[Closed] Diabetic Trail Food

Banana for me mid ride most rides, normally have muesli before a ride for the slow release energy. It's about keeping the blood sugar balanced and level so tend to ride for an hour before a snack either banana, go bar or flap jack but normally banana.

Cheers Forge 😀

Anyone else got any ideas?

Diabetic here (on Insulin).

It's all about planning and making sure you are well fuelled before you start. Not sure what they mean about not feeling quite 'right', but assume that this is possibly getting a bit low (hypo). I can tell when I'm getting low as I go slightly 'wobbly', get even more stroppy and have a slightly 'spaced out' empty feeling. When this happens, it's all about getting a good hit of glucose quickly, so I have energy tablets with me all the time (lucozade, etc) so I can get a good quick hit to get me going. Otherwise it's making sure that there is a good supply of slow release sugar.

As your mate isn't on insluin, they shouldn't reallty suffer from hypo's as this is the effect of the insulin and a reduced sugar intake.

Everyone is different, so they need to do a bit of experimenting, and it's worth them doing a quick test when they feel not quiet right to see if's a hypo (low) or hyper(high) issue and then they can start adjusting to what works best for them

I'm Diabetic Type 1 (Insulin dependent) and the best advice I can give is always eat a sensible pre-ride meal/snack, something slow release - oaks, muesli, brown bread, pulses etc and always carry emergency high carb snacks like malt loaf, bananas, peanut butter oat bars etc.

Like forge197 said it all about keeping blood sugar at a constant level and avoiding peaks and lows in blood sugar.

Most importantly for me is a good supply of Glucotabs and or high sugar foods and my blood sugar test kit just in case i have a Hypo in the middle of knowhere, oh and some kind of medical ID (i wear a wrist band).

Thats what works for me!

I'm Type 1...I tend to take some chocolate with me in my back pack but don't generally need to eat it - I tend to have a decent feed in the morning before the ride, take less insulin to make sure the blood sugar level is slightly higher than normal and then go ride...I have no appetitie whilst riding and it tend to take me 15 minutes from stopping ebfore I can eat, so I have emergency food with me and some hypo-stop - but it never gets touched. I make sure I have a decent lunch (either sandwiches and stuff brought with me or buy something decent), then ride in afternoon...I have a good feed for dinner and take slightly less evening insulin so that the sugars don't drop too much next day - during the activity I'm fine, but the day after I tend to get hit...

Cheers guys

Type 1 too try pasta or spaghetti on toast. If you mate is using metformin it’s quite an appetite suppressant so he may not feel like eating when he needs to.

Crikey, we're all coming out of the woodwork aren't we; Type 1's that is! Me too for fifteen years now.

Best thing I've found for dealing with the odd low blood sugar level when cycling is a gel sachet - I like the strawberry Maxim ones. They work very quickly and, should the worst happen, someone else can squirt it into your mouth.

DickBarton; same as you I lose appetite when cycling - and it's the next day that things can go awry.

For all the insulin junkies on here...how long have you been diabetic and what age were you diagnosed? I'm being sent to a Diabetic boot camp as the teachings of the Dark Art of Diabetes has changed over the years and they want me to become reacquainted with carbohydrate counting (which is something I tend to do anyway - every now and again!).

I'm 32 years diabetic and was diagnosed at the ripe old age of 17 months...

Fifteen years now - I was 24yrs old and had just qualified as an Engineering Officer in the Merchant Navy; getting Type 1 for my 24th birthday meant I was retired on medical grounds - but working for the MoD at the time means I do receive a pension!

What 'boot' camp are you going to? Have been to a DAFNE one.

Best thing I ever did was go to a weekend for young folk (18 to 28yrs) with diabetes; it was a hotel in Stoke, and we drank the bar pretty much dry from what I can recall. And I pulled; the lass that was later in Pop Idol doing 'YMCA'...

LOL
Any NIDDMs out there? 😀
Seriously though, keep the advice coming its all appreciated 😉

6 years for me so still learning, good to hear other peoples take on things.

P20; sorry we've crashed your party! 😆

No problem Househusband 😆
Its all of relevance, just need some from the NIDDM lot 😀

yeah sorry!

wish I found metformin to be an appetite suppressant 🙂

I don't know what it is called - it isn't a boot camp as such but I reckon being told what I was taught as a kid is going to be similar to a boot camp!

