Type 1 diabetic-what to eat for lows
I've been a type 1 for 23 years. Three months ago I had a RNY. I've lost a total of 53 lbs so far. My problem is I've become lactose intolerant so I can't drink milk for my lows. I also dump on sugar(juice), so I end-up on the toilet after treating a low. I had a 39 the other night. It was so scary. It took forever to come up. I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions as to what I could eat/drink to get my lows up without dumping. Thanks so much for any ideas.
Hey there. I feel your pain sister, I've been type 1 for 29 years and I just had VSG surgery about two months ago. Here I sit at 4:45 in the am & have been up since 3:30 with a low. I have always had a problem over treating lows, especially at night. One of the reasons I was nervous about RNY (even though it was the surgery that was pushed by my surgeon's office) was because I was afraid of how I would treat lows if they came on suddenly, like at night.. Even though they say you don't 'dump' with VSG, if I drink juice alone I will get cold sweats & the 'runs' within 5 to 10 mins of drinking it. I found that if I eat applesauce followed by a string cheese or cottage cheese (not a lot, only like a couple tablespoons) I don't get the 'dumping' feelings.
I've been blessed to have never had to use my glucogen kit, but from what I hear, it can cause the same symptoms that dumping can? Also, those kits are EXPENSIVE, so I don't think you would want to use one every time your blood sugar goes down too low. I mean, if you're bottoming out, then sure, you should use the glucogen. But, for your typical, run of the mill low, I would just say to add some protien w/ your simple carb.....
Good Luck & keep us updated!
Wendy
I've been blessed to have never had to use my glucogen kit, but from what I hear, it can cause the same symptoms that dumping can? Also, those kits are EXPENSIVE, so I don't think you would want to use one every time your blood sugar goes down too low. I mean, if you're bottoming out, then sure, you should use the glucogen. But, for your typical, run of the mill low, I would just say to add some protien w/ your simple carb.....
Good Luck & keep us updated!
Wendy
Wendy
Sleeved 7/5/11 by Dr. Bacal
Sleeved 7/5/11 by Dr. Bacal
I am also Type 1 for over 30 years. I dont dump, so i can treat my lows with anything. Kinda bummed, but yet not that I dont dump so I can treat my lows without any side effects. How about glucose tablets?, some fruit (i know this might sound strange, but after surgery I found myself craving prunes and I would treat my lows with prunes 
Hey whatever works for us, is my opinion. How about some greek yogurt (the kind with the fruit) The Fage has 18 carbs and you get 13 gr of protein while you are at it. Win/win
Good luck.
Debbie
Hey whatever works for us, is my opinion. How about some greek yogurt (the kind with the fruit) The Fage has 18 carbs and you get 13 gr of protein while you are at it. Win/winGood luck.
Debbie
Moving on to better health
This is a question plaguing me since my surgery 2 weeks ago. I am astounded by the attitude I have encountered from the health care professionals regarding how to treat a low.
I have DMII but have been taking insulin for 20 years and on a pump for about 8 of those. After surgery, it took a couple of days before they gave me back control and let me use my pump again. My sugars had been running in the 130s, and I kept taking a couple of units to get it into my goal range of 80-120. Then the next time the nurse checked, I was at 80. Sure, this is in the normal range, but it could still be dropping. I asked the nurse for some apple juice, and she blew me off with "You can't have sugar." End of discussion. No alternative given. All I could do was turn off my basal delivery and hope I didn't continue to drop. I think a more appropriate response would have been, "let's test again in 10 minutes, and then do X if it is still dropping." But she did not give me a clue what "X" would be.
Later when I saw my doctor (a fellow), she also poo-pooed my 80 blood sugar as normal. I had to get through to her "what if it were 60?...Then what would I do?" It seemed like she had never considered this. She had to talk to other doctors and get back to me. Her response was somewhat convoluted, but I took away that I should turn off my pump and adjust down as needed, avoiding lows. The result is that I'm always running high.
Yesterday I saw the head of the department, and told him about the incident in the hospital. He likewise denigrated my concerns and said the nurse did the right thing. I was really ticked.
Concluding that these people know nothing about diabetes, I went back to my pump last night and am managing my blood sugars as I was taught by the diabetes professionals.
I'm wondering if I could use the gel glucose if I have a low. I understand it is absorbed through the mouth and does not need to be swallowed.
I have DMII but have been taking insulin for 20 years and on a pump for about 8 of those. After surgery, it took a couple of days before they gave me back control and let me use my pump again. My sugars had been running in the 130s, and I kept taking a couple of units to get it into my goal range of 80-120. Then the next time the nurse checked, I was at 80. Sure, this is in the normal range, but it could still be dropping. I asked the nurse for some apple juice, and she blew me off with "You can't have sugar." End of discussion. No alternative given. All I could do was turn off my basal delivery and hope I didn't continue to drop. I think a more appropriate response would have been, "let's test again in 10 minutes, and then do X if it is still dropping." But she did not give me a clue what "X" would be.
Later when I saw my doctor (a fellow), she also poo-pooed my 80 blood sugar as normal. I had to get through to her "what if it were 60?...Then what would I do?" It seemed like she had never considered this. She had to talk to other doctors and get back to me. Her response was somewhat convoluted, but I took away that I should turn off my pump and adjust down as needed, avoiding lows. The result is that I'm always running high.
Yesterday I saw the head of the department, and told him about the incident in the hospital. He likewise denigrated my concerns and said the nurse did the right thing. I was really ticked.
Concluding that these people know nothing about diabetes, I went back to my pump last night and am managing my blood sugars as I was taught by the diabetes professionals.
I'm wondering if I could use the gel glucose if I have a low. I understand it is absorbed through the mouth and does not need to be swallowed.
Polly 
Sorry for the late reply, I was out of the country for a few weeks.
80 is normal, and may or may not be actually heading lower. As you said, wait 15-20 minutes, and restick. If it's to 60, I would have a protein with a very small amount of fruit, juice, or even 1-2 oz of regular soda, remembering to have cheese, peanut butter, sliced deli meat, tuna, etc.
The sugar or fruit, or soda will bring up a low, and the protein will keep it from causing a sudden low from too much insulin being dumped into your system. Protein takes longer to digest and slows down the absorption of your sugars. So being careful not to overtreat either a high or a low may help you acheive a more level range of blood sugars.
In any case, keep the sugar component small. Trial and error will let you find the best way to ward off very low BG. Pairing protein with simple carbs seem to be the best action.
Good luck!
80 is normal, and may or may not be actually heading lower. As you said, wait 15-20 minutes, and restick. If it's to 60, I would have a protein with a very small amount of fruit, juice, or even 1-2 oz of regular soda, remembering to have cheese, peanut butter, sliced deli meat, tuna, etc.
The sugar or fruit, or soda will bring up a low, and the protein will keep it from causing a sudden low from too much insulin being dumped into your system. Protein takes longer to digest and slows down the absorption of your sugars. So being careful not to overtreat either a high or a low may help you acheive a more level range of blood sugars.
In any case, keep the sugar component small. Trial and error will let you find the best way to ward off very low BG. Pairing protein with simple carbs seem to be the best action.
Good luck!
Thanks so much for the information. I'm still on a limited diet right now, phase 2-B (don't know if that term is universal). Basically I've just added some soft foods to my liquid diet. So many of the foods you mentioned are off limits. But I can certainly follow your advice to pair a protein with a little fruit juice, even if that is off-limits.
Polly
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