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low carb diet in hospital

I was in last year for nearly a week - have congenital heart disease and AF too. Diet options were appalling. I'm on a basal : bolus regime so can adapt. However, not sure why I should have to adapt to their lack of knowledge. We bought them a copy of 'think like a pancreas' for the ward. They were labouring under the impression that diabetics shouldn't have pudding but could have 2 large baked potatoes!!!! They wouldn't let me see either the dietician or the catering manager, so I wouldn't let them have my insulin or other medications and also wouldn't let them do my bg levels. Not a lot they can do if you consistently say "no, go away!!!" has to be said that often heart wards are just as ignorant, things like "you're too young to have heart problems" etc etc. It's not the lack of knowledge that infuriates me, it's the lack of willingness to learn. Sorry. - long post. Sore point!!!
 
I have also had problems with the basic diet in a hospital, and have had to go in a few times over the last 2 years, not for diabetes but for kidney problems, until I discovered that there are a range of other dietary options including Caribbean food, Halal/Asian foods, Kosher food, renal diet etc where it was possible to reduce the carb levels. For example, the Asian diet had various curry options plus daal with additional rice so it was possible to have limited or no rice.
However, I had to be very assertive to ask for these as I was told variously, it was too expensive, I needed a doctor's letter, there was no system to order this etc. I asked if other people with diabetes had special diets and was told that every ward had people with diabetes and no-one else has complained even though the lunch menu was baked potatoes or sandwiches with no salad at all.
I am taking it up with PALS and strategically with other staff and hope that people will be offered a wider range of menus as there are lots of reorganisations happening, but ridiculously, at the moment there are no low carb diet menus. I was also on the renal diet which is better than the basic but is very bland as there is limited salt and no spices or herbs to compensate and not much choice of low carb. Maybe worth asking though. I was told the menus were approved by the dietician! One of the key issues that the staff on the wards although helpful on medical issues have very little knowledge of low carb diets for people with diabetes.
When my daughter brought in food from M&S, it was like heaven! Of course when doped up on pain killers, bland food somehow doesn't seem as bad!
 
Hello to all here,,as a T2 I found hospital food really bloating,and my bs were up the wall,,one day I decided to have the 'soft' options,,so I had the apple crumble and custard, the nurses were gob smacked at me eating it,,and I enjoyed every mouthful,,breakfast was uneatable for me, cereals, yuk, or a brown roll,double yuk,,so I had yogurt,only a low fat muller and two cups of tea,,but it was better than what was on offer,,I decided to just eat what I wanted and ignore the carbs, I did see a hospital dietician, who made me cross with all the talk of eat carbs, snacks they don't really study what diabetics need, learn't more here. Keep up the good work and working to get the message about low carb and better protein in high fat to keep the bs levels low,,ttfn from karen.
 
 
I could not agree more about the poor food situation in medical facilities. Nobody seems too eager to change to low carb foods either, in order to assist diabetics from endangering themselves. Is it lack of education that high carbs and diabetes don't mix? Yes, we have to watch our eyesight, neuropathy, kidneys, and a host of other things. It's discouraging to think it could be all about saving money. I know there are cut-backs but this is no answer. It is true that high carb grub is less expensive! Is that a reason to put people in jeopardy? No way!
Everyone just passes the buck.
I wonder if they may put together a more reasonable menu for us if there was an option to pay for them doing so. Would be interesting to know.
 
I agree!!! Doctors here in the Uk , in general, also only go by what the book says! Eat more bread pasta rice and potatoes!!!! My mum who is a high risk type two.. went into hospital, I had the same argument as you, one dr told me... Diabetes is a sugar disease it has nothing to do with any other food stuff!!!! I was astonished!
 
Seriously though, how expensive is it to offer bacon and eggs, or sausages or even a burger (without the bun)?
 
I have been visiting a friend in hospital she went in with an infection and low blood sugar,they reduced her insulin her sugar went up.When it was time for her to go home they kept her in because of her high blood sugar,we had to explain to the doctor that she was now eating properly so her insulin needed adjusting,she then got better.
 
Totally agree, menu for diabetics is dire, particularly bad for newly diagnosed rookie diabetics who have no knowledge of controlling carb intake/insulin ratio, nutrition, etc. I was diagnosed during stay for gall-bladder removal/pancreatic disorder, hospital refusal to discharge due to high glucose levels, but no education on why or how to reduce levels by my choice of what foods to take or avoid from the standard menu. Took it upon myself to experiment and hey presto BG reduced (not enough though in hospital view), but discharged myself after a week. Three years later I've self-educated and now know my limits
 
Imagine that
it's like they're trying to kill us.
 
Berstein recommends taking a loud person with you to make a fuss on your behalf
 
Tannith said:
Isn't it simpler to just refuse the carbs or leave them on your plate?
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For t1s they usually adjust it to insulin so its difficult, but my t2 grandma just left it on the plate exactly when she was in hosp with her diabetes. We brought her chicken etc from home instead.
 
Tannith said:
Isn't it simpler to just refuse the carbs or leave them on your plate?
Click to expand...

That's okay if you are only in for a day or two but not if you're in hospital for any length of time. When I was in hospital for a fairly lengthy stay I found the food absolutely dreadful - I ended up asking my husband to bring in food for me every day - bags of salad and packs of cold meats or a hot rotisserie chicken - and thats how I survived. I know a low carb diet must be more difficult to cater for but it is possible with a little consideration.

Apart from our particular problem I do find hospital food in general to be dreadful. My last stay was on a cancer ward (thankfully it turned out I didn't have it) but the other women there were in a bad way - some of them having had major operations or various therapies that completely took away their appetites - what they needed was nice flavourful food at the proper temperature - what they got was part cooked (or over cooked) mainly tepid food that didn't tempt them at all. I am a hundred per cent sure that the food was detrimental to their recovery.
 
To me it seems that the diabetic medical teams force us to make up 60-70% of our diet with the one food (carbs) that makes diabetes worse. It makes zero sense.

I've argued this point on number of occasions only to get a half assed scare mongering story about ketones.

The truth is the dietitians don't know much about ketones our about ketosis. They hear the word diabetic and ketone in the same sentence and they go into this emergency mode right away. They have been thought a way to treat diabetics and it looks like they will never change their minds, mostly out of ignorance.

They advise us to work out to lose weight if necessary yet do they understand to lose weight even when exercise the body breaks fat down to that scary ketone acid.

The whole world of Diabetes treatment needs to change.
 
If you had the knowledge which does seem rather lacking on your part then the simplest thing to do is adjust your insulin for carbs consumed this is very basic diabetes knowledge for insulin users and if you are unable to do that then the other simple solution is it not to halve the amount on your plate. Problem solved on all accounts.

It's a bit rich calling me ignorant as I have been on insulin for 52 years with no complications
 
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Same experience last week
Hospital stay for non related diabetes but staff so ignorant
One nurse was amazed I knew the carb count for most food items
Food disgusting chips and mash on same plate, double carbs
Also wanted to take testing kit and insulin off me as I needed to be monitored. Explained have been managing Type 2 insulin dependant for last 15 years but it seems they know better than you
 
Yes many times but I’m not only diabetic but coeliac (strictly gluten-free) and dairy intolerant. It shocks me how bad hospitals are food wise for those on a restricted diet in general .
if I know I’m going in I take food with me now.
 
Last year I was hospitalised with pneumonia. They were very helpful and really did what they could to feed me what I could eat. For example, eggs weren't served but they boiled some for me. Not that I was very hungry as I was so ill.

I'm in Sweden though and LCHF is probably more accepted here.
 
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