Calling All Diabetics

[book_junkie]

These are my list of Faves... if I crash then I can go with anything, but these are the ones that I and try and get if I do counter service.

Again, YMMV, because what works for me may not work for you. Rice and potatoes work much better than fries and bread for me.

Animal Kingdom:
Flame Tree BBQ- Smoked Turkey Breast with fresh fruit (adult meal)
Flame Tree BBQ- Baked Chicken Drumstick with grapes and yogurt (saved the grapes for later) (child’s meal)
Yak & Yeti- Beef Lo Mein & halved the rice (adult meal)

Hollywood Studios:
Backlot Express- Southwest Salad with Chicken with dressing on side (adult meal)


Epcot:
Electric Umbrella- Chilled Chicken Wrap (child’s)
Sunshine Seasons- Sweet & Sour chicken with rice (child’s)
Sunshine Seasons- Chicken leg with potatoes (child’s)
Sunshine Seasons- Oak Grilled fish with veggies (adult)
France- ham & cheese pizza thingie (can’t remember the name)
Japan- kid’s meal (teriyaki chicken when I was there but I think it was changing, and they let me switch the cookie with green tea ice cream *YUM*)

Magic Kingdom:
Harbor House- Grilled Salmon with couscous (adult)
Cosmic Ray’s- ½ chicken with potatoes and veggies (adult)
Pecos Bills- Grilled Chicken Wrap with apple slices (adult)

 

[BearcatsFan]

Thank you Book Junkie! Your MK list looks very much like the one I had typed up (in fact, I think they are identical!), but there are many more options I can consider for EPCOT than I had thought. MK and EPCOT are the two parks we will be visiting this trip.

I can eat bread, but it has to be the high fiber/low carb variety; potatoes are okay, even a small amount of fries if I am active enough ... but I can't eat 5 crackers without shooting up over 200. Diabetes is such an individual disease - my mother has it as well, and we laugh a lot over what one or the other of us can/can't eat and how jealous we are that the other can eat this or that.

I so much appreciate everyone's input. As I said in a previous post, I am always learning, learning, learning.

 

[SueM in MN]

I wanted to point out that post 3 of the disABILITIES FAQs thread has links to 2 WDW menu lists, one from wdwinfo.com ( parent site of the DIS) and one from allearsnet.com

As you already know, they won't give nutritional information, but between the 2 sites, you should get a pretty good idea of at least what is on the menu. I suggest going to both sites because WDW does change menu items periodically. Sometimes one of the sites has more recent information about menu items than the other. So, between the 2, you at least get a fairly good idea of what is available.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Thank you for the information on the links, Sue

 

[PatsMom]

I am another type II who does the kids meals sometimes. One thing I have learned is that for me totally eliminating carbs will cause a spike in my readings. My body is great at making glucose if I don't give it any. One reason I struggle with the "dawn phenomenon". So I try to make sure I get my 30 to 45 carbs each meal.

I avoid Caesar salad as the dressing tends to be high in fat. If I think I will be getting a Caesar salad that day, I toss a packet of Ken's light balsamic vinaigrette in my bag. I put in in a ziploc to avoid any accidents. You can buy individual packets at most grocery stores.

We avoid any dining plan like the plague. They tend to make me want to eat too much and they are a waste of money for me. Anything that includes dessert is not a good value as far as we are concerned. We do generally do a sit down almost every day though. Lunch tends to be cheaper than dinner and the portions smaller. This doesn't work at the Studios where they seem to be making the lunch and dinner menus the same.

If my numbers are generally good and I get some odd readings on vacation, I don't get too upset over them. Since I went off insulin there isn't much I can adjust medication wise. So exercise - which is hard to avoid at Disney - and portion control pretty much take care of things. Metformin doesn't generally cause lows I don't think so you shouldn't need to worry too much about them. But it wouldn't hurt to make sure you have a suitable carb snack handy just in case.

I also never bother talking with the restaurant staff. Since Disney is not going to provide carb counts, I just use the Calorie King to help me estimate if I am eating something I don't usually eat.

