Advice please RE Extended (square wave) Bolus

Postleneo

Well-Known Member
Messages
293
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi kind folks

I am seeking your advice if i could regarding extended bolus when pumping insulin. I have my first pump appointment on 17/03/17 followed by training days then have been advised will be let loose and officially pumping on my own on 05/04/17 and am trying to get as much info before my initial meeting as i can. One question that comes to mind is the extended bolus feature.... I believe that this is useful when administering insulin for hi fat meals etc but was wondering if there is also a correlation with extending the bolus and low GI foods. For example - I read that a your body will digest approx 40% of the carbs of a food (not high in fat) which has a GI value of 40 in the 1st 2 hrs leaving 60 % of the carbs remaining to digest over the next 3-4 hours. Would this mean that if the majority of a meal had a GI value of 40 then it is advisable to administer 40% of the insulin immediately followed by the remaining 60% insulin over 3-4 hours?? It may be a daft question and seem logical but i am quite confused with the length of time and what percentage of insulin would be given over an extended period of time. Would be very interested in your advice and how you guys would bolus for the following foods as an example

1. Wholemeal cheese sandwich
2. Pizza
3. Lasagna
4. chinese noodles
4 Sausages

Cheers in advance :)
 
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azure

Expert
Messages
9,780
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi @Postleneo :)

Like everything with Type 1, it takes experience to find what works best for you :) I do use an extended bolus for some low GI foods. Here are my answers to your foods.

1) just a normal bolus
2) I have a moderate portion then do an extended bolus, but generally I don't find pizza too troublesome if I keep my portion moderate.
3)I do a combi bolus for pasta - a third to a half immediate bolus and the rest extended over 90-120 mins
4) noodles - I usually just do a normal bolus
5) sausages - normal bolus

It's not as complicated as you think. You get to learn what works for the meals you eat :)
 

pwzero

Member
Messages
18
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Dislikes
Basal testing
For me:

1) Bolus for the carbs regardless of wholemeal or not.
2) disaster and need significant bolus 12 hours later
3) probably a square concentrating on total carbs and how quickly blood sugar expected to climb.
4) straight bolus