Newly diagnosed type 1 - how many carbs

[Jgibbo13]

Hi all, so i am newly diagnosed type 1 and understand I need to reduce carbs. How many do people normally aim for per meal/day? I have done low arm diets in the past but wondered if people go full on low carb, or just reduce?

In addition, has anyone had any spikes with no added sugar squash/cordial? I think appel and blackcurrant or orange and mango give me a spike.

Thank you

 

[Antje77]

Hi @Jgibbo13 ,
From your other thread I understand you're on a mixed insulin.
Most of us use 2 insulins separately, the basal to keep us steady, the bolus to use before food.
This means we adjust our insulin doses depending on the amount of carbs we eat. You can't do that with mixed insulin.

Some of us eat just the regular amount of carbs we ate before our diagnosis and inject for it. Others choose to eat less carbs because it makes taking the correct dose easier.

n addition, has anyone had any spikes with no added sugar squash/cordial? I think appel and blackcurrant or orange and mango give me a spike.

It's not the added sugar what makes us spike, it's all carbs. As oranges and mangoes have lots of carbs I'd expect them to spike me.

 

[Rokaab]

Hi all, so i am newly diagnosed type 1 and understand I need to reduce carbs. How many do people normally aim for per meal/day? I have done low arm diets in the past but wondered if people go full on low carb, or just reduce?

In addition, has anyone had any spikes with no added sugar squash/cordial? I think appel and blackcurrant or orange and mango give me a spike.

Thank you

Some Type 1's find it easier to control their blood sugars if they go low carb, however many do not go low carb, it really is up to you, and if you do go low carb its all very personal as to how many to find works for you.

Since you are newly diagnosed do you know how to carb count? and do know how to adjust your insulin dependent on what you eat? are you on fixed doses? are you on mixed insulin (ie not basal and bolus)? whatever the answers you really need to discuss with your doctor/diabetic nurse consultant before reducing carbs (though especially so if no to either of the first two questions or yes to the last two) if you decide to do so otherwise you could easily hypo.

I drink (low sugar) orange squash quite often and it doesn't spike my sugar level, but many things affect people differently.

 

[Jgibbo13]

Currently on mixed 70 30, 8 units in the morning 6 in the evening. Only been on insulin since Wednesday so nurses contacting every few days to advise on dose.

 

[Antje77]

Currently on mixed 70 30, 8 units in the morning 6 in the evening. Only been on insulin since Wednesday so nurses contacting every few days to advise on dose.

Have the nurses told you you should reduce your carbs?

 

[Jgibbo13]

Have the nurses told you you should reduce your carbs?

They said it would help, when I was first diagnosed (doctor thought type 2 at first) I cut out all white bread, pasta and rice. Took sugar out of tea and coffee. ( have a sweetener in coffee) I swapped my biscuits for my tea at night to half an atkins bar. Also didn't realise that milk wasn't great at first so now have cream in my coffee in the morning.

Get the morrisons protein loaf instead of normal bread as low in carbs. And just have one with either eggs/avo or sardines. Lunch is normally a salad with some sort of meat fish and at night its again meat/fish with lots of aubergine, courgette, mushrooms, peppers, onion, tomatoes.

The weekend is a bit more tricky, and that's where I have to watch and not hit the chippy/indian.

Also at weekends if I have a drink, find myself checking blood sugar a lot as for it not to go to low.

Apologies for long reply lol

 

[Antje77]

They said it would help, when I was first diagnosed (doctor thought type 2 at first)

Very good advice for a T2, but not necessarily for a T1. What you eat changes the amount of insulin you need, so don't change your diet without speaking about it to the nurses!

 

[UK T1]

Hi, I have no experience of mixed insulin, so it is definitely best to talk to your diabetes team for advice.

Something which really helped me when I was diagnosed was hearing these few repeated messages:
- routines/habits etc might initially change while you're getting used to how your body reacts to insulin/different foods/hormones/exercise/illness etc etc etc
- after the initial period of getting used to the condition, type 1 diabetes shouldn't restrict you in how you want to lead your life.

Namely (for me) I was initially put on fixed doses and told what I should eat. It was hugely different from what I had eaten before and often really didn't match my appetite. The take home message was always that this was only temporary. I was (and still am) on a basal-bolus insulin regime, so once I'd gained confidence with the condition, there was no reason why I couldn't eat or drink what I wanted, when I wanted.

Definitely talk to your diabetes team, but mine were very good in repeatedly asking me if I was doing things differently after I'd been diagnosed, and if so why? They were very keen to try and get me back to my usual way of life pre diabetes, with the diabetes management just slotting in. It will take time, but I found it useful to know that lots of changes were temporary.