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Type 1's carb diet

J

jonniey

Well-Known Member
Messages
266
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Who here lives on a normal carb diet with well controlled sugar's most of the time ?? Type 1's
 
I'm type 2 but on insulin and I struggle with carbs now. My sugars rise and fall throughout the day if I have them. Everyone is different though.
 
jonniey said:
Who here lives on a normal carb diet with well controlled sugar's most of the time ?? Type 1's
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I'd say that the majority of T1's with good control (HbA1c's <47mmol/mol), still eat a moderate amount of carbohydrates daily. As much as LCHF is becoming popular, there are still very few T1's choosing that way of life.

Another thing to consider is what constitutes a normal carb diet? Is it somewhere in the region of 400g per day or <200g?

I eat around 130-200g carbs daily and my HbA1c has been in range for almost all of my time with T1D (nearly 3 years).
 
AndBreathe said:
As I understand it, @azure , @himtoo and @noblehead manage their T1 on that basis.
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Your understanding is wrong I'm afraid.

I eat carbs in moderation,around 180g a day which is about a third of the RDA for a man (I believe the RDA for carbs is around 300g), I have been much lower before but have never ate a normal diet (or a high one) in all my 35 years of living with type 1, in my early years on twice daily/fixed insulin doses I was probably eating around 250g but there was less flexibility with that insulin regime as snacks between meals were required due to the action time of the insulin.
 
AndBreathe said:
As I understand it, @azure , @himtoo and @noblehead manage their T1 on that basis.
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It depneds what you call 'normal', I guess. I eat a moderately low carb diet of approx 180g per day and I find that works well for me for both control and general health.

Even before I got Type 1, I didn't really subscribe to the rather large portion counts for carbs that you see recommended in some places.

@jonniey If by 'normal', you mean not LCHF, then most Type 1s eat like that :) The amount of carbs that suits you is something you need to work out by experimenting (and adjusting your insulin, of course). You'll find that if you have more than X amount of carbs at a meal, then blood sugar control becomes harder. But it's certainly not necessary to,eat LCHF to get good control :)

I recommend the book Think Like A Pancreas. It has a lot of information in it and is very helpful indeed :)
 
Wow I didn't know/realise the RDA for carbs for an adult male was 300g! I'm a low carber! (about 150-180 a day).

as said define 'normal' and 'good control' :rolleyes:
 
AndBreathe said:
As I understand it, @azure , @himtoo and @noblehead manage their T1 on that basis.
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I don't eat anywhere near the guidelines handed out for a "normal" carb diet.

to be as accurate as possible I have double checked my last 3 months Diasend upload data and my average daily intake is 127 CHO per day
with the highest intake on any 1 day being 169 CHO.
 
Let's see 12 x 15 yes say about 180g - 250g of carbohydrates, what a normal non diabetic person would generally eat in a day. So if I eat 4 - 6carbs then I eat 60 - 90g in a day
 
jonniey said:
Let's see 12 x 15 yes say about 180g - 250g of carbohydrates, what a normal non diabetic person would generally eat in a day. So if I eat 4 - 6carbs then I eat 60 - 90g in a day
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What are you measuring there when you're doing the Maths? Do you use Exchanges?
 
I think beer is my problem, because if I drink beer even if it's 6litres then I don't eat the whole day and I don't inject any insulin, anyone else here do the same thing??
 
That's very possible @jonniey Ignoring the diabetes, it can't be good for your body to drink so much beer.

Perhaps reduce the amount gradually and hopefully your headaches will then improve.

Many Type 1s need to inject bolus insulin for beer. Do you have a doctor or diabetes nurse to help you?
 
I think you are answering your own question @jonniey

it seems clear from your posts that your diet is not healthy. Excessive beer drinking and not injecting is an invitation for all of the lovely potential complications of Diabetes to make an appearance in your life.
 
The beer causes spikes and then brings it down abit....then I finish all the beer then correct the highs later.... And iv been doing this since 2011 I gotta change things this year.
 
AnnJohnston said:
I'm type 2 but on insulin and I struggle with carbs now. My sugars rise and fall throughout the day if I have them. Everyone is different though.
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There are different types of carbohydrates and all are absorbed at different rates so make sure you only test a good two hours after you have eaten them to get a true reading. For example eating a 100g apple (10g carbohydrate) will have a different effect than a piece of toast equivalent to 10g carbohydrate! I have had Type 1 for 33 years and I find the lesser the carbohydrates the lesser the insulin is needed, which is obvious really but shops keep selling all the sweet and rubbish products - but we don't have to buy them! Stick to the basics, think old times. Good luck.
 
My blood sugar is generally lower if I don't drink and I eat because I inject immediately Everytime before I eat even I I take a unit less or a unit more.
 
jonniey said:
The beer causes spikes and then brings it down abit....then I finish all the beer then correct the highs later.... And iv been doing this since 2011 I gotta change things this year.
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Yes, I agree a change would be good. You'd feel a lot better in yourself :)

It's hard to break a habit, but I'm sure you can do it step by step :)
 
jonniey said:
The beer causes spikes and then brings it down abit....then I finish all the beer then correct the highs later.... And iv been doing this since 2011 I gotta change things this year.
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I'm going to put this out there, and I don't expect it to be popular... But first and foremost, you have a problem with alcohol and without addressing that, you are really urinating into the wind wrt your diabetes management.

I would normally suggest changing from beer to red wine, or at least draught beer to tins - but in your case - a massive reduction is far more applicable than working out what alcohol is a better alternative to beer. This is especially true, considering you're consuming close to your weekly maximum allowance in a single day... And on many days, probably well over.

We're all probably guilty of binge drinking and over-indulging at times. Anyone who has been drunk fits this category! As diabetics however, it's imperative that we give our organs as easy a time as possible. They're hard pushed as it is without any other stresses which are optional (drinking, smoking, etc), unlike diabetes itself - which none of us asked for.
 
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