Newly Diagnosed Son!

NatalieT said:

hi my son (16) has just been diagnosed 2 weeks ago T1 - food labelling trying to work out carbs

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Hello @NatalieT

Welcome to the forum - and my sincere commiserations to you all for the news.

There's a vast array of info via both the forum and from the home page that you will find inherently useful (and occasionally baffling); but then, that's what were all online for - to help each other out.

Don't hesistate to ask a question on the forum, no matter how small, stupid or trivial it may seem to you - believe me, you won't be alone in having those thoughts, questions or issues (or your son for that matter).

The thing most of us have learnt is not to try to ride it alone or simply trust in the Doctors, etc. Diabetes can be a complex and confounding thing to live with (for everyone in the family) and it's good to share the issues as there's bound to be someone who'll log in and be able to pass on the benefit of their experience on the same matter.

Good luck and best wishes to you and your son; I won't lie to you to say that it won't be hard - there'll be times when he finds it really hard and you'll be left wondering what to do to help.

We fellow T1s etc., are here to listen, to relate, to rant at, etc. 24/7/365.

Hi @NatalieT
welcome to the forum
as a mum you must be devastated ( I know my mum was when I was diagnosed aged 14 )
a lot of crying went on in our house -- me and my parents.

but kids are resilient and I am sure your son will get to grips with it soon enough ( I did ).

I am tagging @daisy1 to post her brilliant starter pack for all new people to the forum.

your first stop is of course going to be the paediatric diabetic team at your hospital.
the Diabetic specialist nurse ( DSN) should be in communication with you on a regular basis.
do get in touch with her if she has not been in touch already.

and keep posting and asking questions about whatever you want . there are loads of us who have been through it and are happy to help

Hi and welcome. Am type 2 so can't help much other than to say there are some great people and wonderful support and advice on the site. It's not an easy journey but we are all here for each other.

the main thing is not to panic -- many years ago things were a lot different but these days there are lots of veterans around ( like me )that are happy to help either point you in the right direction with website links for assistance or direct help with answers to specific queries -- just be assured your family are not on their own.

Welcome, sorry to hear about the diagnosis. You will find a wealth of knowledge on this forum. I found the best thing is getting the carbohydrate counting sorted, really not easy to start with but once you get you head around it its fine. I was diagnosed age 32 so not able to give any advice but there are some really nice people here who I'm sure will be commenting soon. You and your son are not alone. I don't know anyone else with type 1 and found this forum a great help.

@NatalieT

Hello Natalie and welcome to you and your son to the forum

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it helpful. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 150,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

Hi and welcome. Many foods do have total carbs listed. If not then Google the web for typical carb content for certain portion sizes of various foods. Do ask as you find more questions in the T1 forum

If you have a smartphone, buy the Carbs & Cals app - very helpful when eating out or takeaways.

(You can then use the calculator function - on your phone - to calculate varying sizes, etc. )