Some new things to think about..

[rayray119]

When im hurgery but dont want to inject i stack on things like chese but reading the think like a parcaus book it says you can eat somthing wirh portin without carbs it can raise your blood surger.

 

[helli]

We are all different but I definitely find non carb meals can raise my blood sugars and I need to consider an insulin to protein ratio. Unfortunately, I found the ratio varies depending on the type of protein: salmon requires a different ratio to nuts which have a different ratio to cheese which has a different ratio to eggs which have a different ratio to prawns which have a different ratio to ...
I decided this was too much hard work and I gave up with low carb meals. I now eat "normally" and bolus for carbs even with snacks.

As I say, we are all different. With your Libre you can see if your cheese snacks affect your blood sugars and then decide whether you can continue to use it for non insulin snacks. It is easy to religiously follow what you read and forget to check what your body does.

 

[Leadinglights]

We are all different but I definitely find non carb meals can raise my blood sugars and I need to consider an insulin to protein ratio. Unfortunately, I found the ratio varies depending on the type of protein: salmon requires a different ratio to nuts which have a different ratio to cheese which has a different ratio to eggs which have a different ratio to prawns which have a different ratio to ...
I decided this was too much hard work and I gave up with low carb meals. I now eat "normally" and bolus for carbs even with snacks.

As I say, we are all different. With your Libre you can see if your cheese snacks affect your blood sugars and then decide whether you can continue to use it for non insulin snacks. It is easy to religiously follow what you read and forget to check what your body does.

I think this is why many Type 2 struggle to reduce their blood glucose levels as they follow the standard NHS Eat Well plate or diet sheets from their GP which are still probably far too high in carbs for many to tolerate but without testing as they are often advised not to do they are oblivious to their lack of progress until they have the next HbA1C which lo and behold shows little improvement. This is not recognising everybody is different.

 

[rebrascora]

Protein will cause my levels to rise about 2 hours after a meal, but it needs to be a reasonable amount of protein. A few chunks of cheese or a boiled egg snack or a packet of pork scratchings don't generally have much/any impact.
On the other hand, if I have a 2 egg omelette with cheese and a big side salad and a large dollop of cheese coleslaw, I will need a couple of units of Fiasp for it about 2 hours later. The difference is that the rise from protein is very slow so you can just stick in a correction to bring it down when you see levels starting to drift upwards. For me, Libre has been amazing at enabling me to manage this easily and effectively and because I follow a low carb way of eating most of the time I tend to inject insulin according to my Libre rather than actually do any calculations for protein or even carb count most of the time. It is more a question of responding to my Libre results with a little bit of bolus insulin here and there. For me this takes a lot of the mental strain out of dealing with my diabetes. I certainly don't have ratios for protein, I just inject a couple of units of insulin when my levels get to 8 or 9 with an upward drift. This gives me much more stable BG levels than if I eat carbs which makes me feel better and less anxious. My 90 day "Daily patterns" graph is essentially a straight line down the centre of my range as a result.

 

[Robin]

I’m another who needs to bolus about two hours after a scrambled egg breakfast, or other proteiny meal. A smaller protein snack I can get away without extra insulin, though.
Blimey, @rebrascora , that’s a flatfish! My average always looks more like a whale. (sorry it’s sideways haven’t got time to sort it!)

 

[rebrascora]

@Robin
Interesting to compare "Daily patterns" graphs. I did wonder if people who ate "normally" would have 3 slight peaks for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, but yours doesn't show that. Interesting to see that you dip quite low on a morning presumably before breakfast. Is that because, like me, you wait for bolus insulin to kick in before you eat or is it because "Dawn" has deserted you in recent months?

I have a sneaky feeling that my 90 day straight lines, which are very consistently straight like the one I posted, are down to the total lack of routine in my life, so the randomness over time levels itself out, but I do also think the low carb way of eating helps reduce the variation I get in levels.

