Making the Low Go

Day 2 of Diabetes Blog Week:  Making the Low Go

I was just talking to another D Mom last weekend about this actual topic...fast-acting sugar sources. I'm always curious about what other type 1s use for lows.  Juice is an obvious choice.  For us, a juice box can get C's number up fairly quickly but continues to make it climb until she's left with a nasty high number and then the yo-yo effect takes on a life of itself, not settling down for, sometimes, hours.

As we talked, a flood of memories came back to me, surrounding all the gobs of information we tried to digest at the time of C's diagnosis.  We were given a matter-of-fact sheet of paper with a list of fast acting sugar options.  They included:  packets of sugar, tubes of frosting and life savor hard candy.  Of course I ran out and bought it all.  We had 2 tubes of frosting at the bottom of her diabetes bag for nearly 2 years.  Never used it.  Finally we got rid of them after one exploded from being jostled around for so long.

Yeah...a tube of frosting..."yuck," we both agreed, my new D Mom friend and I. 

She told me that her son, now 17 years old, had always been told by his endo doc to use the standard glucose tablets.  But when he was younger (diagnosed at 6), she would fix him a "sugar shot."  This was a mixture of 1 tablespoon sugar dissolved into a Tupperware Tiny container of water.  "It was one gulp," she said.  "It was quick, easy and he loved them."

During my tweet-up time with Melinda, another D Mom,  her advice on bringing up a low, was chocolate milk.  It kind of goes against the rules of fast-acting sugar sources as it contains more than just sugar.  It has fat and protein, as well.  I've always had the understanding that anything but pure sugar-y carbs can possibly slow down the blood sugar rise.  I wasn't too sure about this one, but we went for it recently.  And, by golly, it seems to work like a charm!  We've gone through several containers of chocolate milk in the last couple months.  There is a high enough sugar content to get that blood sugar up quickly.  The fat and protein help prevent any crashes, especially near bedtime or in the middle of the night.

***I guess this is where I must reveal that, although I have a ton of experience with my own daughter's diabetes management, I am not a medical professional.  And, any information you may read here is not meant to be advice for anyone to try at home without first seeking the professional, medical advice of your own doctor.

I'm always on the look-out for new ideas.  Those glucose tabs really do their job quite well.  They're convenient, portable but kind of expensive.  And sometimes, I hate shoving those big chalky things in C's mouth.  We've ventured a bit, in the last year or two, into the candy realm:  Smarties, jelly beans, Skittles.  But candy has been a little unreliable for us.  She may clock in at 63, eat a couple candies and retest even lower.  At which point, we tend to panic and over correct.  Then we ride the rollercoaster for several hours.

We're liking the chocolate milk thing, at the moment.  We might try the sugar shot idea next.  I can't wait to post this thing and cruise around the blogosphere to find some new ideas from others out there!

Candy World!

Oddly, this could be a wonderful dream or a horrific nightmare for someone dealing with diabetes.

During our little vacation this summer, we kept running into (literally) these crazy, HUGE, brightly-lit candy stores! We couldn't help it. It was like a gigantic magnet pulled my kids in!

Now, some folks may be thinking, "Wait a minute, I thought your daughter has diabetes," usually spoken in hushed tones for some reason. Well, yes. Yes, she does. But this store just screamed FUN! So, how could we resist!

Call me crazy, but I let C eat certain treats. I don't allow any of the purely sugar candies. (Although, jelly bellies are beginning to be the fast-acting sugar of choice for treating lows lately!) But, then there's chocolate. Chocolate is just so perfect. It has fat in it...not just sugar. So it doesn't send her sky-rocketing, then crashing. It actually works out okay for us as long as we count the carbs correctly. On special occasions, yes, she eats candy. We don't do it every day. We count and bolus accordingly.

So, in Candy World, I was going to allow my kids some fun treats! The boys picked out the "way-over-priced-by-weight" candies and scooped them into little bags...jelly beans, gummie things and of course the gargantuan jawbreaker. I wandered around with C, in search of the perfect chocolate. The great thing was, she was more interested in all the toys and stuffed animals rather than the candies. She is fanatical about stuffed animals! I kept asking, "Are you sure you don't want anything?"

"Oh, all I really want is this cute little stuffed turtle, Mom! Look! It has a little tu-tu!"

How could I argue with that?! Here we were in Candy World. I was willing to buy my type 1 daughter candy! And all she wanted was a stuffed animal. I actually was in awe of her decision for the remainder of our day.

Candy, candy, everywhere...and C is holding a strange blue squishy thing!

Fast-Acting Sugar of Choice

C was diagnosed at such a young age...22 months. She was still in diapers. She was still a baby. She had never even had a piece of candy before.

So, when diabetes came into the picture and an entire double cupboard in our kitchen was dedicated to all of her supplies, we started stalking up on all the suggested fast-acting sugar sources. We included juice, of course, sodas, sugar packets and even tubes of frosting. But no candy.

In the early days, the item of choice was a juice box. We would buy those cute little 4 oz. boxes of apple juice with "Clifford" on the front, Hansen's Junior Juice. The size was great since she really only needed about 2 ounces to bring her number up. It was easy to use. It didn't need refrigeration. And, it had Clifford on it! The only downside was carrying it around long-term.

I remember our Grand Canyon train ride. Before exiting the train, we checked, and of course, C was low. When I searched her bag for a juice, they both had been jostled around so much and worn down that they were slowly leaking. We scrambled for something else. Some nice lady gave us a regular soda. After this experience, we started carrying glucose tabs.

Glucose tabs really are wonderful. They are portable. C likes them. They bring her number up nicely most times. Juice can spike it, but the tabs bring it up to a good range. However, they're quite expensive. And while we've used them for years now, I'm beginning to look at different options: candy.

I know how tempting and addicting candy can be. Up until this time, I really didn't want to put that temptation out there for C. But, as I read more and more blogs surrounding diabetes, I've discovered that so many type 1's have their favorite candies to treat lows. I go back and forth with this idea. We have used Smarties, jelly beans and such, on occassion. When certain candies are handed out to the kids, I've always allowed C to receive them. She used to be happy just to give them to her dad or brothers. But now, we stash them in her bag in case of a low. The main problem with this has been rearing it's head lately...

C will announce to me "I feel low." Okay, let's check...189...nope, not low! Then she'll ask "When I am low, can I have the lollipop I got from the party?" Ug...okay. I fear that she may create a low just to get the candy! I've talked with her about it, telling her how dangerous this could be. I really am fearful about this possibility. But her reaction to me when I mentioned this, she really seemed genuinely (at 7 years old) surprised that I would think she would do that. I don't know. I feel like I'm going into unmarked territory with this.

I suppose we'll do what seems best at the moment. I guess diabetes is just like that.