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Need help regulating my BGs

L

Laura21

Member
Messages
10
Location
Bedfordshire, England
As I explained in my introduction thread, I am having troubles getting my BG's under control.

Right now, they're at HI (over 30mmol). I take my insulin as I should.

Where am I going wrong? Please, any advice is greatly appreciated as this is seriously upsetting me.

Thanks x
 
Ok, lets start with your medication. What are you on now, how much are you taking and when are you taking it?

Don't worry We'll knock this on the head.
 
30? :shock:
What are you eating and drinking during a typical day Laura?
Can you give us a rough idea for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with Novorapid doses for each?

All the best,

fergus
 
Hello Laura

What are your bg levels mid morning and mid afternoon ? The reason why I ask is because you might actually need to use a different insulin to carb ratio for the morning and lunchtime to cope with the action that Levemir is having.
 
I can't say. It all depends really. Some days I'll hardly eat, others I'll be injection for a 3 course meal!

This is what I mean.... I just can't get it right.

Have just started logging today and just done a 5u Novorapid correction shot
 
iHs said:
Hello Laura

What are your bg levels mid morning and mid afternoon ? The reason why I ask is because you might actually need to use a different insulin to carb ratio for the morning and lunchtime to cope with the action that Levemir is having.
Click to expand...


Nearly always in the 20's
 
The 1:10 ratio is clearly not correct for you. Your bg levels shouldn't be up on 20 mid morning unless you started the day off being high bg or you were eating a high carb breakfast like porridge. Can I ask where you got the 1:10 ratio from?

Also it is important really to eat regularly and not just eat when you feel like it.
 

I'm a member of another Diabetes forum and they've recommended the 1:10 ratio. I also got it from the "Think like a pancreas" book by Gary Scheiner

Should I try a different ratio? Problem I have is I am useless with maths so don't know how to work it all out!
 
The Think Like a Pancreas book is just a rough guide its not going to be spot on for everybody. I know the starting off period on MDI says use 1:10 but for you its not working for the amount of carb you are eating. Also Levemir's action is nice and slow so it won't start to get into full swing until late morning.

Are you doing the 1:10 ratio for the food and then adding on a correction dose before you decide on the amount of insulin you bolus?
 
I'd suggest getting into a regular eating pattern, at least until you get some control over your numbers. They are doing you some lasting harm while they're up at those sorts of levels.
Once you're in a better cycle, you can use basal / bolus to reintroduce more flexibility in what and when you eat.
What sorts of meals are you having?

fergus
 

Basically, yes. It's hard for me to understand all this. I don't know what sort of ratio to go for.


I try to eat a healthy balanced diet but then there are times when I really fancy something sweet like an ice-cream or a biscuit. I know they're doing damage at these levels which is why I am worried. I don't want to lose limbs/my eyesight
 
What do you mean by a healthy balanced diet though Laura?
What the medical orthodoxy currently claims is healthy and balanced is very often quite the reverse, particularly where diabetics are concerned.
If your diet is based around starchy carbohydrates, as still recommended by the NHS, that could very well be at the heart of your problems.

fergus
 

Well, from my understanding, its eating fruit and veg and not fatty foods like burgers. And I do try that way but we're a busy family so it doesn't always happen
 
If you take a look at the stickies in the low-carb diabetes forum you'll see that lots of members have had great success in controlling their diabetes by re-balancing the healthy diet!
Fat certainly isn't the problem, it's carbohydrate, whether it's in the form of sweets, starches, fruit etc. it makes little difference to your metabolism.

Best wishes,

fergus
 
Laura

Most fruit is a bit up in carb value even though it's looked upon as being healthy. Its got plenty of vitamins though. Green veg is also very good but much much lower in carb so you can eat a fair amount of that :mrgreen:

Rather than look at a very low carb diets, as you are just finding your way with diabetes, for the time being use the 'trial and error' method of adjusting your insulin bolus to suit the amount of carb that you eat. Most people find out exactly how much bolus they need to use by increasing/decreasing the dose so that 2hrs after they have eaten, their bg levels are where they are meant to be. It doesn't really matter at the moment how much bolus insulin you need to use, its what your bg are 2hrs later and whether they are within the bg guidelines that counts. Forget the book, just use your own judgement.
 
Personally, i'd leave the huge diet/lifestyle changes until after you've got used, and got a hand on your diabetes.
Carb counting was the key for me, along with a Glycemic Load idea.
The glycemic load of a food gives you an idea of how much, and how quickly the sugar will be absorbed into your bloodstream.
This helped me a great deal.
Read up on your favourite foods, and see what their GL's are.
Record everything that you can.
BSL's before dinner, then 1 and two hours after.
Record what you ate, and see if you find a pattern.
After a week or two, you may just need a higher ratio.
I know it's confusing, but you're not alone.
 
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