 

[Robin]

@Robin
Interesting to compare "Daily patterns" graphs. I did wonder if people who ate "normally" would have 3 slight peaks for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, but yours doesn't show that. Interesting to see that you dip quite low on a morning presumably before breakfast. Is that because, like me, you wait for bolus insulin to kick in before you eat or is it because "Dawn" has deserted you in recent months?

I have a sneaky feeling that my 90 day straight lines, which are very consistently straight like the one I posted, are down to the total lack of routine in my life, so the randomness over time levels itself out, but I do also think the low carb way of eating helps reduce the variation I get in levels.

I don’t get up that early! The lowest point is 4am, then it gradually starts to rise around 6am, I get my basal and 2 unit bolus in about 8am, when I get up after a cup of tea and a whip through the forum etc in bed (no point in being retired and getting out of bed early!) I then have breakfast around 9am when I’ve done some morning chores. If I’m having a carby breakfast I'll stick in the 2 units plus whatever I need for breakfast at 8am, and may leave it til 9.30 before I eat. (if I’m going out early, I have a non carb brekkie, carbs first thing just don’t work!)
Dawn is quite fickle, she’s normally around any time from 4.30 onwards, she disappears at weekends when I’ve had alcohol the previous evenings, and sometimes she just goes on holiday and let’s her deputy, Foot on the floor take over for a couple of weeks.The less stressed I am, the less prone I am to waking early and starting to think, so Dawn arrives later. If I’m really stressed, I tend to wake up at 4am and start fretting, which makes her kick in extra early, but I've built up a repertoire of semi mindless mental distraction activities I can switch to, which work quite well and I can usually go back to sleep.

 

[rayray119]

@Robin
Interesting to compare "Daily patterns" graphs. I did wonder if people who ate "normally" would have 3 slight peaks for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, but yours doesn't show that. Interesting to see that you dip quite low on a morning presumably before breakfast. Is that because, like me, you wait for bolus insulin to kick in before you eat or is it because "Dawn" has deserted you in recent months?

I have a sneaky feeling that my 90 day straight lines, which are very consistently straight like the one I posted, are down to the total lack of routine in my life, so the randomness over time levels itself out, but I do also think the low carb way of eating helps reduce the variation I get in levels.

It keeps being said not to let my type 1 limiy what i eat.

 

[Robin]

It keeps being said not to let my type 1 limiy what i eat.

You should be able to eat what you want to eat. Most of the time for me, it’s a case of getting the insulin to match the food I want to eat. Sometimes, though, when I’ve struggled to get it to match, I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to meet it half way, and perhaps modify what I eat to fit the profile of the insulin. I have only done this after several years of thinking about what's best for me personally. I certainly don’t low carb. I know @rebrascora does, because it suits her lifestyle and suits the way she wants to manage her insulin. I eat a low carb breakfast because I want to, not just because I need to, and I find it fills me up til lunchtime. If I want a pudding, then I’ll go easy on the potatoes for the first course, because I’d rather not try and work out the split-bolusing which it would entail on a day to day basis. However, if I go out, or it’s a special occasion, then I consider it’s worth faffing with the bolusing to eat what I want. I also eat a carby lunch, simply because I have a couple of pieces of fruit with it, and I’ve got the carb counting and bolusing down to a fine art.
This has become incredibly long-winded, and I’m sorry! All I really want to say is, you can eat what you want, but sometimes you’ll decide, after observation, that a compromise is necessary for the sake of your BG levels, whether that compromise is tweaking the insulin more actively, or tweaking what you eat.
And which you do, is entirely your choice, and, you may find your insulin dosing works just fine for you with no need for compromises.

