Ratio question

Short answer, yes. It's very common to have different ratio's for weekdays, weekends etc. Even different meals. A lot of people need a higher dose of insulin to carb ratio at breakfast for instance. Keep testing and recording and adjust where necessary. Good luck.


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

usually with periods or days of extra activity its worth considering dropping you background/basal dose.......

means you can keep the ratios the same and therefore simpler, just a case of chopping a percentage of your basal dose.....

this can only be really effective on Levemir though as with Lantus the effect of any dose change takes a few days to observe....

its perfectly normal for days of extra activity to give hypos due to your muscles taking up more glucose with much less insulin than usual....

it shouldn't matter no, depending on your team they may be annoyed, but remember its your condition and you have to take control, your nurses should welcome it......

my visits to the clinic consist of me getting some tests and telling them what I have been doing, there's no advice from them at all really.......as no one knows better than me when it come to my blood sugars...

RosieDred said:

Thanks, I never thought of dropping my basal. I am on levemir. I think this would work if I was going to work a 12/13 hour shift but may not work as well if I do 8 or 4 hour shifts, which I also do.


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

Click to expand...

Exactly right, the longer shift requires more hours being active and it could be that extra time that is pushing you just under target.....

test out the 12 and 8 hour shifts though, maybe reduce your dose by 5% for example and see how you get on....

how long have you been diagnosed........?

if its not been that long it would be good to build up a relationship with your nurse, but by all means give them your thoughts and suggestions.......

the normal procedure at your bi annual clinic appointments would be for you to visit the nurse to talk about:

• your blood sugar readings, dose adjustment, tip and tricks etc

then a consultant, which can cover:

• HbA1c results
• kidney function
• eye photographs
• any other complications
• blood pressure

then you could also see a podiatrist for your feet and a dietitian, for me these two come as and when I need them..........

for someone who has not been educated through courses such as DAFNE, the input from your nurse is crucial as you need your dose adjusted frequently.

learning to do this on your own is a must as the average person needs to adjust their dose as insulin sensitivity changes, weight changes, seasonal changes, unplanned or planned activity, illness.

so a lot of things where self adjusting is needed, and you cant wait for a nurse to get back to you when these things occur...

but it seems your are already on that path and you know the basics...........so well done......

getting your self on DAFNE or a similar course would help a lot....

the more of you there is, the more insulin you need............as your liver will need to produce more to fuel the bigger body and so your background theoretically will be higher....


insulin sensitivity I believe is down to how well the cells of your body take up the glucose with the insulin, so if you were really active, sporty, athletic.....you would need less insulin for your food......so being bigger isn't really connected to that as such, as you could be a body builder and weigh a lot but be really sensitive to insulin...

your trying to put weight on, so you may need to test your basal every few weeks as you put on the weight......just matching it up....