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Carb contents in restaurants, parliament petition

Will sign ! I was in a Diatbetes UK 'workshop' re food labels and discussed the issue since most of us were type 1. I don't carb count because I avoid carbs because of the near impossibility of bolus dosing as well as a pancreas! Since carbs are not essential this suits me fine but I appreciate that this is harder with a small person (have 3 of my own though not type 1 ..touch wood).
Have you come across Type 1 Grit for parents of type 1s following a low carb approach?
 
I've just seen this...signed. Since bring diagnosed as t1 18 months ago its seems to be the one thing i bang on about to anyone who listens. Its a treat to eat out instead of having to cook. However, by the time i have checked the menu online before going out, found something that seems to be lower carb, checked the nutritional value (if there is one online!!!) the enjoyment has gone and i stress about what i can eat or how much i will need to inject. If i don't do this before and wait until i'm there, others i am with have ordered and are waiting while i frantically check the carbs&cals app. They don't mind but while they can choose when they get to a restaurant, i can't be spontaneous. I have rang restaurants before and asked about carb amounts for food on the menu quite often to be told they will check and get back to me..which they never have done yet. Also, the restaurants that do put their nutritional values online don't often update them. There have been times when i've chosen food before i go and known how much insulin to take, to get there and find that the menu has changed!!! Ggrrrrrrr!

I read an article in a magazine while ago saying that calories should be put on all menus. I emailed the magazine saying it should be ALL nutritional value but got no reply. I'm seeing my DSN in just over a week. I'm going to speak to her and ask her to pass on this petition. Fingers crossed if we all sign, something will be done.

Ps. I may sound a bit of a moaner but still getting to grips with this t1. I am getting there slowly. This forum has great advice and support so thanks everyone
 
Signed.
Just a suggestion but as this also would benefit many type 2 who limit their carbs perhaps being in a more general forum rather than just type one would reach a wider audience.
 
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I agree it would be very convenient if all restaurants had carb counted food. But if it would be compulsory it would mean that almost every small restaurant and every restaurant where cooks may be creative in the kitchen would have to be closed.
Ingredients would not only have to be weighed when cooking, but every item on every plate for every customer would have to be weighed as well.
 
The sentiment of the petition is good, but there was a similar thread a few months ago, and the consensus seemed to be (a) most large chains publish carb info already, (b) most T1s will do their own assessment anyway instead of trusting the restaurant's info, and (c) compliance costs would cripple small businesses.

Can't recall the poster's name, but he said he was in the restaurant trade, and a move like this would have a huge impact on how small independent traders, stifling menu changes etc.

Are they supposed to send meals off for lab testing, or have the kitchen staff write up something in the menu after checking Carbs & Cals, and then make sure the portion sizes are exactly the same for fear of getting sued if they get it wrong? Would you trust another person doing your carb count or would you do it yourself anyway?

Sorry, folks, we have to look after ourselves on this.
 

You have made some very good points @Scott-C.
I always guesstimate and try very hard to get it right, I also tend to take less Insulin, so if it is a little high afterwards I can at least give myself more Insulin, rather than go hypo.
It's a fine balancing act at times.
 

All very good points, not all of which I had fully thought through from a business point of view, as opposed to a consumer.

Still an accurate list of ingredients would be a start. The number of times unlisted carbs show up on a plate! I have learned to ask what else comes with the described items and if suspect get the ingredients checked. And often the only ingredients list is for the usual allergens of nuts, milk, gluten etc.
 
winelover said:
I may sound a bit of a moaner but still getting to grips with this t1.
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Don't worry, winelover, it gets easier!

Sure, some of the spontaneity is lost, we do need to plan ahead a lot more, but there are ways of "winging it" a bit.

For example, as long as I've got a general idea of what the carb count is likely to be, but there's a degree of uncertainty about the timing of it, I can bolus a small amount in advance, not enough to cause a serious drop, an amount which can be sorted out quite easily with a few dextrotabs if there is a major delay, but enough to get in stream and be heavily into its action path so it's still quite an effective pre-bolus which can be topped up once the meal arrives and I'm clearer about the carb count.

Another option would be a larger pre-bolus, and if there's an unexpected delay, get an apple juice.

Or queue jump: ask the staff how the service times are running, mention you're asking because you're T1 and need to figure out insulin timing, and they'll generally push you up the queue a bit.

It can be more awkward when eating in a new place for the first time, unexplored territory, but after a while, most of us seem to have a selection of regular places we eat, because we like the environment and the food, and that makes the carb count more predictable.

After a while, we can get quite good at just "eyeballing" a meal to figure out the carb count.
 
Thank you. Good ideas for timing and injecting. I think i'm still a bit "over the top" with the counting and timing but will get there eventually.
 
HSSS said:
Still an accurate list of ingredients would be a start.
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Sauces can be a real pain - is there cornflour and/or sugar in it or not? I've spent too much time looking at goulash and ragu recipes...

An interesting thing which is happening in the T1 world with cgm is that the carb count is becoming less important.

We still have a reasonable stab at estimating the carbs and the appropriate bolus amount for that, but because there are so many unpredictable variables involved, there is a fair chance we will get it "wrong" but because we can see on the trace how it is panning out in real time, it's possible to tweak the direction of it with a little more insulin before it goes out of range.

Loopers, who have their cgm talking to their pump don't even need to think about this that much, the loop just adjusts it automatically.
 
200 signatures

We've added your signature to the petition:

Make it compulsory for restaurants & manufacturers to supply carbohydrate values
Click to expand...

I signed as a British citizen, got number 200.
 
Totally agree with you on this, guesstimating becomes the norm very quickly, appreciate it’s difficult for the newly diagnosed but you do get there. It’s a bit hit and miss and it’s a bigger problem judging when to appropriately doing the bolus but I don’t want eating out to revolve around my needs. Good points made Mark.
 
I would rather support small independent restaurants, give them the opportunity to buy locally, what is in season, what has the minimal environmental impact, make ad hoc changes to their menu, ... than force them to carb count for, let’s face it, is the minority of the population.
Not only would this limit choice, increase the power of multi-national bland restaurant chains, it would cost extra to implement and police. And who would pay that cost? Diners ... all diners.
I would rather guesstimate, make mistakes (usually under count) and correct than enforce carb (and calorie) counting on every restaurant, cafe, food outlet.
I know this makes life harder for people who take insulin and people limiting their carbs but I am happy to take responsibility for my condition for the benefit of small businesses and probably most people.
For these reasons, I will not be signing the petition.
 
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Sorry... More thoughts on this.
The only way to accurately carb count is to burn the food and weigh the carbon that remains. This is obviously not possible so what remains is an estimate which does not take into consideration the soil a potato is grown in, the ripeness of tomatoes, exactly how many sultanas are in each slice of cake, the generous chef who adds a few extra chips.
And insulin dosing is not just about quantity of carbs but also about the absorption rate of the carbs. Do pizzerias have to publish the fat content of their pizzas so you can work out your split dose?
Then, what happens if someone with type 1 has a hypo after going to a restaurant after calculating their insulin dose from the menu? Is the restaurant sued? How do you prove the published carb value was incorrect and the person took the correct insulin dose doing calculation considering insulin on board, exercise done, alcohol drunk?
 
First year as a Type 1 — ate out rarely. Got flustered and upset and annoyed when I didn’t get it right.
Second year — ate out more, worried less.
Five years in and now wearing a CGM — eat out when I want to, guesstimate dose and take part of it before food arrives (have dextrose in bag) assess plate when it arrives and inject more. Top up later if needed or eat Dextrose. Trust my instincts. Enjoy my life!
 
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