him feel different and should be avoided. Treats are ok in moderation, as should be with the rest of the population! I had a meal out last night and really enjoyed my profiteroles!! dont have them often, obviously. But I think im quite lucky as when I tell my partner no Im not having a biccy or cake etc at certain times, he wont either. He says if you dont need it then I dont either!. Which I think is lovely.
 
Hi Bev and Alex

I'm newly diagnosed as well and it's been a learning curve for me and sometimes hard to understand and i'm 42 so poor Alex must be having such a hard time of it. When I had my first visit to the Diabetic Nurse she advised me not to eat Diabetic food at all and just to eat healthly and sensisble as possible. She said that I could eat chocolate as long as it was only a piece at a time say one piece a day- she said that if I couldnt do this and had to eat it all then it wouldn't be so good to eat it at all. Its really hard when the rest of the family can eat normally and poor Alex cant. Try going around a supermarket with the family and there putting things into the trolley that you can eat. It will get better for him, the poor thing must be so confused but we're all there for him.

Take Care.
 
Hi Bev and Alex 🙂

i used to always crave sweet things, but cake was the worst for me. i understand how you feel alex and it is so hard to not just try a little bit, but if you dont eat it often and treat yourself ever now and then it will taste soooooo much better. i dont think a lot of people understand the sacrifices we have to go through as a diabetic and that is part of the problems we suffer. if you can make those close to you understand it is hard but with there support and help you can do anything it will get a little easier for you all.
 
Carb counting and dafne courses almost let you live a near normal life. and for people who cant control diabetes well i believe,:confused:
 
I just have to say that 8 weeks in, we are now allowing our newly-diagnosed son some treats, though not outside meals at the moment. We find it best for the moment to have cake or ice cream or some such with the meal, so we can calculate the carb with the main meal and he won't have to inject again. We haven't yet taken on injecting again for a treat, which seems just a little too much at this stage!

His doses are capped at the minute, and sometimes (like yesterday, he had a scoop of ice cream at the end of a meal out), the insulin just doesn't cover it. However: this is not something we do at all all the time (none of us do), and we just can't bear not to try to work it all out together.

Alex, it is incredibly tough. And my son's favourite treats -- maybe like yours -- are sweet carbs like doughnuts and cake. I have to confess that in 8 weeks he hasn't had any of these outside of meals. But we are aiming for a pump for him as soon as possible, and I think that things will be easier to manage as a result. He's a growing boy, often hungry, and generally eats very healthily, so I just can't see the harm in any of it as long as it's appropriately managed.

I think it'll get easier. You're brave for everything you do, and for coming online here. Well done.
 
Ice Cream

Patricia and Bev (and all),
My local Tesco's stocks a sugar free vanilla ice cream called Frank's. It's in with the normal ice creams. I honestly can't tell the difference.
I agree about avoiding the diabetic chocolates as they have a definite laxative effect on me.
 
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