I'm afraid I don't know any non-insulin dependent diabetics who exercise...I knew very few and they are all seriously overweight and became NIDD due to their eating and lack of exercise...but I'd guess it was similar i.e. take some spare food, make sure you are well fed with decent food before, during and after the event...if you know you are doing exercise, eat some more stuff to make sure you are a bit higher and can burn it off (higher but not astronomically higher...I'd suggest 2 mmols but no more than 4 - it needs to be burnt off)

Loads of dieatry advice for sporty diabetics on here

type one or two

http://www.runsweet.com/DietAndNutrition.html

If you are sporty it's worth a general look around the site

hope it helps to all you hyperglycamics

Cheers Dickb. He has lost weight since finding out, but i'd never have looked at him previously and thought that he was overweight. If anything i thought the targets he was aiming for was too low for his height, butits turned out ok. In terms of fitness he swims and hill walks so he most definetly isn't a couch potato 😆

Cheers Docnick, i'll forward the whole thread on to him, that site looks useful 😀

P20 - proves the exception to the rule...I know about 3 NIDDs and they are all grossly overweight and do no exercise...I also know not every NIDD is like that...takes all sorts...hopefully he'll get this sussed without too many scares and will start pushing himself to more...I've never found my diabetes has stopped me trying anything - normally lack of knowledge and ability has failed long before the diabetes has kicked in! 😉

absolutely
diabetes shouldnt stop you do anything. think gary mabbutt steve redgrave etc.

I am NIDD and do exercise 🙂 Don't really get people whom are diagnosed and then set about making it worse the downside of the disease is grim, very grim, but with the right control and balance the grim need not be an issue.

My mate is continuing his life as it was before the diagnosis. The diagnosis just explained why he'd felt the way he did. He's changed his diet and is fine, its just long days hill walking that need a slight adjustment. Lots of good advice and support, keep it coming. 😀

I have a 3 year old daughter has type 1and it has been a nightmair trying to get the right insulin it's only taking about six months to get it sorted but she's ok now she use to hypo at night and run very high at day time

I was 21 when I got diabetes, one of over 12 within a 5-mile radius that month. The Doc reckoned it was a flu virus that caused my own immune system to attack my own body. Now 42 and doing well, going for a ride just takes a bit of planning. I also use slower acting insulin before riding as this helps to stop ups and down of my blood sugars talk to you Doc about it. If you suffer from lows the day after a ride take less slow acting insulin at night and take a metformin tablet at night this works well for me but again ask you Doc

roudwheels I hope every day my kids don't get diabetes I hope all goes well for your doughter best wishes....

[i]petetheplumber - Member
roudwheels I hope every day my kids don't get diabetes I hope all goes well for your doughter best wishes.... [/i]

Roundwheels i read your post and couldn't come up with an appropriate answer, Pete has summed it up nicely. I deal with diabetics as part of my job, i work for the ambulance service, but kids are always different. Best wishes...

Y'know.. this thread has been really informative. I was recently diagnosed Diabetic, but caught early. I felt just fine but Doc put me on Metformin tabs anyway. Since then I'd noticed some changes like quickly feeling bloated when eating and not being able to finish a normal meal... this thread explains it.. Thought I'd read the tablet leaflet properly but don't remember it saying it would affect appetite....so much so that I've actually lost weight though not sure if that is a good thing or not coz my weight is (was)normal.. Anyone else experienced a significant increase in farts... ;-)...or maybe that's just me. Anyway, just thought I'd chip in.

Wife is IDD - she tends to take "juice" rather than water in her bottle and finds that help normally. (Diluting juice) She also take "lucozade" tablets with her and tests regularly throughout a ride.

TBH the only time she has had a problem is if there is a bigger group who want to push on that extra half hour before stopping for lunch.

MOF - glad its been of help. Its kinda why i kept it ticking over, i thought there had to be more diabetics out there, its good to share the different experiences.

Poly, nice little tip about juice instead of water, simple idea, i like it. He won't have any problems abut stopping when he wants for lunch as it'll tend to be a smaller group 😀

Juice is good full of Fructose that fruit sugar that releases slower than say eating a mars bar.

MoF - metformin didn't affect my appetite but it did in the early days mess around with the taste of food. It was really odd but I could it something one week and the next week the exact same thing would be inedible as it just tasted wrong, it's ok now took a few months for that to go back to normal.

Mof - I believe farting is a known side effect of metformin.

Diagnosed Type 1 32 years ago at the tender age of 7, been on an insulin pump for around 18 months now. I find that I can ride longer and slightly faster (for me anyway) when my blood sugar is elevated slightly ie around the 10mmol/l mark, I use High 5 isotonic in my camelbak at 50% recommended concentration and carry Dextrose tablets, glucogel, jelly babies and a couple of cereal bars, drop my basal rate to 50% of norm 2hrs before ride and continue for duration and for 2 hrs after. Also take 50% bolus with my post ride meal, if the ride has been an all day epic I also run reduced basal through the night. Still experimenting a bit with these figures as they vary depending on the ride, don't drop the basal rate as much if it's a spin round the lanes as this is more aerobic than my normal off road rides.

For those with children that have been diagnosed I wish you the best, my eldest son was diagnosed last summer at 10 and it was the worst day of my life 🙁

I'm curious (and not trying to stir things) - but if you are diabetic and are aware of how it all works and goes together - is it as much of a shock if your offspring were diagnosed diabetic as it would be if it was totally new to you?

I'm asking as my 8-month daughter seems to be doing fine but I was about that age (apparently) when I first started showing early signs...I asked the doctor's and maternity folks about the risks of her developing diabetes and they said as the diabetes wasn't on the mother's side, the risk was so slim it wasn't worth considering.

