Hello, I'm 18 and a newly diagnosed type one. I was diagnosed in December 2007 so I'm extremely new onto the scene :D
I'm the first in my family to have diabetes (they're attributing it to a viral infection that I so stubbornly refused to have treated back in September 2007 to one of the contributing factors as to how I developed type 1) so I'm looking for a lot of outreach online.
I'm in first year engineering and I love sports. I love love love dark chocolate and sleeping!
It's pretty easy right now keeping my sugar under control, I'm only taking a max of 15 units a day (slow and fast) plus if I exercise, I barely have to take any at all.
My endocrinologist is a really chill guy, I'm not too fond at all with the diabetes educators. They're very black and white about things, and diabetes is clearly not textbook!
My endo is pushing for a pump, I'm more interested in low carb to no carb lifestyles. My friend's doctor is type one and uses no insulin on his no carb diet.
I'm really interested in it, I've also watched a documentary on people who take on the no carb, high fat, high protein eating regime. (Not diets, because I'm NOT dieting. I'm not aiming to lose weight, I want to try different approaches to treating my diabetes.)
So have you tried the low carb thing?
Welcome to the "Diabetes Club"...you sound like you've got a great attitude towards the disease, especially considering you were just barely diagnosed.
First off, I'm sure your doc told you this, but you're probably still "honeymooning" (which means your body is still making some of its own insulin), and that's partly why your insulin needs are so low!
So--about the carbs--I eat a very low-carb diet right now and I do this for two reasons: I'm doing a lot of weightlifting/bodybuilding type training so I want a lot of protein, BUT ALSO because it makes my blood sugars happy!
EATING LOW-CARB DOES NOT MEAN YOU DON'T NEED INSULIN! In fact, the great thing about it, I've found, is that it makes my body much more sensitive to carbohydrates and I need much less insulin than I used to, but I do need it still, so when I eat even just 8 grams of carbs from vegetables and maybe another 8 grams from the sauce or ketchup on my chicken, I still need to take a little bit of insulin for that.
Also, it's important that you're getting your low-carb foods from healthy sources. It's not an excuse to eat bacon all day.
I get my nutrition mainly from:
-lean chicken / turkey
-eggs or eggs whites
-olive oil
-nuts (I like peanut butter best)
-vegetables (asparagus, peppers, salads, carrots, etc.) YOU NEED FIBER!
sometimes I'll have:
-low-fat chicken sausage
-lean pork
-turkey bacon
-cottage cheese
However, it's also good to put a higher carb day in there, too, every five days or so.
A few healthy choices are:
-sweet potatoes
-natural oatmeal
-brown rice
-fruit
And of course, because you have Type 1, you need to make sure you have enough carbs in your body if you're going to be exercising. It's all about balance. If your body is really craving carbs--then have carbs--listen to your body.
Anything else? We can talk about this as much as you want!!!
-Ginger