thanks wallycorker

Status
Not open for further replies.
B

bev

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Parent
Hi Wallycorker,
Alex has just eaten the cauli-mash shepherds pie - and he LOVES it! I did put 1 teaspoon of tomato ketchup in to make it a little more palatable for him - and he said he would have it every night! Thanks again for posting about this.

Unfortunately he was 10mmols before eating as he is on 220% insulin today due to having a cold - so I dont think the results after eating will be anything to go by - but at least we know he likes it and its another option to have if we want to test basals or want a low carb meal for him.🙂Bev
 
bev said:
Hi Wallycorker,
Alex has just eaten the cauli-mash shepherds pie - and he LOVES it! I did put 1 teaspoon of tomato ketchup in to make it a little more palatable for him - and he said he would have it every night! Thanks again for posting about this.

Unfortunately he was 10mmols before eating as he is on 220% insulin today due to having a cold - so I dont think the results after eating will be anything to go by - but at least we know he likes it and its another option to have if we want to test basals or want a low carb meal for him.🙂Bev
Click to expand...
Great news Bev - I'm glad about that!

Like I said yesterday, cauli-mash was totally fine for me and if my wife hadn't told me then I wouldn't have known that it wasn't potatoes? However, I must say that I've never been very discerning as to exactly what I'm eating. It drives my wife mad!

I told Mary too about Alex liking it and that pleased her also.

I have read Dr Bernstein's book about controlling diabetes by eating a low-carbohydrate diet. That book seemed to be slanted mainly at Type 1 diabetes - but does cover Type 2 as well. However, I really have no significant understanding of a Type 1's situation - I find it quite bewildering. Do acceptable low-carbohydrate food choices help you and Alex in any significant way? What does a low-carbohydrate food choice offer you - simplifying things is it the need for less insulin?

Through these diabetes forums, I know a long-standing Type 1 of many years experience who posts elsewhere - he maintains his HbA1c in the 4s by eating a low-carbohydrate diet. He once told me that, after he had got his blood glucose levels controlled to such a degree, he now has less trouble with hypos than when they ran at a higher level. Does Alex have many hypos - could such an approach help him too?

I hope that the suggestion might just help you both with control and make things a little bit easier for you in the future.

Best wishes to both of you - John
 
wallycorker said:
Great news Bev - I'm glad about that!

Like I said yesterday, cauli-mash was totally fine for me and if my wife hadn't told me then I wouldn't have known that it wasn't potatoes? However, I must say that I've never been very discerning as to exactly what I'm eating. It drives my wife mad!

I told Mary too about Alex liking it and that pleased her also.

I have read Dr Bernstein's book about controlling diabetes by eating a low-carbohydrate diet. That book seemed to be slanted mainly at Type 1 diabetes - but does cover Type 2 as well. However, I really have no significant understanding of a Type 1's situation - I find it quite bewildering. Do acceptable low-carbohydrate food choices help you and Alex in any significant way? What does a low-carbohydrate food choice offer you - simplifying things is it the need for less insulin?

Through these diabetes forums, I know a long-standing Type 1 of many years experience who posts elsewhere - he maintains his HbA1c in the 4s by eating a low-carbohydrate diet. He once told me that, after he had got his blood glucose levels controlled to such a degree, he now has less trouble with hypos than when they ran at a higher level. Does Alex have many hypos - could such an approach help him too?

I hope that the suggestion might just help you both with control and make things a little bit easier for you in the future.

Best wishes to both of you - John
Click to expand...

Hi John,
Just to let you know that his big sister (18) has just eaten the same meal and also loves it - and she normally doesnt bother with veg!😱🙂

I do think there is a place for low or no carb, but the 'difficulty' with using this approach for a child seems to be that there are question marks about growth etc..I asked our dietician last year about using low carb meals and she was not keen at all because she explained that muscle and growth hormones work off carbs.

The 'positive' thing about having a low carb meal mean that you are almost guaranteed that you wont suffer a spike so therefore less testing is needed and levels can remain fairly stable for the 4 or 5 hours after eating. So, yes, there are benefits to eating the odd low carb meal as i feel it gives the body a chance to 'relax' and not suffer from any increase in levels. Selfishly it also means that us parents get a rest!

The reason I wanted to do the low carb meal tonight was that Alex has had high levels due to his cold - he went up to 32 the other day and i am now suspecting that this was as a result of his cold, so it means that we double his background insulin to help bring levels down - but he was on 200% more insulin and still his level was 14! So i increased it to 220% and this has helped a bit - but the problem with doing this is that at any given time the infection can just stop - and 'bingo' its hypo time - without warning! He had a bath before (usually showers) because baths normally cause him to go hypo - so it did help and brought him down from 14 to 10.

I am not sure if i have managed to answer all your questions because type 1 is just so complicated at times!

Just one thing that puzzles me slightly - your friend with the brilliant hba1c - is that due to having quite low hypos or are his levels always in the 4's and 5's? that really is a great hba1c - but i think it is almost impossible for a child to get these sorts of numbers - although i hope he does one day!🙂Bev
 
Hi again Bev,

Glad the 18-year-old sister likes it too! That must be an help to you when they can both eat the same meals without any concerns.

Yes - I think that explains things to me fairly well. I'm quite keen to learn more about how parents deal with these sort of situations because I've just taken over chairmanship of the local Diabetes UK Family Support Group. At present, we don't have any parents coming along but I realise that will not last forever.

As regards the person with "the brilliant hba1c", as I understand things he quite simply maintains his levels usually in the 4's and 5's. I agree that would seem to me to be almost impossible for a child to get these sorts of numbers. I too hope that Alex does manage that level of control one day.

By the way, as a parent, don't ever feel guilty or selfish for looking forward to taking a rest occasionally. It's important that you do get a rest from time to time.

Best wishes - John
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top