• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2026 Survey »

Carb counting ratios

smc4761

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,042
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
I have been diabetic for over 34 years and when I was diagnosed, we were taught exchanges, for carbohydrate to insulin.

This is similar to carb counting it would seem which I was taught fairly recently.

Find that I am having to take a carb ratio of 2 units of insulin for each 10 g of carbohydrate. I read on this forum and it seems that many are on a 1/1 ratio or 1.5/1 ratio,

I know there is no defintive answer, or what is "normal" but what are your guys ratios
 
I'm pretty new to type 1 (six months) and I'm currently on 1 unit per 10g, maybe you've developed insulin resistance over time? I've heard it can happen in type 1s.
 
I've been Type 1for almost 37 years and also started on exchanges.

I have 3 ratios - 1:11 for breakfast, 1:13 for lunch and 1:12 for dinner. This, of course, varies from time to time.

Everyone is different which is true in all aspects of diabetes.
 
(insulin:carbs) currently on 1:3 for Breakfast and Lunch then 1:4 for Evening meal and any supper snack, currently recalculating though and expect my evening meal numbers will drop to 1:3 or 1:3.5 in the next week or so when I have evaluated my last months BG numbers.
 
I am on 1 unit for every 10g carbs. I started on that ratio a few years ago and have never changed from it
 
I am on 2-10g carb, each time I try to reduce it down, the first 2 days are ok then on the third day I have noticed my b/s have increased, I go back to original dose and b/s return to lower level, three times I have tried this so it deff is the amount I need. I wouldn't worry if that is what you need then so be it.good luck.
 
1/10 for breakfast, 1/9 for lunch and 1/6 for tea.
 
Carb exchanges

At present I'm on 1:10 at breakfast, 1:8 at lunch & 1:12 at dinner.
 
I'm pretty consistently at 1:12 except after a particularly heavy gym session the day before, where I find breakfast can go up to 1:4 and lunch 1:4 or 1:6.
 
I'm insulin resistant, and my ratios are quite high - between 3 and 5 units of insulin to 10g of carbs, depending on the time of day. I try to avoid carbs whenever possible. One unit of insulin will bring my blood sugar down by 1mmol.

When I did my DAFNE course, nobody believed me till we did some testing.
 
I used to be on about 1:8 but now I'm on 1:4 for breakfast and 1:5.4 (using a pump) for the rest of the day. I tend to eat a lot of carbs.
 
I've been type 1 for just under 3 years and have different ratios for each meal time.

Breakfast 1 unit Novorapid to 10g carbs.
Lunch 1.5 units to 10g carbs.
Evening meal 2 units to 10g carbs.

Depending on my pre-meal BG reading I might add 1 or 2 extra units of Novorapid. I also take into account my expected level of activity after meals. That's why my evening meal dose is 2 units because I am less active, which seems to work.
My nightly basal dose of Levemir is constant at 17 units which holds my BG steady till morning.
 

Probably the reason your carb ratio is rising throughout the day is that your Levemir is running out as the day wears on. Have you considered using Levemir twice daily, this is normally how it is used?
 
Novarapid
1.5:10 for breakfast + 22 of levemir
2:10 for lunch
2:10 for Dinner
22 of levemir at bed time.
 
Spiker said:
Probably the reason your carb ratio is rising throughout the day is that your Levemir is running out as the day wears on. Have you considered using Levemir twice daily, this is normally how it is used?
Click to expand...
Thanks Spiker, I had wondered about the Levemir but still doing as my DSN instructed at diagnosis. How would you go about splitting it to twice daily?
 
I too started off on exchanges. It's the same as carb counting. Foods were broken down into 10g of carbs (exchanges), e.g. 1 or 2 slices of bread etc. I got them from the clinic listed on a photocopied booklet. (It was pot luck if you wanted to try something more exotic than the standard 1980's fare they had listed). It didn't take long to pick it up although my meals and doses were fairly rigid at that time.

For years now I have used good guesstimating and adjusting doses to suit without being too rigid. There is a fair bit of flexibility in doses and carbs and the meters whilst extremely useful aren't completely accurate.
 
I also use the DAFNE ratio system after attending the course 12 months ago. There is no normal however they did say for more than 2 units per 10gms CHO they would look at long acting. My DAFNE ratios are
Breakfast 1.4:1 (1.4 units per 10gms CHO)
Lunch 1:1
Dinner 2.4:1
The previous system I was using (gms CHO / 1 unit insulin) is therefore
Breakfast 7.1/1
Lunch 10/1
Dinner 4.2/1
Novo rapid for meals and lantus 10 units morning and 14 at bed.
I have discovered that novo rapid for corrections are bed do nothing so I se lantus and double the figure required, it works.
Very keen to hear what others use as well.
Type1 for 23 years.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…