Type 1 Low Carb snack ideas

[098]

Hi, my partner works very long shifts (10-12 hours) and has Type 1 diabetes. Has anyone got any recommendations/ideas for a low carb snack. We are trying to get our heads around it all and have been told that he does not need to take insulin if the food has less than 10g of carbs. He always gets hungry so we are looking for snacks that he will not need to inject for.
Thanks in advance

 

[noblehead]

Unfortunately I have to bolus for snacks, even if they are low-carb but some type 1's don't (especially those who are in their Honeymoon Period).

Maybe he could snack on things like cheese, hams or seeds & nuts, but do get him to check his bg levels afterwards just to make sure they don't have an effect on his bg levels.

 

[fletchweb]

Hi, my partner works very long shifts (10-12 hours) and has Type 1 diabetes. Has anyone got any recommendations/ideas for a low carb snack. We are trying to get our heads around it all and have been told that he does not need to take insulin if the food has less than 10g of carbs. He always gets hungry so we are looking for snacks that he will not need to inject for.
Thanks in advance

I use to struggle with that myself as I tend to be a continual snacker, especially if I'm not doing anything and was on a search as to what I could eat that would 1/ fill me up quickly, 2/ take a while to metabolize 3/ not raise my BGs significantly and 4/.Tasted good. I discovered that raw almonds did that for me very nicely. Particularly in the morning - I'm one of those people who don;t eat til after he's been awake for two or three hours, so enjoying a handful of almonds mid morning did the trick quite nicely. I'll also have have a handful mid afternoon too. I have a bag of almonds at my desk right now and looking at the nutritional guide it says 1/3 cup of almonds is equivalent to 3% of ones recommended daily carb intake. (not sure what the recommended daily carb intake is LOL - especially in my country) but I find it works for me - There's a lot of fat - which explains the length of time to metabolize, lots of fiber, and rich in Calcium, Iron and Vitamin E.
So I would try that and see what happens.
P.S. - I don't own stock in any almond companies

 

[Juicyj]

Some snack ideas - boiled eggs, fish, cooked meats, olives, pork scratchings, cheese, almonds..

 

[Deleted Account]

There's another way of looking at this - instead of finding snacks that our partner does not have to inject for, how about injecting? It sounds scary at first but I got used to it.
Also it's a good habit to get into if your partner is considering moving to a pump at any time because you have to dial up insulin for all carbs with a pump.

 

[Kristin251]

I have to take insulin for snacks other than a few nuts such as macadamias. However they don't necessarily raise my bs but they can make me more insulin resistant by the next meal as the fat hangs around a long time.

I most definitely have to bolus for an egg, fish, meat albeit small doses if it's truly snack size.

If I ate 10 carbs without insulin I spike about 100! I can't even eat salad without spiking

He can always take a small bolus for a snack or add a fourth smaller meal and bolus for all of them.

 

[linda_b]

Hey, I love Cashew nuts! I didn't even know they were low carb until I read the label! If he wants a bit of a sweet hit the Honey Roasted ones are good too, slightly higher in carbs as expected but 25g of nuts works out at about 7.5g of carbs.

 

[Sgambj86]

Hi, my partner works very long shifts (10-12 hours) and has Type 1 diabetes. Has anyone got any recommendations/ideas for a low carb snack. We are trying to get our heads around it all and have been told that he does not need to take insulin if the food has less than 10g of carbs. He always gets hungry so we are looking for snacks that he will not need to inject for.
Thanks in advance

Hi,

I do night shift as well and I fight the night hunger with a salad o 2 celery stalks/6 cherry tomatoes/small piece of chorizo/nuts and bit of olive oil and salt (you can play and combine the veg/meat or nuts you prefer) plus an apple. That's make me full till morning. Salad/vegetables keep you full, they don't have much calories and are low in carbs plus you get all the goodies from veg and fruit. Personally I inject insulin otherwise BM will raise. Another snack that I love is greek yogurt with nuts (almonds, walnuts, hazelnut) with a tea spoon of marmalade or honey For this you will need a little injection probably).
I hope you will give a go to them...

 

[Charlie80]

There's another way of looking at this - instead of finding snacks that our partner does not have to inject for, how about injecting? It sounds scary at first but I got used to it.
Also it's a good habit to get into if your partner is considering moving to a pump at any time because you have to dial up insulin for all carbs with a pump.

What do you mean with dial up insulin for all carbs with a pump? My partner has a pump (omnipod) and if he just eats a couole of nuts, a small piece of dark chocolat or some other snack with few carbs he doesn´t take any insulin for that. Of course he can if he want to but if he doesnt need it it seems a bit unnecessary.

 

[Deleted Account]

What do you mean with dial up insulin for all carbs with a pump? My partner has a pump (omnipod) and if he just eats a couole of nuts, a small piece of dark chocolat or some other snack with few carbs he doesn´t take any insulin for that. Of course he can if he want to but if he doesnt need it it seems a bit unnecessary.

I dial up insulin on my pump for all carbs.
This was explained to me as we have no "spare insulin" in our bodies unlike when on a basal bolus injection regime. Therefore, we should take insulin for small snacks.
Some nuts and dark chocolate are very low carb so if your partner is having only a small handful of nuts or one square of very dark chocolate (above 70% cocoa), the amount of carbs may be insignificant.

 

[Charlie80]

I dial up insulin on my pump for all carbs.
This was explained to me as we have no "spare insulin" in our bodies unlike when on a basal bolus injection regime. Therefore, we should take insulin for small snacks.
Some nuts and dark chocolate are very low carb so if your partner is having only a small handful of nuts or one square of very dark chocolate (above 70% cocoa), the amount of carbs may be insignificant.

That sounds a bit strange because the pump basal is delivered several times per hour. I can hear my partners pump do that because of a clicking sound. I dont think that people on mdi have more spare insulin than pump users, on the contrary I think pump users have an advantage because of the steady release of insulin throughout the day that more mimics the pancreas release of insulin.

I guess it is very different from individual to individual. If you need to bolus for a few carbs you will notice but I dont think it has anything to do whether you are on a pump or mdi.

 

[Deleted Account]

That sounds a bit strange because the pump basal is delivered several times per hour. I can hear my partners pump do that because of a clicking sound. I dont think that people on mdi have more spare insulin than pump users, on the contrary I think pump users have an advantage because of the steady release of insulin throughout the day that more mimics the pancreas release of insulin.

I guess it is very different from individual to individual. If you need to bolus for a few carbs you will notice but I dont think it has anything to do whether you are on a pump or mdi.

This is how it was explained to me ...

A basal bolus injection regime assumes your basal requirements are the same for 24 hours a day and we take long acting insulin to last this period.
As we are not moving much at night, typically, our basal needs are higher at night so, during the day, we have basal insulin which may not be being used by the constant liver drip.
As you say, the long last insulin does not mimic a healthy pancreas.
If we do not eat, exercise, get stressed, we may find our BG dropping during the day although we remain stale throughout the night.
This is what I mean by spare insulin.

In contrast, with a pump, we can adjust our basal to match our body's actual need at different times of the day. Therefore, if we didn't eat, exercise, get stressed, etc. our BG should stay stable at all times.

As you say, each of us are different and a few carbs will affect each of us differently.
If it works for your partner the way he manages his insulin today (you would best see on a CGM or Libre), there is no need for him to change anything.