Carbs absorption

Hi.

We were wondering what experiences people have in the peak + pace of glucose build up post some staple carbs?

Some of foods we eat:

1) breakfast porridge made from oats with berries

2) boiled potatoes

3) baked potate db (if different)

4) lasagna

5) pasta

6) sourdough bread


Basically we seem to observe (keep in mind we have been < week into this) that some foods increase sugar level faster than others, e.g. porridge vs lasagna. I think it’s the fat in lasagna.

So in order to smooth the pattern of her insulin around meals, we were hoping to better understand the timing of the above foods vs insulin intake. E.g. we want to avoid situations where we wait ‘typical 15mins’ and then we have a big drop post the insulin shot, followed by a slow creep/fast spike on the way back.

It would seem to us that when eating bread, insulin shot can be made ~10mins before the meal, though with lasagna I would almost wait a little after starting it (especially if the starting level is low).

Is this timing important down the line? Do these things matter at all or in grand scheme of things no big deal?

Hi. Yes, looking for a daughter. To be clear, we have direct contact with our diabetes team that is very helpful. We do not make any changes to ratios/amounts/habits unless we discuss with them. However, through the question I asked, I thought I can get some range of perspectives and someone may even say ‘doesn’t matter’ which would be helpful.

We are measuring sugar levels using CGM.

I think the general question was whether there are some ways that people found practically helpful in timing the shots around different foods. We are still to have a session with our dietitian about GI so maybe that will shed some extra light on this topic.

Hi Simon.

This is top advice!

“I always split bolus for my supper (my large meal of the day) as it's typically large enough (and contains sufficient fat and protein) that if I inject all the insulin for it I will go low immediately after supper and then still need to bolus for the food that is yet to be digested.”

-> Exactly what I noticed in our case. And it was frustrating. Because she started at ~8, got a dose base on 80 carbs (it was chicken noodle soup so all carbs through the noodles); and then before this was broken down she went <4 so we decided to give her glucose. Rest of the night she was >10…. And then around 1am required a correction.

Splitting the shot will be something I will ask our diabetes team about.


“You mentioned porridge, I find this is particularly terrible at causing very fast BG rises so I avoid it and eat granola instead (still wanting some oats as they are good for you), everyone's different though ”

-> We went so far by advice there is no diabetes diet, so eat what is healthy for a normal person. Porridge + strawberries + blueberries. She is .. swallowing it all. Diabetes gave us a correction to bfast as they said this is top food in general but she still peaks around 12-13 (starting point 9-10), within an hour and then drops to <4 within 2 hours. (We still think the long insulin may be touch too high in the morning; but will consult on Monday).

Granola - will give it a go but she doesn’t like yoghurt much so not sure how that will work.

“Timing is important to avoid spikes both up and down, though it's very hard to get it right all of the time. With practice you (she) will learn what sort of advance/delay is required for a certain type of food (it also depends on what BG is before eating, whether it's rising or falling, level of activity, etc.)”

-> Today lunch was very smooth. She had bread and avocado and then dessert with berries + my mom made her some ‘pancakes’ from just whisked eggs (amazingly they looked like pancakes somehow); and despite eating 45gr of carbs through bread + another 10 through berries her sugar level increased by ~1 (this time we were eating about 10mins after the shot and she took her time with the meal).



“Keep up the good work, you're asking the right questions ”

-> Thank you! I out work on a side for now as fortunately got some flexibility and this is now my life focus Her smile is making up for all inconveniences!

Cheers. Indeed, I thought I was super logical in my line of work and in life in general but some of her charts from the last 3-4 days defy logic ha.

She was today 4.5-5.5 range post lunch until about 3pm. She sat down for ~30mins, and spiked to…14… But then our son got sick yesterday and she had runny nose in the afternoon so suspect now the sugar level is telling me she is getting sick (the spike was just too high in the absence of any carbs with the long insulin still in the background). She has also been feeling visibly weaker in the afternoon.

So I hear you that sometimes there are no patterns, and different people react differently. But I am hoping we can observe some rules that apply to her and hopefully can use them 80-90% of the time.

Appreciate all the comments - very useful to learn from those with lots of experience!