This is a long one so sorry in advance! My partner is type one and is on basal bonus regim, he injects one unit per 15g of carbs! So could he eat a meal with no carbs and be fine? Or does he have to have carbs at every meal? We are so confused and haven't received much help! And how many g of carbs or how many units of insulin should he be having a day? Thank you
Helllpppppp!!!!
- Thread starter Kaychris
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TorqPenderloin
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You guys are WAY overthinking this. He needs to keep his blood sugar regulated....that's the bottom line.
Unless he has some unusual health circumstance, there's nothing that says he has to have carbs with every meal.
There's also no uniform requirement for how much insulin people need....some people may need 1 unit/day while other people may need 500 units.
It doesn't look like you guys have done much research which is a bit concerning. While I am type 1 and ultra low-carb, it's not something that you blindly follow. Insulin is not something you guess with and it can be extremely helpful or extremely dangerous depending on how it's used.
My suggestion: calm down a bit, do some more research, and then approach the diet change with less confusion.
Unless he has some unusual health circumstance, there's nothing that says he has to have carbs with every meal.
There's also no uniform requirement for how much insulin people need....some people may need 1 unit/day while other people may need 500 units.
It doesn't look like you guys have done much research which is a bit concerning. While I am type 1 and ultra low-carb, it's not something that you blindly follow. Insulin is not something you guess with and it can be extremely helpful or extremely dangerous depending on how it's used.
My suggestion: calm down a bit, do some more research, and then approach the diet change with less confusion.
azure
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We are sooo confused, he was diagnosed 20 years ago and used to just inject 18units at each meal! When I met him and realised that he was doing this all wrong, he hasn't really ever taken a care in looking after himself so that's what I'm trying to do, but the more I research the more confused I become :/ I didn't know if he had to have carbs or not, or if he had to have a certain amount of insulin a day
20 years, but he has never tired to understand it, he used to just inject 18u it's of insulin with every meal, never checked his blood sugar!
azure
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Insulin isn't like other drugs where a doctor might prescribe a certain dose to take and that's it. There is no 'set amount' of insulin. The amount varies hugely.
When he injected the 18 units, did he count carbs and eat a certain amount of carbs at each meal?
azure
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People with Type 1 eat varying amounts of carbs. He doesn't have to avoid carbs if he's Type 1. He needs to match his insulin to his carbs. What are his blood test results like?
azure
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Does he see a consultant? High blood sugar levels can cause damage long term and short term make him feel rough.
If he's been told to inject 1 unit of insulin to 15g of carbs, then he should do that. Has he been shown how to count carbs?
No he hasn't! And our doctors are rubbish, we asked her how we find out his carb to insulin ratio and she said that we need to see a dietician, we are still waiting for the appointment, so we got to the 1:15 ratio by trial and error, I would feel horrible if I had done it all wrong, that's why I'm after advice x
azure
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I'm sure you haven't done anything wrong - you're clearly trying to help him 
And if he hasn't been giving his diabetes the attention he should, then he's lucky to have you helping him.
There is an online carb counting course here:
http://www.bdec-e-learning.com
Or he could ask to go on the DAFNE course which he would attend in person. There may be a wait for that.
If he has Type 1 he should be seeing a consultant. If he doesn't have one, you or he could ask his GP for a referral. At a hospital diabetes clinic, he would have access to a specialist team.
In the meantime, encourage him to test more! If he doesn't test, it's like he's driving with a blindfold on. Testing and carb counting are the keys to good diabetic control.
@Kaychris Just a note to say there is currently a fault on the forum. I've been making sure your posts get through (I'm a moderator here) but I'll be going offline soon, so if you try to post and it doesn't work or you get error messages, please don't worry. It's not you. It's happening to a number of people. Your messages will appear eventually as we get them through manually.
And if he hasn't been giving his diabetes the attention he should, then he's lucky to have you helping him.There is an online carb counting course here:
http://www.bdec-e-learning.com
Or he could ask to go on the DAFNE course which he would attend in person. There may be a wait for that.
If he has Type 1 he should be seeing a consultant. If he doesn't have one, you or he could ask his GP for a referral. At a hospital diabetes clinic, he would have access to a specialist team.
In the meantime, encourage him to test more! If he doesn't test, it's like he's driving with a blindfold on. Testing and carb counting are the keys to good diabetic control.
@Kaychris Just a note to say there is currently a fault on the forum. I've been making sure your posts get through (I'm a moderator here) but I'll be going offline soon, so if you try to post and it doesn't work or you get error messages, please don't worry. It's not you. It's happening to a number of people. Your messages will appear eventually as we get them through manually.
Thank you so much for your helpI'm sure you haven't done anything wrong - you're clearly trying to help him
There is an online carb counting course here:
http://www.bdec-e-learning.com
Or he could ask to go on the DAFNE course which he would attend in person. There may be a wait for that.
If he has Type 1 he should be seeing a consultant. If he doesn't have one, you or he could ask his GP for a referral. At a hospital diabetes clinic, he would have access to a specialist team.
In the meantime, encourage him to test more! If he doesn't test, it's like he's driving with a blindfold on. Testing and carb counting are the keys to good diabetic control.
@Kaychris Just a note to say there is currently a fault on the forum. I've been making sure your posts get through (I'm a moderator here) but I'll be going offline soon, so if you try to post and it doesn't work or you get error messages, please don't worry. It's not you. It's happening to a number of people. Your messages will appear eventually as we get them through manually.
c
TorqPenderloin
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I think it’s admirable that you want to help so badly, but you can’t help someone that doesn’t want to help themselves.
Do you believe his apathy is the result of being selfish, or is it possible that he’s struggling with more serious issues like depression?
I ask that sincerely because many men (like myself) sometimes forget that we’re not bulletproof. He needs to realize that his choices not only effect his life, but yours, your children (if you have any), and the rest of his family and friends.
It seems he needs to sort out his mental struggles first before making any dietary changes.
Buy the books using insulin and think like a pancreas, both can be found on amazon. I think they will help no end.
