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Hospital food

M

Manders

Newbie
Messages
1
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I am currently in hospital for a condition unrelated to my diabetes and am despairing at the lack of knowledge about what a diabetic should actually eat. I had to have porridge for breakfast yesterday as the only other choice was cornflakes, weetabix or toast - all a no-no. My b/s rocketed to 13.2. I have since moved wards and there is even less choice so have gone without. A nurse just asked me if I could eat yoghurt to which I replied that I could if it was plain, natural yoghurt. If course it was flavoured and the second ingredient was sugar with 14.9g carbs per 100g. The nurse said it's approved for diabetics! My family are supplementing my diet as best they can but my b/s remains between 12 & 13 which makes me feel horrible and will take me ages to reduce once I get home.
Sorry for the long post, just needed to rant!!!
 
Manders said:
I I had to have porridge for breakfast yesterday as the only other choice was cornflakes, weetabix or toast - all a no-no.
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I had similar experience . It does seem odd to be only offers carbs on a diabetic ward. But their portions are always very small, and the porridge is more like grouting compound, but with less flavour. If you're in bed all day and night you really don't need a lot of calories, compared to being at home/working. Perhaps your morning BG is high anyway due to liver dump?

I couldn't hold down any other food for ages, so had to stick to porridge, and am now addicted to it. But there are worse things.

After I got used to hospital foods I really enjoyed their salads and chose them most days for 7 weeks. Its probably the healthiest food I've ever had. Much nicer that I normally see in a cafe.
 
Your experience is not unusual at all. It's a major problem for anyone low carbing and diet controlled. Everything is cheap high carb rubbish. Sugar everywhere you look. Great that your family can help out, it's what I had to do last time I was in for an unrelated problem.
 
And this is where the "type" of diabetes needs to be changed. 2 totally different diseases with the same name. As a type 1 I can happily eat that and inject for it BUT a type 2 low carber would defo struggle
 
I am type 1 and low carb. We still go high if we guess the carb/insulin dose wrong something which is highly likely when we are not exercising or sleeping normally etc! Would doubtless fast if I went in until evening when a higher protein meal is more likely. Otherwise lots of M & S food options on many hospital sites.
I agree with the general point that the quality of food offered in hospitals is not conducive to healing but you get what you don't pay much for but its a false economy to close down hospital kitchens and ship in processed rubbish.
 
If you are lucky there is a meat option and a salad, every desert is high carb. Five weeks in hospital trying to eat anything that didn't make me want to heave or send my BS up was a nightmare. A lot of people seemed to live on toast. They say that the reason is that when you are ill you need the calories, and there is not such thing as a diabetic diet. I only started eating when I went home, which seems to be normal for most people, or the went to Burger King or M&S. I would now take with me a load of seed and nut bars.
 
Manders said:
Sorry for the long post, just needed to rant!!!
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Welcome to the forum, no need to apologise, I think most of us have been there. I've experienced this in a U.S. hospital as well as NHS and private hospitals. The choice I had in a private hospital was very good so that I could pick and choose and I was never in a position where the only options were full of carbs. I'm not sure what the answer is although I wonder if saying that carbs gave you extremely bad diarrhea might help.

Manders said:
The nurse said it's approved for diabetics!
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That's a very broad statement, probably diabetics who are taking medication to cater for a carb loaded diet. The most annoying thing is that we're expected to change our diets which "they" say has led to our condition (type II) and then when we do something about our diet they provide little in the way of diet support when in THEIR care.

Get well soon.
 
It doesn’t sound promising but ask if there is a special diets sheet. Southampton General have one they don't routinely offer out that has more low carb options on it.

if thats not an option then I ignore the set limitations and order as many of the things I can eat and ask for double/triple of those and none of the bad options. And write all over it “low carb restricted to manage type 2 diabetes levels”. Eg no potatoes of which you are supposed to choose one but three veg of which you are supposed to only choose two. Or 3 fried eggs and no toast/cereals. It’s worked for me -ish. It’s all on the menu and as a responsible adult surely you can choose the proportions of the offerings for yourself within reason.

Would you eat a pudding at home? Why eat one in hospital then?
 
porl69 said:
And this is where the "type" of diabetes needs to be changed. 2 totally different diseases with the same name. As a type 1 I can happily eat that and inject for it BUT a type 2 low carber would defo struggle
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You might be lucky enough to eat that. If I ate that my glucose would have sky rocketed, and come back down a few hours later, as of most type 1.
 
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