 

[BearcatsFan]

I had been thinking of the packets of dressing as well. We have a friend who is a restaurant manager - I'm going to call in a favor before we go and get a few from him.

My numbers are generally higher when I avoid carbs as well. I always tell my doctor that I can lose weight well on low-carb, but my numbers are high - if I follow the diabetic diet, my numbers stabilize, but I don't lose weight. He can't have it both ways

DH has expressed concern about a child's meal being "enough food" - I too was wondering about the portion sizes. I think I will be fine ... I think he just wants to eat all the extra stuff I would get with the adult meal that I can't eat (ie: dessert)

So nice to see so many diabetics/family members here - and to think I was worried this question wouldn't get answered when I first posted. (Not that I'm saying it's great that there are so many of you out there ... you know what I mean!! )

 

[book_junkie]

I really don't think the kids meals are too much food, there just isn't really any variety, or there wasn't when I went. I've read posts and blogs where that may be changing. If so, yea!

I'm a sudden crasher- can be fine one minute and the next *BOOM* the world spins, so there have been times that the pizza kids meals was the best tasting thing in the world, and it was more than enough- an individual sized pizza, plus a cookie (for fast sugar uplift), plus grapes, plus a small water, and then usually they'd give me ANOTHER option because we HAD to have dessert if it was a meal plan. More than your number of carb exchanges, probably your high fat meats as well.

I need SOME carbs or I feel like crap, but it makes a different what type of carbs, and more lean protein the better- which can be hard to find in the kids' meals. I also have to stay away from dressings and BBQ sauces- the sweetners in those spike my sugars like crazy. Rubs seem to be OK for readings (allergies are another thing), but straight BBQ sauce seems to be a no-no. Yet, most tomato pasta sauces are just fine- maybe because it's been cooked down to almost caramelized?

 

[buffettgirl]

lets put it this way - the kid's meal is a perfect amount of food for an adult. Not so perfect for a 9 or 10 year old growing boy. HAAHA.

Disney could make the kid's portions bigger and the adults smaller and we'd all be happy hahah.

 

[Bete]

and it caused me to do another post.

Glucerna (a protein drink for diabetics) is claiming that their drink helps to control spikes in blood sugar. I don't think this is available in powdered form, but maybe take some of these drinks with you in a backpack or whatever for the trip.

Boost has a glucose version of their protein drink, too. They have a powdered form that's not their glucose drink; so, be careful to get the one for diabetics. Again, this will be liquid.

If you are going to have a car at Disney, many stores carry this product including WalMart and drug chains like Walgreens and CVS.

 

[LindaDVC]

i find with the extra exercise -- and heat my blood typically runs low at disney! but everyone is different and i suggest you just do the best you can on vacation!

 

[GenevieveRaqs]

Diabetes is SUCH a strange disease, and every single person is affected differently. What works for me may not work for you, but I'll share my experience anyway.

I'm an adult-diagnosed Type 1 (so, yeah, already I'm REALLY weird...lol). We've been to Disney twice since I was diagnosed, and both times I did really well, usually well enough that I needed an extra snack or two to keep my blood sugar up. As a Type 1, I'm insulin dependent, which, of course, gives me a little more flexibility to adjust, "save" carbs from one meal to use at another, etc.

First post-diagnosis trip was in January 2011. We drove and brought our own food for breakfasts, lunches and snacks and just ate out for dinner. This worked quite well because we could keep a very tight reign on carb counts at breakfast and lunch. In fact, because I was sticking to my usual counts, I inevitably had to eat more to account for all the walking. We didn't eat any QS on that trip. Don't be shy about asking to substitute sides for something else! I always ask for another veggie in place of potatoes or rice, etc. and it has never been a problem at all.

