Insulin pump and time set

Stefano

Well-Known Member
Messages
123
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hello everybody. I need some suggestions. In 10 days I'm going to California & Mexico and I use an insulin pump. Between California & UK there's a time difference of 8 hours.
The question I have is when should I change the time in the pump? When I arrive ( afternoon in USA but night in UK ), the morning after or when?
I spoke to the consultant and Gp but they would act differently. Has anyone travelled with a pump to a very different time zone and what has he/she done?
It is quite important for me as my basal needs tend to reduce drastically in the late afternoon and evening (almost 70%) so I need to understand how my brain will react due to jet lag. Any suggestion really appreciated. Thanks. Stefano


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mrman

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,419
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
If it was me I would change to 8 hours ahead just before the flight. Compensate for expected lows/highs with carbs/bolus. that way u will adjust to holiday time quicker. Hopefully others will advise what they have done.

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JustDomUK

Well-Known Member
Messages
88
Hello everybody. I need some suggestions. In 10 days I'm going to California & Mexico and I use an insulin pump. Between California & UK there's a time difference of 8 hours.
The question I have is when should I change the time in the pump? When I arrive ( afternoon in USA but night in UK ), the morning after or when?
I spoke to the consultant and Gp but they would act differently. Has anyone travelled with a pump to a very different time zone and what has he/she done?
It is quite important for me as my basal needs tend to reduce drastically in the late afternoon and evening (almost 70%) so I need to understand how my brain will react due to jet lag. Any suggestion really appreciated. Thanks. Stefano


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What I discovered is that it takes my body a few days to adjust to a new time zone. I kept everything the same for the first few days as per instructions from my diabetes team. Well until I stopped waking up at 3 AM starving lol. I guess you have to think about it in these terms; although you consciously know you're in a different timezone, no one has actually told your body that.

It is entirely up to your body when it's ready so leave it as is and monitor carefully. Your body will adjust and this can take any time from a day or so to a week.