When my daughter was diagnosed with type�1 diabetes, she had to start drinking diet sodas instead of regular and had to stop drinking the juice bags and boxes that kids love so much. We have always counted carbs, and she is now on an insulin pump. Can my daughter drink regular sodas and juice or use sugar as a sweetener for cereals if she counted them in her bolus calculations? I had never thought about it until a friend asked me, and I wasn’t sure how to answer.

Yes, she can do that. I do know of several individuals who do that. I guess I do not understand why they do so, since if they were okay with the diet things, why they would start using the sugar-sweetened things. I have less of a problem with juice boxes and such since they have other nutrients in them.

The majority of people with type�1 who are on insulin pumps continue to use diet pops and artificial sweeteners on cereals, partly because that saves calories from sugars, and partly because they have become used to the diet things. Again, I think if she wants to have a regular soda on occasion and figures out the carbs correctly, I see no problem.

LSF