I love cereal and eat a lot of it. I find if I don't bolus enough in advance, my blood sugar will shoot up to around 11-13 and then drop down later. The drop you describe your daughter having made me wonder if it could be to do with the supper bolus amount and/or timing. It may be that by bolusing earlier, you can actually reduce the bolus amount but stop the spike (because the insulin will be working earlier to catch it) and stop the low (because the bolus will be more correctly timed to the cereal and you may not need so much bolus).
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Dexcom g4 readings not matching bg
- Thread starter Layah2013
- Start Date
I love cereal and eat a lot of it. I find if I don't bolus enough in advance, my blood sugar will shoot up to around 11-13 and then drop down later. The drop you describe your daughter having made me wonder if it could be to do with the supper bolus amount and/or timing. It may be that by bolusing earlier, you can actually reduce the bolus amount but stop the spike (because the insulin will be working earlier to catch it) and stop the low (because the bolus will be more correctly timed to the cereal and you may not need so much bolus).
Layah2013
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 60
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
Thats sound a good thing to do, i will try givin 20 mins before her supper her ratio at supper is 1 in 20.. it would be great if i could stop the big drop she has so i will try that tonight thankyou
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It may take a little experimentation to get the amount and timing of the bolus right, so keep tweaking carefully
GrantGam
Well-Known Member
You could try a slice of cheese on toast? The snack before bed doesn't have to be protein based - just lowish carb.
This bread works out at 6g per slice (typical breads are 15-20g), once you have deducted the fibre from the total carbohydrate content. Considering your daughter's BG seems to be falling over night - I wouldn't bother with a bolus dose for this either:
http://m.tesco.com/h5/groceries/r/www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=253803607
The bread is really nice too
Grant
You could try a slice of cheese on toast? The snack before bed doesn't have to be protein based - just lowish carb.
This bread works out at 6g per slice (typical breads are 15-20g), once you have deducted the fibre from the total carbohydrate content. Considering your daughter's BG seems to be falling over night - I wouldn't bother with a bolus dose for this either:
http://m.tesco.com/h5/groceries/r/www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=253803607
The bread is really nice too
Grant
Look like 11g per slice ?
You could try a slice of cheese on toast? The snack before bed doesn't have to be protein based - just lowish carb.
This bread works out at 6g per slice (typical breads are 15-20g), once you have deducted the fibre from the total carbohydrate content. Considering your daughter's BG seems to be falling over night - I wouldn't bother with a bolus dose for this either:
http://m.tesco.com/h5/groceries/r/www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=253803607
The bread is really nice too
Grant
@GrantGam1337 Its the total carbohydrate we use so that's the figure we need to count -ie 11g here.
( I just noticed that you'd talked about deducting the fibre)
catapillar
Well-Known Member
You could try a slice of cheese on toast? The snack before bed doesn't have to be protein based - just lowish carb.
This bread works out at 6g per slice (typical breads are 15-20g), once you have deducted the fibre from the total carbohydrate content. Considering your daughter's BG seems to be falling over night - I wouldn't bother with a bolus dose for this either:
http://m.tesco.com/h5/groceries/r/www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=253803607
The bread is really nice too
Grant
We don't deduct fibre, that's an American thing. U.K. Nutritional labels have already worked this out - we just use the total carb figure.
richyb
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 359
- Location
- worcestershire
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
- Treatment type
- Pump
- Dislikes
- Cold weather
I am no expert but is a pump the right thing to have if she is on the lowest basal rate and still is not low enough.
I have been seeing my DSN a lot lately and she has persuaded me to run my sugars higher. What surprised me was my average level ( Hba ) only went up by 4 units to 54. So reducing my hypos and helping to keep my hypo awareness
I have been seeing my DSN a lot lately and she has persuaded me to run my sugars higher. What surprised me was my average level ( Hba ) only went up by 4 units to 54. So reducing my hypos and helping to keep my hypo awareness
Layah2013
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 60
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
Glad you said that i was getting confused there as only ever been told to count carbs not deduct any fibre..
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Layah2013
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 60
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
She cant get the tiny doses she needs on the pens hence why she was put on the pump
Sent from my SM-A300FU using Diabetes.co.uk Forum mobile app
GrantGam
Well-Known Member
I was always taught to deduct fibre from the total carbohydrate content. And I live in Scotland.
GrantGam
Well-Known Member
Yeah that's how I was taught at my clinic. Seems to work for me...
Maybe they teach a different method in your area? Obviously, you shoukd do as you've been advised else it may cause difficulties in your calculations and ratios
But the usual method is to consider the total carbs and any ratios given will have been calculated using that figure too.
Anyone reading this who is in any doubt about how their ratio has been calculated should check with their DSN.
GrantGam
Well-Known Member
I would have thought the rules were Nation wide. I'm in NE Scotland.Maybe they teach a different method in your area? Obviously, you shoukd do as you've been advised else it may cause difficulties in your calculations and ratios
But the usual method is to consider the total carbs and any ratios given will have been calculated using that figure too.
Anyone reading this who is in any doubt about how their ratio has been calculated should check with their DSN.
Yes, I would have thought so too. Perhaps other members in Scotland will have more information on this?
TorqPenderloin
Well-Known Member
I'm late to replying to this thread, but I'd like to offer a few words that I hope may help.
I've been on the Dexcom G5 since last September when it came out and I LITERALLY trust my life to it....but I had to learn how to use it first. I think the number one thing I've learned in that time what that there is a time to blame the CGM, a time to blame technology in general, and a time to blame it on user error. I'd dare to say that the CGM is to blame less than 5% of the time.
