How many units of Rapid Insulin?

[JulieK]

I just can't grasp the ratio of how many units of rapid insulin I should be giving myself when I eat. I was told years ago it was 1 unit per 10 carbs. That's all fine and dandy but I can't figure out how many carbs I am eating. For instance for breakfast this morning I had a bowl of shreddies with skim milk, a small glass of sugar free cranberry juice and a small orange. I haven't got a clue how many units I should be giving myself. Can anyone help in simple laymans terms please. Thanks

 

[Lucypieee]

Hi Julie, do you have a carb & calorie counter book? Personally I find this useful in checking carb content. Then it's just a case of adding it together to find your carbs and dividing by 10 for your insulin ratio.
Other people I know use special scales which have the content on them.
And most products will have nutrition information on them (hopefully with carb content) per serving.

It is all little bits of maths and your ratio is set according to your BG levels and there's no set ratio, most people start on a 1 to 10g and then adjust accordingly. For instance, I am on a 1 to 5g ratio as my insulin wasn't as effective on the 1:10.

I learnt how to do all of this effectively on the DAFNE course, I know there are online courses, but I find the DAFNE course is useful as there's someone around you, my DAFNE team even hold refresh courses every year to ensure DAFNE is still effective.


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[LaughingHyena]

I find this book really helpful http://www.carbsandcals.com/ they have pictures of different sized servings of food with the carb counts for each. It's alot easier than weighing everything out each meal, and nice to have if you go out for a meal when weighing everything would be impossible.

I've also found having a set of measuring cups, and specific serving spoons handy. I can measure out a portion of food once and weigh it and keep a note. Providing I use the same cups & spoons to serve I find I don't need to weight everything each time.

 

[JulieK]

Thank you both for your comments. I am going to buy the book and I also have an appointment with the Diabetic Nurse next Tuesday to help me go through a few things. Cheers, x

 

[LaughingHyena]

You may have already been told to do this but it was suggested to me that I keep a food diary for a few days before seeing the nurse to talk through the carb counting. I kept a note of food, with approximate ammounts. bg readings & dose as well as noting if I'd been especially active on any particualr day.

It was really helpful for me to be able to go through examples from my own experinces rather than made up ones. It also helped having someone else spot patterns, I need a bit more insulin with breakfast than other meals but I think it would have taken me quite a while to spot that.

 

[JosieMorton123]

I get mixed up about what units I should be taking four times a day. Is there any advice that would help me remember my units. I sometimes find it hard to remember inject sometimes. What can I do to improve this?


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[xorsyst]

I'm a mathematician, so I like numbers, and I also like weighing things! My approach is:

Weigh the shreddies - say you have 70g.
Look at the packet, it will say something like 74g per 100g
Do the multiplication: 74*70/100 = 51.8g carbohydrate
so - about 5 units for that.
Repeat with milk, juice, etc. You'll soon get to know which items are worth weighing, which you can be more relaxed about.