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Holiday to Japan

B

Beery

Member
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12
At the start of next month I will be visiting Japan for 8 days, I’m wondering what it is like over there when counting carbs etc. Is there clear nutrition detailed on the packaging of foods etc or will I be doing a lot of guessing when over there?
I’m quite confident in guessing portion sizes etc but of course if there is nutritional information then that would be much better.
If anyone has any tips for me travelling over there I would appreciate them.
I should also mention I’m currently on MDI but I am getting a pump just before I leave so i just wanted to know if I’m better waiting till after the holiday to use the pump properly.
 
Everything on packaging was in Japanese when I was there. To be honest anything wrapped is very highly processed there and probably best avoided. I’d stick to eating out where possible and avoid the obvious carbs. There is always lots of salad and meats/fish. Or shop and cook everything from scratch if self catering. It is an amazing place!
 
Beery said:
I'm wondering what it is like over there when counting carbs etc. Is there clear nutrition detailed on the packaging of foods etc or will I be doing a lot of guessing when over there?
Click to expand...

Would this help?

(Can't see anything on it about fibre, maybe some googling required)

 
Hi @Beery ,

A good fast translation app. The sort that pictures the text & translation boxes interpret may help?

with regards to starting on a pump just before an adventure? I'd probably stick with what i know & get comfortable & fully acquainted with the new in familiar surroundings when i'm home.. What with the labeling & wot not..?

I'll tag in some pump users with their view.. @kitedoc @helensaramay @Juicyj @Mel dCP

Enjoy yer trip!
 
I cannot help with the Japanese for carbs.
However, as a pump user, I am more comfortable pumping when travelling than I was when on MDI as changing time zones is much much easier.
That said, the first few weeks of pumping may be challenging whilst your basal profile is tweaked. Abnormal lifestyle during this time may extend the time it takes to get you basal profile optimised.
In other words, there are pros and cons of transitioning to the pump before your trip.
 

I will definitely try and find a translation app, I didn’t even think of this. Thanks.
 

This was one of my thoughts as I was unsure with the time difference how I would need to change my morning and night time basal, I will definitely give the pump a shot but I will also have my pens on stand by incase anything changes. Thank you.
 
Beery said:
I will definitely try and find a translation app, I didn’t even think of this. Thanks.
Click to expand...

Yep. Oddly i use a free Japanese to English translation app for Android. Called "Translator."
LOL, though i'm not using it for food labeling. Hope this helps.
 
Scott-C said:
From his mention of MDI and pump, I assume the op is T1, so there's no pressing need to avoid carbs - would be a bit of a downer going all the way to Japan and missing out on sushi!
Click to expand...

Yep. Missed that. The sushi etc is amazing! I assumed that the OP meant packaging and wanting to avoid carbs. Never seen nutritional info on a menu tho.
 
Bi @Beery, I think trying to cope with a new pump and its foibles on top of a trip to a new country is a recipe for disaster.
If something was going wrong with your pump over there you could ring your DSN, allowing for time differences, but there would be no hands on help. And what if you could not get through to her/him or your doctor??
You cannot be sure who over there can help you and that can make advice from a long way away less easy to carry out.
Stick to what you know and once you have the pump sorted ? 3 to 6 months, then you can be much more confident about travelling with it.
There are threads here on travelling with MDI (use question box of the forum page - right upper corner). But please ask questions if you cannot find what you need. Best Wishes
 
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Did you translate it back to English making sure it correlates with the box..

You got no idea what I use my translator for.. Let's just say I had an intriguing bit of high end "touch screen" tech that came with my Jap import van, with no way of changing the language.
 
I'm currently in SE Asia, and although my condition, and not needing to inject insulin, gives me plenty leeway with carbs, I have been interested in what's in what I might be eating.

Whilst very few food labels here have the English translations with them, I quickly gleaned that, like UK, things are listed in a consistent manner, so I can easily find carbs, sugars, fat and the like.

I'm also gluten-free, which is much more of a challenge, bearing in mind the various sources of gluten, including the almost omni-present soy sauce, so I'm suffering there a bit, bit I'll cope, I hope.

When I arrived here I looked for transltor apps. Google translate is very good for spoken translations, but it's nt so easy to copy over the oriental characters.

I've also made myself a little cheat sheet to try to recognise various things on menus (mainly for the gluten really).

I found one or two for translating photos, so they are out there, as subscriptions add-ons. Dr Google can probably help there. The options appear to differ a bit between iOs and Android. It could be useful to look at that before you go.

Have a fab holiday and I do hope you enjoy the culture and all it has to offer.
 
If you are going to use Google Translate then remember to download Japanese before you leave home that way it works without access to the internet. I always use it on holidays, point the camera at a sign or whatever and the translation appears. I haven't tried Japanese.

Edited to add: maybe try it out on a pack of noodles or something before you go.
 
I haven't looked in Google Translate for Japanese, but not all languages are available in all forms (audio, photo or text). It'd be worth doing the work before leaving.
 
DCUKMod said:
I haven't looked in Google Translate for Japanese, but not all languages are available in all forms (audio, photo or text). It'd be worth doing the work before leaving.
Click to expand...
From what I have seen in Translate, Japanese has all the required bits, although will download the language file which comes in two sizes.
 
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