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August 2, 2007

Meal Planning, Food and Diet

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Question from Alberta, Canada:

I babysit a three-year-old boy with type 1 diabetes and I would like to know if I have to count his sugar intake (grams) or just the carbohydrates? Or, do I need to count both?

Answer:

From: DTeam Staff

Meal planning for kids with diabetes involves counting the total amount of carbohydrates, not simply the sugars. This is because the sugars you see listed on food labels are included in the total carbohydrate content already. So, totaling total carbohydrates and working them into a developed meal plan or injecting insulin (using multiple daily injections or an insulin pump with fast acting insulin for meals or snacks) based on the total carbohydrate intake is the correct way to go.

JMS