 

[rayray119]

Today the plan was to wait to a the cholate part of my lunch which i got for christnas. But then i parketed when i saw i given myslef 7 units instead of 4 and half and anded the other chocolates to my plate and ate in a panic

 

[rayray119]

You should be able to eat what you want to eat. Most of the time for me, it’s a case of getting the insulin to match the food I want to eat. Sometimes, though, when I’ve struggled to get it to match, I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to meet it half way, and perhaps modify what I eat to fit the profile of the insulin. I have only done this after several years of thinking about what's best for me personally. I certainly don’t low carb. I know @rebrascora does, because it suits her lifestyle and suits the way she wants to manage her insulin. I eat a low carb breakfast because I want to, not just because I need to, and I find it fills me up til lunchtime. If I want a pudding, then I’ll go easy on the potatoes for the first course, because I’d rather not try and work out the split-bolusing which it would entail on a day to day basis. However, if I go out, or it’s a special occasion, then I consider it’s worth faffing with the bolusing to eat what I want. I also eat a carby lunch, simply because I have a couple of pieces of fruit with it, and I’ve got the carb counting and bolusing down to a fine art.
This has become incredibly long-winded, and I’m sorry! All I really want to say is, you can eat what you want, but sometimes you’ll decide, after observation, that a compromise is necessary for the sake of your BG levels, whether that compromise is tweaking the insulin more actively, or tweaking what you eat.
And which you do, is entirely your choice, and, you may find your insulin dosing works just fine for you with no need for compromises.

I wasnt cirtising anyone sorry if sounded like that.

 

[Robin]

Today the plan was to wait to a the cholate part of my lunch which i got for christnas. But then i parketed when i saw i given myslef 7 units instead of 4 and half and anded the other chocolates to my plate and ate in a panic

Aw, I hope you managed not to panic so much that you spoiled the enjoyment of the chocolate!
Edit. I didn’t see any criticism there, just confirmation that dealing with diabetes is sometimes like wrestling an octopus!

 

[rayray119]

Aw, I hope you managed not to panic so much that you spoiled the enjoyment of the chocolate!
Edit. I didn’t see any criticism there, just confirmation that dealing with diabetes is sometimes like wrestling an octopus!

Well i dont know if the exata chocolate actultty ended up being too much. Im spikeung now but thats probely because i eat them quickly in a panic trust me to do it on a day im going out for a pie and chips\some other potato in the evening so want my sugers to be a good range before hand. As it will be a hard meal to do. Think i could be bringing in the new year by injeccting tonight.

 

[Lily123]

Well i dont know if the exata chocolate actultty ended up being too much. Im spikeung now but thats probely because i eat them quickly in a panic trust me to do it on a day im going out for a pie and chips\some other potato in the evening so want my sugers to be a good range before hand. As it will be a hard meal to do. Think i could be bringing in the new year by injeccting tonight.

Your last reading of 10.4 isn’t too far out of range

 

[rayray119]

Your last reading of 10.4 isn’t too far out of range

Yeah it might have all worked out as long as the line steadys

 

[Lily123]

Yeah it might have all worked out as long as the line steadys

I know what I’m about to say is quite blunt but I don’t mean to be rude. You’re aiming for perfection too much. Your numbers are really good compared to mine

 

[rebrascora]

@Robin Wrestling an octopus us such a good analogy!!

@royray119 I certainly didn't think you were being critical nor did I intend my comment to suggest that following a low carb way of eating was better or suitable for everyone. It works for me because it helps me control my disordered/comfort eating/cravings and sugar addiction and enables me to manage my diabetes with less effort but that is partly because I was misdiagnosed as Type 2, so learned how to eat low carb in those early months. I have also spent a lifetime eating rather too many carbs so in some respects I am quite happy to give them a rest for what is left of my life. I have found new foods to enjoy instead.

 

[rayray119]

I did seem to heading down fast but it did give me an excuse to eat a couple of wine gums so cant really complain about that.🙂

 

[nonethewiser]

So wish cheese didn't have impact on bg as love the stuff, could happily munch away on it on night time.

Truth is it does as does protein like chicken hams, eat them alone on evening would be correcting before bed & in early hours, even wake up higher than I'd want.

So tend to eat cheese & such with main meals for that reason, looking back to when I tried low carb it meant 2x amount of injections as normal & diabetes was constantly on my mind, by way of having to monitor bg levels & take plenty of corrections.

It is what is, just own personal experience but find all food raises bg, another ignoring aspect of condition.