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Low BG - help !!

M

MyPump

Newbie
Messages
1
Location
UK
Hi, first time here.

I am looking for some advice and help please as I am not sure what is available.

I occasionally like all people with Diabetes have low BG and just recently I have been cycling home from work which is 4 miles. This of course burns up lots of Carbohydrates and in turn makes my BG low when I arrive home e.g. 4.0. I do try to have something like a banana before leaving work but this does not seem to be enough, I am looking for something quick and small to eat ?

I am also looking to find out what you eat or drink when you have a low BG as I tend to panic eat and eat sweets. Is there something more suitable that would easily fit in my pocket and work fast ?

Thanks for your time.

Andrew Borrett
(Website and Blog links removed)
 
Glucose tablets or a glucose drink (lucozade) are a quicker way to treat a hypo than sweets. Lucozade is quickest, when I had low blood sugar and was vomiting and the glucose tablets weren't doing anything I was told lucozade would be more effective in that case because it would have time to be absorbed before I next threw up !

Does your username refer to your insulin pump? I don't know how having a pump effects things eg how quickly blood sugar changes happen, there are lots of people with pumps here so I'm sure they can help!
 
Hi Andrew and welcome to the forum. There should be more people along today who can help you. In the meantime have a good read around there is a lot of information on here.
 
hi

We have just discovered gluco juice which is a lovely size for slipping in my hand bag altho at 1.50 a bottle it isnt cheap so i only tend to use these when we are out and about more, at home i use apple juice for dylan which also works well we also have gluco tabs on us all the time too.

there are lots of options out there its just finding something that u can work with size wise i guess

good luck
anna marie
 
Are you are on a pump?
Do you use a temporary basal before your ride home (or if it's every day you could programme in a lowered basal for that period )
 
My friend told me about some marvelous stuff that is available in newsagents, supermarkets etc called Candy Spray. It is pencil shape I believe and is glucose in a spray. There is not much liquid to swallow as it is a spray and costs about one pound. Available in different flavours.

I haven't got any yet but my friend said that 2 sprays sent her bg levels up by 8mmol.
 
I cycle to work about the same distance. I never do so without a packet of dextrol tablets in my pocket. You can get them in any chemist. They are very hi GI emergency meds to bring you out of a hypo - kinda like lucazade in a pill. Lucazade itself is not great for cycling as it tends to get shaken up and explode out of the bottle when you open it

As for food, well I arrange so that I need to eat as soon as I get home, so if i'm low then it's ok as I will eat and raise sugars naturally. Sometimes I have a snack before heading home if I feel a little wobbly. Just a buiscuit or an apple would be ok.

If you are 4.0 when you get home that's perfect anyway - hypo is 3 and below.
 
spooner.........

Sorry, but the medically approved definition of a hypo is less than 4 mmol/l NOT 3 mmol/l. The definition is posted in the 'Greetings and Introductions' thread.
 
It's about a 40 minute walk to and from work for me and my BS tend to drop a little too! I usually eat a Tracker bar before I set off home in the evening...I use these for hypos too. I normally eat a couple of jelly babies followed by a Raisin Tracker and it raises my BS by about 3-4 points.
 
To prevent a hypo I recommend dried fruit like mango or pineapple - but this only works if you take it well before you are actually hypo eg as a snack before you set off on your bike ride. If you are actually hypo you'll need something faster acting - I'm into little cartons of fruit juice at the mo -aaround 20g per carton, would these fit in your bag? liquid sugars are absorbed faster than solid
 
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