Type 1 on mdi and snacking during the evening

[mum2westiesGill]

We usually have our tea at the latest around 8pm then bedtime or for me my bedtime test is usually around 11pm onwards this is when I find out my BGL and if I need a bedtime snack but somewhere in-between tea and supper I have the urge for snacking - I keep snacking on cheese but would love to have a bag of crisps maybe around 13g of carbs - any advice on this would be helpful.

 

[eggyg]

If you know you’re going to definitely snack it may be worth including it in your tea time bolus. The problem with that is you may not be hungry and you chance going hypo. I see you don’t have a full 4/5 hours between eating and bed. That means you still have insulin floating about and depending on what you ate it may not have hit your BGs fully. EG pizza, fish and chips, fatty foods. So you will think your BGs are low and have a snack when in effect in another hour they could just go sky high. Is it possible to eat any earlier.? I try not to eat later than 6.30, I prefer 6 as I like to be in bed before 11 and I know then for certain that my insulin is gone and my food will have done it’s thing usually.
Is it hunger or habit? Is it the salt or crunch you crave? What about a handful of nuts, not too many though, the carbs add up.

 

[Leadinglights]

If you are not eating until 8pm but still feeling you need to snack during the evening are you actually having enough to eat for your meal. As @eggyg says is it because you are actually hungry or bored. Perhaps having a zero carb drink would help.

 

[Inka]

I usually have a hot drink to sip during the evening if I read or watch TV, or even a glass of wine. I’ve found that lots of my desire for snacks then is simply that I fancy them or am bored or in the habit of eating when watching TV. Things like crisps are kind of addictive in their salty fattiness so I try not to have them there ‘calling’ to me from the cupboard. They’re also difficult to stop eating.

If you’re eating at 8pm and getting hungry so soon after, maybe you need more food at your meal, or perhaps need to eat earlier so you stop your body sending out the “I’m starving” signals.

If I do have a carby snack that needs a bolus, I try to keep it below 20g in the evening and more than 2hrs away from bedtime. I mainly eat non-carby snacks though then if I do need to eat. Babybels, nuts, pickles, olives, raw carrots, etc.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

It’s a tricky one. I try not too as it always seems to add more complexity and uncertainty. So I do it, but not often - and sometimes end up being frustrated and disappointed at the results.

Slightly over-bolusing for my eve meal and then ‘topping up later’ doesn’t often work for me either, because by the time I see my sensor trace dropping I need to reach for Lucozade rather than something snacky and slower acting.

I tend to grab a handful of peanuts instead 🙂

 

[Lucyr]

I’d also look at what you’re eating for the evening meal, is it balanced enough with veg and protein to help fill you up as well as carbs?

 

[Leadinglights]

I don't know if this applies to Type 1 or just Type 2 but people seem to say if you have carb heavy meal then you are more likely to be hungry after a short time. So maybe for @mum2westiesGill a better balance for the evening meal so less carb and more protein would work. That might of course mean adjusting the insulin dose.

 

[SB2015]

I found, like @eggyg it was easier to manage things if I finished my evening meal at least four hours before going to bed. So we aim to eat at 6:30, but don’t always achieve this. The regularity helped me to avoid snacking, but not always.

Non carby snacks work best, such as nuts, but there are times when the glass of wine just needs something!! My go to is a bag of unsweetened popcorn. Not ideal but no spike and seems to match insulin pattern without too much of a problem.

 

[DaveB]

Even with T1 it's best to be sensible with the carbs to avoid the 'sugar' hit cycle. Proteins and Fats will help you feeling full for longer.

 

[mum2westiesGill]

Some of my teas for the last few days

Pizza, chicken goujons

Tesco Finest Chicken in prosecco sauce, potato dauphinoise, garlic bread

Scampi, mash potato, yoghurt

Beef lasagne, garlic bread

Beef Fillet Steak, mushrooms

 

[Lucyr]

Some of my teas for the last few days

Pizza, chicken goujons

Tesco Finest Chicken in prosecco sauce, potato dauphinoise, garlic bread

Scampi, mash potato, yoghurt

Beef lasagne, garlic bread

Beef Fillet Steak, mushrooms

Looking at those, only one (maybe 2 depending how much veg you put in the lasagne) of the last 5 days involved vegetables. The dietician advised me that the general advice for everyone is that between a third and a half of your plate should be vegetables. If you aren’t eating many vegetables, eating white bread/pasta not brown etc, you probably aren’t eating enough fibre.

 

[Leadinglights]

Looking at those, only one (maybe 2 depending how much veg you put in the lasagne) of the last 5 days involved vegetables. The dietician advised me that the general advice for everyone is that between a third and a half of your plate should be vegetables. If you aren’t eating many vegetables, eating white bread/pasta not brown etc, you probably aren’t eating enough fibre.

I believe a few months ago I commented that @mum2westiesGill didn't seem to have many vegetables as none of the meals she said she was having had any veg or salad.

 

[mum2westiesGill]

I believe a few months ago I commented that @mum2westiesGill didn't seem to have many vegetables as none of the meals she said she was having had any veg or salad.

Salad is my thing more than veg and I tend to just post the main thing ie chicken in sauce which had mushrooms in

 

[Lucyr]

Salad is my thing more than veg and I tend to just post the main thing ie chicken in sauce which had mushrooms in

A portion of veg is generally 80g, so to get to 5 a day you have to be eating quite a lot of vegetables. A few mushrooms in the sauce is a good start but it’s unlikely to be one whole portion of veg.