chocolate/ice cream/deserts....

[jonesy]

my wife seems to think that it's ok to give my 9 year old type 1 son choc, ice cream, deserts as long as it's with a meal and the right amount of novorapid is injected.

i think it's ok now and then, but not all the time. however, i need reasons to convince her.

or am i wrong and she is right???

jonesy

 

[catherinecherub]

Hi jonesey,
Would your wife consider that it is alright to feed any child with all these treats? I personally feel that a treat now and again is OK but not a normal day to day routine. Healthy eating regardless of age is how I think children should eat.

Catherine.

 

[barkbark]

It is alright for a Diabetic to eat such items as long as it is balanced with an appropriate bolus of insulin and part of a normal healthy diet. However eating them all of the time is questionable but as a treat once in a while etc is normal - simply think what is a normal balanced diet and apply the same approach. I strongly believe a diabetic should eat a healthy normal diet per any healthy non-diabetic person (whatever the diet the person may choose to follow - be it low carb, vegetarian, not-vegitarian etc) and simply count the carb's and align to the insulin level appropriate to them. Yes you have to ensure you do not pig out every mealtime, it is very easy to eat eat eat and simply bolus bolus bolus, but that like any non-diabetic will usually end up in a lot of weight gain and the corresponding potential issue with the same. Life is to be enjoyed and Diabetes should simply make you more aware of your actions, not prevent you from doing / eating anything.

 

[leggott]

Hi, i guess it's all about everything in moderation. We haven't altered our children's diet since their diagnosis, since I believe that they've always eaten a balanced diet. There is nothing that is off limits (only when we don't know or can't guess the carb value). The problem today is that there is so much hidden sugar in foods that are advertised as healthy, so it's important to look at everything that a child eats on a daily basis to get the total amounts of sugar, fats & salt. We tend to restrict chocolate and puddings to the weekend, and try and go for low carb treats during the week, but it is really hard when you have young children. We found that the rice cakes are quite a good alternative and you can get ones with chocolate on which actually taste quite nice! leggott

 

[jonesy]

both my children eat healthily and are both very active.
they hardly ever have fried food, eat at least two types of veg with every meal and also have to eat fruit before any desert.

if you are asking if i think any normal 6 and 9 year old has a pudding/dessert after a meal, then i would say 'yes, i think that is completely normal.'

i'm not suggesting a whole black forrest gateaux, but some ice cream, a cup cake, a gingerbread man etc......i would say that is totally normal.

i know all the parents at my kids' school and run an Under 10's football side, and know 100% that all these people's kids eat dessert. AS PART OF A MEAL.

 

[jonesy]

catherine......do you actually have children?

 

[jonesy]

btw....we carb count religously, his levels are good and his first ever HbA1C was last week and came in at exactly 7.

jonesy

 

[leggott]

HI, Sorry if I offended you with my post. I agree with you that most children will enjoy a cake or something as part of a meal. As I said, we tend to let them have something small which is normally after their tea or I put something like a small biscuit in their lunch box, but try and buy the lowest carb options I can. If you don't allow them to have treats then I guess they may rebel and eat things when you are not around.

 

[suzi]

Hi Jonesy,
Speaking as a mother myself, i can see where your wife is coming from, giving a sweet treat with a meal is the best way to do it. The added fact that one can bolus for it, is fantastic, but would i allow my son treats after every evening meal NO. As well as being unhealthy it is also teaching him bad eating habits. For a treat after an evening meal, my son has an option of yoghurt/fruit/sugar free icelolly ( as he is also Coeliac, sweet puddings, cake rarely happen in our house, and he doesn't like ice cream )and the odd sweet treat is usually reseverved for after Sunday dinner. He does get a bar of chocolate on a Friday night as a treat before youthclub, which i know he'll burn off.
It is hard to say no to a child, after all they are children and we often feel we need to over compensate because of their condition, but we do have to teach them that control is the key point to a healthy future, and that begins now, with a healthy diet.
Then again deny them too much now and they could over compensate when their older, its all to do with balance.
Suzi x

