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Type 1 How to lower sugar level quickly?

a correction dose of fast acting insulin is the quickest way

for a blood sugar level above 10 i would use 1u for a drop of 3 mmol/l and for a sugar level of say 9 i would use 1u for a drop of 2 mmol/l

your DSN should be able to advise you on this as well if you give her a ring.
 
By taking rapid acting insulin in a nutshell. It's how all T1s lower their blood glucose level.

Can we have more details as to what you are trying to achieve and from where?
 
Exercise can be quite a good way to lower your bg, providing its not too high to start with otherwise you shouldn't excercise, if its around 10 (i think) some exercise would be fine to lower it that little bit
 
himtoo said:
a correction dose of fast acting insulin is the quickest way

for a blood sugar level above 10 i would use 1u for a drop of 3 mmol/l and for a sugar level of say 9 i would use 1u for a drop of 2 mmol/l

your DSN should be able to advise you on this as well if you give her a ring.
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I'm confused by correction doses. 1u for a drop of 3mmol/l and 1u for a drop of 2mmol/l. Can you please explain in layman terms. Thanks.
 
First off - the starting figure that hospital staff start you on is 1 unit of insulin is expected to drop your bg by 3.0bg eg-
With a level of 9 and 1 unit of insulin it would be expected to drop you to a bg of 6.0.

However... This is only a starting place... People using more basal and bolus insulin are more than likely going to need more insulin to correct them... E.g they may work on a ratio of 1 unit only drops them by 1.5bg... So they would -
Level of 9.0.... Bolus 2 units to get to a level of 6.0bg

People on smaller doses of insulin may well use 1unit if insulin lowers them by 4bg so they would need to use less than 1 unit....and would be ok on a pump but would possibly need a pen that gives 0.5 bolus.

You should aim to be at your target by 5 hours... Not 2 hours.. If you are at target level by 2 hours you are more likely to go hypo between 2-5 hours.

Your DSN Should go through all of this with you...
 
Thank you @donnellysdogs, for that explanation. I understand what I'm supposed to do now. I have copied this and printed it out for further use. Don't think I will be seeing DSN again. They haven't booked me in for an appointment. I see the Endo next February. Like many people, I get my answers from this Forum.
 
There are other factprs to consider as well...

1) if this isn't maging to get you down to your target level at 5 hours... Then you may need to fine tune a little more or indeed if it got you down too quick... You may have had a food that was too quick acting...

There's a lot of considerations long term ie if you are above 12.0 you're corrrection factor may always need to be a bit more if you go above 12.0. Ie I know if above 12 I could add on another 1/2 unit.. If above 14.0 I would double the correction.... But that is specific to me and my body and 30+ years of T1.

Then you have to consider if you are ill or coming down with a cold etc... In which case this would mean adjusting your basals up a bit.

Best to speak to your endo... Overcorrecting if hypo or hyper is just learning how your body is fine tuned.. Bit like a F1 car needing quadruple petrol to that of a hybrid car... We all have different needs.. Just need fine tuning...

You'll be ok.. Question any time..
 
Too much, too quick and you'll crash just like the cars too!! -lol.
 
This subject makes my head spin. Can anyone recommend a really thorough and reliable article or book on this? BDEC seems very good but I feel it misses some aspects, and I don't think it caters for low-carbing issues. Dietdoctor.com gives a lot of info for T2 but much less for T1.
 
If my blood glucose meter gives a reading of "HI" how would I know how much of a correction dose to give. Am I right in assuming it's 30mmols or would it be higher than this.
 
Have you washed your hands?

It depends on how much insulin you are taking on an average day. To get down to a safe level of 9.0... From a reading of 30... Thats 21bg you need to drop... So if that was me I would be considering 7 units... But that is me.... Based upon my dosage .. Infact I would be doing extra basal too but you really need to speak to 111 and a GP on this....

You can not go by what I would do. Please speak to 111 and ask them to get a nurse or GP to speak to you...
 
silverbirch said:
Thank you @donnellysdogs, for that explanation. I understand what I'm supposed to do now. I have copied this and printed it out for further use. Don't think I will be seeing DSN again. They haven't booked me in for an appointment. I see the Endo next February. Like many people, I get my answers from this Forum.
Click to expand...
It may be worth calling the diabetes service and making an appointment to see the DSN. If they say no, ask them why. If it looks like you're not making headway, see your GP and he or she might write to them. Really I think they should be available and providing help to you whenever you need it. T1 seems pretty complicated to manage well and if I had it I would need a lot of DSN appointments for a long time before I felt comfortable deciding on insulin doses because there are so many variables to consider each time. Forum input is great but there's nothing like sitting down with a HCP and getting professional help.
 
silverbirch said:
If my blood glucose meter gives a reading of "HI" how would I know how much of a correction dose to give. Am I right in assuming it's 30mmols or would it be higher than this.
Click to expand...


How are you today?
 
donnellysdogs said:
How are you today?
Click to expand...

Hi @donnellysdogs, I'm working really hard to get my bs levels down. I was good with my diet for such a long time, and then something happened, on a personal level, and I just thought "stuff it" being diabetic, I'm not doing this anymore, the doctors have got it all wrong, I'm not type 1, especially at my age. But how wrong can one person be. So now I'm back on the right track and keeping to the right foods, which is low carbing. Thank you for your encouragement and thank you for asking.
 
lizdeluz said:
This subject makes my head spin. Can anyone recommend a really thorough and reliable article or book on this? BDEC seems very good but I feel it misses some aspects, and I don't think it caters for low-carbing issues. Dietdoctor.com gives a lot of info for T2 but much less for T1.
Click to expand...
There are different types of low carbing though. If LCHF then the only real T1 point is that you need much less insulin and you need to count carbs in green veg as they have an impact. If LCHF and doing a lot of exercise you need even less than straight LCHF.

Where it gets complicated is if you look at LC, higher protein. Then you start to have gluconeogenesis side effects and that's the point at which you are bolusing for protein in a way that many people aren't used to.

Given that none of the official courses consider this aspect or the impact of fat on carb absorption, and there aren't that many t1s or iddms, it's not really a surprise that a website like diet doctor doesn't really consider t1s either.
 
silverbirch said:
Hi @donnellysdogs, I'm working really hard to get my bs levels down. I was good with my diet for such a long time, and then something happened, on a personal level, and I just thought "stuff it" being diabetic, I'm not doing this anymore, the doctors have got it all wrong, I'm not type 1, especially at my age. But how wrong can one person be. So now I'm back on the right track and keeping to the right foods, which is low carbing. Thank you for your encouragement and thank you for asking.
Click to expand...

Glad to hear you're back on the right track. In addition to info above ref fat and protein I also have to bolus 4g for one egg.

Personal incidents can really mess us up at times!! I empathise with you on that, totally.

Keep in touch as we are always here to help and encourage. From the sound of your last post you sound more positive and I am sure you can get levels lower again.

I've only once veered off lower carbing for a short while and it didn't suit me. Now I have no choice as my stomach only tolerates certain foods.. Heavy carbs-bread, pasta and rice crucify me with pain and worse.. So I know the benefits of lower carbing.

It does lower the qty that you are bolusing but you may well find that your basal insulin may drop too.

Keep in touch...x
 
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