My own view on this, is if she is unfortuinate enough to be diagnosed with diabetes it isn't going to be a big problem as we are aware of it and how it all works...it won't be good but it isn't as earth shattering as I'm sure it was for my parents when they found out.

This is just my own view and one I hope will prove to be correct if it ever happens...but I've no experience of it so can't relate it to anything...

And very sorry for the thread hijack...wasn't deliberate...I'm also curious about food supplies and stuff for biking as my riding has changed over the last few years to have less longer rides...but I'm looking to get these back on the go again so want to make sure my 'techniques' are still on par with others.

ooh dear, I just read Votchy's post and now I feel like a complete amateur 😳 I've been on Insulin for 16yrs now and other than being a bit overweight (always have been), the Doc's pronounce me in generally fine fettle.
As for my method of control when exercising, it's pretty much bang on what Richard described. For a big day out, I'll take a slow carb release brekkie such as a good bowl of porridge with my tea and toast, and I'll match that by reducing my Insulin by about 25%. Out on the trail, in my pack I'll have a mix of slow release carbs for lunch (again dropping my insulin by about a quarter), with emergence glucose / bonk protection in the form of a hidden stash (hidden from the wife), of mini mars bars.

B.

Its not just the amount of insulin for me its also the type. I had problems with the fast acting working to quick so after 30 min riding I would be feeling like going to sleep. I would then eat but end up with no insulin left to fuel my legs. By using a slower acting type I can keep my blood sugars at a better level for the whole ride. I tend to eat well before riding and let my blood sugar levels go up to about 10. I then take a jab and go. I use an energy drink to keep my levels dropping so after 2 hours it goes down to about 5. As for my kids the Doc said they may have the same weakness in there immune systems that I had but then again they may not…… When he says things like that I just want to punch him but a can’t his a doctor and has glasses.

DickBarton - the issue with my son being diagnosed is that after 32 years of diabetes I know how much effect it has on your life, I know all the 'it doesn't stop me doing anything' side of the disease, and effectively it doesn't, the effect it does have though is you have to think about everything you do for 24hrs a day, something that is extremely difficult for a child to comprehend. He is the only child with diabetes at his school, he is the 'weird' kid, the 'oooh I feel wobbly, I need to get something to eat' comments, the sudden change in friends and friends parents attitudes, no longer invited over - all these things have a massive detrimental effect on a child's mental health and well being, there is no counselling support currently available for children with diabetes, he doesn't want to be different, he wants to have his food the same as his friends do, not do a blood test, calculate the carbs he is consuming, calculating the required number of insulin units depending on his blood test and the carbs and also factoring in if he has PE after lunch and needs to reduce his insulin because of that.
On top of all that is the worry for the parents that he is doing all the above, my wife is a Health Professional and we have been married 14yrs, the sh1t I put her through with all the side effects of diabetes such as mood swings, hypo's during the night etc that no amount of testing and insulin dosages can change as changes in blood sugar levels can be affected by so many things such as temperature, stress, amount of sleep, illness etc.

In summary, yes there are worse things out there but do not think diabetes is a doddle.

PS - I am not suggesting that DickBarton thinks it is a doddle, that was a general summarising comment, not one aimed at an individual, in fact the whole post is aimed generally, not at Dick even though it was in response to his question, hope no offence has been taken as none is intended.

Mark

Thanks Votchy - like I said - my personal thoughts on it were that, but I've no experience other than having it myself...I was so young when I developed it, I don't know anything other than diabetes so to me, this is normal. I've not had to experience looking after someone else with diabetes so don't have anything to relate it to - other than what is in my head.

dickbarton when my daugther was first diagnosed it was very hard to deal with an a major learning curve. finding the right insulins which ones work which ones dont not to mention that trying to correct a hypo with a kid that thinks it just a game can be frustrating (very at times) and then there is trying to get them to eat the right amount of carbs balance there insulin .it takes over you life .somebody that is in control of there diabetes is some body that has work hard to get to that point, as it can be very easily mismanaged

A statement no one can’t argue with “Diabetes is a f*%king nightmare” it Just depends how bad you personal nightmare is.

I think, in all seriousness, you are having to deal with (by proxy, for your son) Type 1 diabetes on a far more complex level than I certainly feel I have to - really do feel for you! I can only imagine the feeling of being 'different' at his age.

Have you thought about going on one of the diabetes.org.uk weekends [url= http://www.diabetes.org.uk/How_we_help/Care-events/Childrens-holidays/ ]Linky[/url]

househusband - he is going away next month for a weekend organised by the diabetes nurses from Redditch, Worcester and Hereford, approx 30 kids from 8-13, also a couple of guys with diabetes in their early 20's, hope he gets a lot out of it. Thanks for the diabetes.org.uk link

I went on a couple of Diabetic Camps when I was younger - absolutely brilliant they were...I'm expecting this course I'm attending next month to tell me similar things I learnt whilst at those camps. They were seriously useful...and great fun to boot!