We went back this February, and this time we were on the dining plan. My doc had lowered my insulin dose by this point because he was concerned I was running too low, so my "standard" readings were slightly higher (though within range) by the time we took this trip. Again, we brought our own low-carb breakfast foods. At lunch at Epcot, I had the chicken and lamb shwarma platter at Tangerine Cafe in Morocco. Gave the bread to DH, and we shared one piece of baklava (packed the other up and took it back to the room). For lunch in the MK, I had the shrimp platter at Columbia Harbor House but swapped the fries for broccoli. DH and I also swapped our dessert credits for sides of broccoli and cole slaw here, and that was no problem at all. I took my normal insulin dose for both of those meals and had no trouble. We also ate at Contemp Cafe for dinner on our arrival night (no parks, no extra walking that day). I had the curry vegetable bake, which was good, but somehow I missed in the description that it included potatoes. I picked most of those out and was still able to share a cupcake with DH.

At Disney, I try to eat few enough carbs at breakfast that I do not have to take any insulin at that meal, allowing me to spread that carb allotment out throughout the day. By doing this and then making pretty good choices at lunch, I was able to splurge at dinner and still maintain my "normal" insulin total for the day. I realize this doesn't work as well for a type 2 on oral meds though.

The biggest thing for me is usually the sides--again, don't be shy about asking to switch starchy sides for something that will work for you at both QS and TS places. I don't eat burgers at Disney, and I eat all my burgers bunless anyway, so unfortunately I don't have a solution for you there! Except maybe if you have a brand you use back home that works for you, just bring them with you!

 

[Daydreamer64]

Just a thought to share. My Dh is type 2 and he takes oral meds, my DS is type 1 and he uses insulin and carb counting, and I myself was diagnosed as type 2 BUT have ended up on insulin due to many factors over the years. I also carb count to take the amount of fast acting insulin needed for my meals.

We pretty much cover the diabetic rainbow-lol.

We have discovered that the additional exercise while at the parks uses our glucose up faster, as it should.

If we try to eat very low/lower carb, we don't supply enough "energy/carbs" for our bodies to use touring the parks, we use our glucose up and then our body dumps any stored glucose available and we often find that we have a higher blood sugar level then we should based on food intake.

So, clear as mud- right?

Anyway, all three of us with our different issues have discovered that if we eat some carbs, maybe even a little more then normal, that our blood glucose readings stay very stable.

That is not to say that we have license to put our faces straight down into the "Kitchen Sink" icecream dessert but we splurge just a little and actually feel better and are more stable then if we are very strict with our carbs.

I hope that can help someone, YMMV but it seems to hold true for my clients as well if they are exercising more then usual.

 

[Andianna]

I do not have an answer for your question. However i want to say thank you for asking as I am a type 2 diabetic and this is my first trip to the world trying to keep my blood sugars regulated. the information i have learned on this thread is very helpful to me in making my choices for my meals. We are on the dining plan so i imaginge I will have more options. I wish you the best.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Thank you again so much to all who posted replies. This is why I love the DIS so much!

And Andianna, best of luck to you as well. When is your trip? Hopefully by that time you will have a good handle on how different foods affect you. I would humbly suggest testing before/after any exercise to see how that affects your numbers, too (because of the insane amount of walking involved at Disney). When you arrive in the 'World, test, test, test! And as PPs have said, don't be afraid to ask for substitutions. REALLY critique the menus and choose the places you will be eating carefully. And remember, you'll always be learning, learning, learning.

 

[Andianna]

Thank you again so much to all who posted replies. This is why I love the DIS so much!

And Andianna, best of luck to you as well. When is your trip? Hopefully by that time you will have a good handle on how different foods affect you. I would humbly suggest testing before/after any exercise to see how that affects your numbers, too (because of the insane amount of walking involved at Disney). When you arrive in the 'World, test, test, test! And as PPs have said, don't be afraid to ask for substitutions. REALLY critique the menus and choose the places you will be eating carefully. And remember, you'll always be learning, learning, learning.

Thank you for your encouragement. We are going in May to enjoy the flowers in Epcot. I will test more often . You are so right about learning the older I get the more I realize I do not know.

 

[BearcatsFan]

I have heard May is a beautiful time to go! Have always wanted to see Epcot that time of year.

BTW, I sent you a private message with some additional information from my "first time as a diabetic at WDW" experiences last year - HTH!