Common frustrations:
1.) The readings are off- off from what? A standard glucometer has a margin of error also. Plus, they take measurements in two different ways as mentioned previously. It may the the CGM's fault or you could be dehydrated, calibrated it incorrectly, restricting blood flow to that area (especially if you sleep on it), or similar issues.
2.) Signal loss- while this happens much less frequently with the G4 (vs the g5) it still happens. I know it's particularly frustrating when it's a medical device, but that doesn't mean it's except from signal interference just like any other device. If you're ever curious, there are Bluetooth signal detector apps in the Apple App Store that will detect all of the Bluetooth signals around you. After I realized that my CGM was trying to stay connected to a signal device in a sea of more than 30 devices (airports are nightmares) I appreciated it's consistency much more.
A bit about what works well for me:
I almost always calibrate the CGM when my blood sugar is most stable. That ensures the least margin of error rather than worrying about the 10-20 minute delay in readings.
Occasionally, I will calibrate on the peak of a high or a low, but that's a much more complicated process that took time to learn as you have to consider what the trend arrows are telling you. Example: if my CGM says I'm at 9 mmol/l and the trend arrow says I'm still climbing then I wouldn't calibrate because it could just be the delay. However, if it says I'm at 9 and the arrow (and graph) shows I've reached a peak, but my glucometer says I'm really at 12mmol/l then I may calibrate the CGM.
What I deal with/dealt with:
I often get false hypo alerts (my family members get the alerts too) in the middle of the night because I roll over on my side and sleep on the sensor/transmitter. I've shared the full story on here before, but it happened once where my family called me and I didn't hear my phone (ring 25 times). I eventually woke up to paramedics at my door even though my blood sugar was really around 5-6 and perfectly okay. In the end, this was my fault not the CGM.
I used to get horrible sensor loss issues. It was particularly frustrating because it seemed to happen right after I went to sleep which rendered the CGM useless at night. I eventually realized that it was an issue with the iPhone software and running too many background apps. Again, not the CGMs fault.
I've wasted 2 sensors trying to install them on the back of my arms like some people do. It just doesn't work for me. Not the CGMs fault. However, every once in a while (maybe 1 in 15) I get a sensor that doesn't work even when installed perfectly. Dexcom has always been great about replacing them for me. It's a pain and I do blame it on the CGM, but I know Dexcom is working on a new sensor with a single push button applicator.
Just a few thoughts. Hopefully there's something that may be valuable in all of that
I've been on the Dexcom G5 since last September when it came out and I LITERALLY trust my life to it....but I had to learn how to use it first. I think the number one thing I've learned in that time what that there is a time to blame the CGM, a time to blame technology in general, and a time to blame it on user error. I'd dare to say that the CGM is to blame less than 5% of the time.
Common frustrations:
1.) The readings are off- off from what? A standard glucometer has a margin of error also. Plus, they take measurements in two different ways as mentioned previously. It may the the CGM's fault or you could be dehydrated, calibrated it incorrectly, restricting blood flow to that area (especially if you sleep on it), or similar issues.
2.) Signal loss- while this happens much less frequently with the G4 (vs the g5) it still happens. I know it's particularly frustrating when it's a medical device, but that doesn't mean it's except from signal interference just like any other device. If you're ever curious, there are Bluetooth signal detector apps in the Apple App Store that will detect all of the Bluetooth signals around you. After I realized that my CGM was trying to stay connected to a signal device in a sea of more than 30 devices (airports are nightmares) I appreciated it's consistency much more.
A bit about what works well for me:
I almost always calibrate the CGM when my blood sugar is most stable. That ensures the least margin of error rather than worrying about the 10-20 minute delay in readings.
Occasionally, I will calibrate on the peak of a high or a low, but that's a much more complicated process that took time to learn as you have to consider what the trend arrows are telling you. Example: if my CGM says I'm at 9 mmol/l and the trend arrow says I'm still climbing then I wouldn't calibrate because it could just be the delay. However, if it says I'm at 9 and the arrow (and graph) shows I've reached a peak, but my glucometer says I'm really at 12mmol/l then I may calibrate the CGM.
What I deal with/dealt with:
I often get false hypo alerts (my family members get the alerts too) in the middle of the night because I roll over on my side and sleep on the sensor/transmitter. I've shared the full story on here before, but it happened once where my family called me and I didn't hear my phone (ring 25 times). I eventually woke up to paramedics at my door even though my blood sugar was really around 5-6 and perfectly okay. In the end, this was my fault not the CGM.
I used to get horrible sensor loss issues. It was particularly frustrating because it seemed to happen right after I went to sleep which rendered the CGM useless at night. I eventually realized that it was an issue with the iPhone software and running too many background apps. Again, not the CGMs fault.
I've wasted 2 sensors trying to install them on the back of my arms like some people do. It just doesn't work for me. Not the CGMs fault. However, every once in a while (maybe 1 in 15) I get a sensor that doesn't work even when installed perfectly. Dexcom has always been great about replacing them for me. It's a pain and I do blame it on the CGM, but I know Dexcom is working on a new sensor with a single push button applicator.
Just a few thoughts. Hopefully there's something that may be valuable in all of that
catapillar
Well-Known Member
Yep you would have thought so. [although, no "rules" - it's all just guides and what works] But definitely stick with what you've been taught and what works for you. Maybe others in Scotland will be able to add more
The U.K. wide DAFNE course says use total carbs and do not deduct fibre.
This Edinburgh site on carb counting doesn't mention deducting fibre - http://www.edinburghdiabetes.com/carbcount - it's quite a good guide site though as a reference material.
Edit: wrong link, sorry! Correct page linked now, put the front page to the site still looks good - http://www.edinburghdiabetes.com/intensive-diabetes-control/
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