 

[jonesy]

just to be clear.....my son never eats any carbs/sugar between meals except after the odd hypo or if i want him slightly higher before bedtime.

jonesy

 

[phoenix]

I agree with Catherine, Ok to have them sometimes, but not everyday. My non diabetic grandchildren tend to have fruit and/or yoghurts for everyday puddings . They are sometimes allowed a few sweets after a meal, but not everyday.
My own children were normally only allowed sweets once a week, nothing to do with diabetes, but for dental health (it worked, they still have no fillings)

 

[suzi]

Hi Jonesy,
i hear where your coming from, but originally you asked
my wife seems to think that it's ok to give my 9 year old type 1 son choc, ice cream, deserts as long as it's with a meal and the right amount of novorapid is injected.

i think it's ok now and then, but not all the time. however, i need reasons to convince her.

or am i wrong and she is right???

jonesy
Yes your wifes doing the right thing in bolusing for the treat and adding it to after the meal, but no not every night in my opinion.
So i would tend to agree with you.
Suzi x

 

[catherinecherub]

Hi jonesey,
Yes I do have children. I have three sons who are fit and healthy aged 21, 19 and 18. I have never indulged them in sweets, ice-cream etc. They had puddings, usually fresh fruit or yoghurt. They had sweets and crisps as a once a week treat. If they went to tea or parties at other people's houses they ate what everyone else was eating as it wasn't my remit there. Chocolate can stay in my fridge for months when they are home.

Catherine.

 

[jonesy]

HI, Sorry if I offended you with my post. I agree with you that most children will enjoy a cake or something as part of a meal. As I said, we tend to let them have something small which is normally after their tea or I put something like a small biscuit in their lunch box, but try and buy the lowest carb options I can. If you don't allow them to have treats then I guess they may rebel and eat things when you are not around.

you most certainly didn't offend me.....it sounds like you do exactly the same as we do.

 

[vic griff]

depens on wat ur sugar levels are!!!!! :?

 

[sophsmam]

we were told by the dietitian about 3 times a week to give a treat and then a small bar of chocolate or a small piece of cake etc.For a dessert usually a jelly,yoghurt or fruit.

 

[heypapatooni]

Please do not deprive your children of the odd treat!
They will rebel against you!
I was brought up in a family where we DID have pudding/desert of some description, but rarely got sweets, I used to make my selection box last until easter!
When I was diagnosed aged 11, suddenly family were REALLY cruel to me, offering me things, and then saying "OH! YOU can't have THEM" and whisking them away, offering me a cream cracker or granny smith as an alternative!
You will mess up their minds and make them feel really isolated!
Make sensible decisions, but don't be too strict! :evil:
On another note, my Granda (aged 90) was diagnosed with type 2 when he had alzheimers, the staff on the home must have told him he couldn't have any sugar on his cereal, they later found he had snuck into the dining room and eaten the contents of ALL the sugar bowls! :mrgreen:

 

[SophiaW]

I think it's okay to have a small pudding after a meal provided you bolus for it. When I say a pudding I don't mean sweets or rich puddings, we usually offer any of the following: 70g vanilla icecream, sugar free jelly, fresh berries or fruit salad (maybe with a spoon of whipped cream and a very tiny grating of dark chocolate), sugar free angel delight, natural yoghurt sweetened with honey or maple syrup (1 tsp). Very occasionally, maybe once a month, we'll bake and have a small portion of homemade cake e.g. Milk tart, banana loaf, cupcakes (usually without any icing). Sundays the grandparents visit and each fortnight they bring a mini size chocolate bar which Jess will have as her pudding after Sunday dinner.

 

[kegstore]

jonesy, sounds like you and your wife have your heads screwed on the right way! It's right to be cautious about treats - moderation is the key. I'm also fanatical about carb counting, and can't commend being so highly enough to others. By the way, good HbA1c for someone so recently diagnosed, I'm sure it will just get better. All the best, Jo