When the stomach rumbles what’s the best thing to snack on?
Traditionally, snacks have played a major part in managing blood glucose levels in Type 1 diabetes. Depending on your child’s insulin regimen, age and activity level, this may or may not be the case. Too many unnecessary snacks can lead to higher blood glucose levels, extra fat and unwanted calories.
Snacks may be needed before or during prolonged exercise as extra fuel, but insulin can also be adjusted for planned exercise, if on multiple daily injections (MDI) or a pump, reducing the need for lots of extra snacks.
Snacks may be needed as ‘slow-acting’ carbohydrate after a hypo, once blood glucose has increased following the ‘fast-acting’ carbohydrate. Fast-acting hypo treatment should be followed by a snack if the next scheduled meal (or snack) is more than an hour away.
Young children
All young children need snacks between meals as they cannot fit all the food they need into three main meals. Young children with diabetes also need these snacks to maintain their blood glucose between meals when they may be very active. Usually these small carbohydrate snacks are eaten without insulin. They may also need a snack before bed to maintain blood glucose overnight. Children of all ages on mixed insulin will need small snacks mid-morning, before bed and maybe after school.
Older children
Those on MDI or pumps may not need snacks to maintain their blood glucose. If they want snacks, they may have to take additional insulin or they may be able to have snacks containing small amounts of carbohydrate (see figures below) without extra insulin.
