Diabetic at WDW

[Jonell]

My husband was diagnosed with diabeties last week. Just looking for any advice on following his diet while at WDW. We will be on the DDP so I know there are sugar free desserts on the menu but will they substitute other things on the menu to accomodate diabetics? What type of snacks should he get? Thanks for any advice.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Can't answer too much about the substitution thing. Best advice I have for you guys is to test his blood sugar often, hopefully he'll be able to learn what his body does when his sugar is getting low (cold sweat, dizzy, shaky, etc) and know well ahead of time so he can get something, but not everyone can tell when its happening. Keep some kind of sugar source with you, a juice box, candy, glucose tablets or gel. Also be aware that Disney is not everyday life, you'll be more active and burning more calories more likely than not, so while he may get used to particular portioning of things at home, he'll probably be able to afford eating a bit more at meals and snacking more often while you're there to keep his sugars stable. There are first aid stations at every park, so just in case, make yourself aware of where they are.

 

[daneenm]

Type 2 or Type 1? It will make a difference in the suggestions you get because they are often approached quite differently.

 

[jrsmom]

I was diagnosed two days before we left for a disney trip a year and a half ago. Have you met with a certified diabetes nutrionist yet. There are also classes that are very helpful.

There is a lot of walking at disney, so he will want to check numbers. Walking is a great exercise for diabetics and he won't want to go low from all of the walking. There are a lot of sugar free options, I don't usually eat a lot of them while there. You need to be careful with some of the sweeteners, like the ones used in sugar free chocolates, they can cause tummy issues. Try and eat high fiber and low fat as much as possible. Check with a nutrionist and or doctor before you go. Mine said because I keep things in such good control and with all of the walking I can have a mickey ice cream bar and so on. I ususally will have a treat like this during the day when I have more walking to do! If having a piece of fruit, have a little protein with it, this will help sugars break down slower. Bring breakfast with you? I bring my fiber one and travel packets of ground flax seed (made by Hodgson Mills) sold in the health food aisle at the grocery store. This is what I eat most days along with blueberries. Ask the nutrionist for a list of fruits/veggies on the lower end of the glycemic index, this means they break down slower.

 

[Jonell]

He was diagnosed with Type 2 and due to his work schedule he has not been able to see a nutritionist yet.

 

[akcire]

Meeting with a nutritionist is the biggest thing. Eating sugar free is not helpful to most Type 2's because many things without "sugar" still has a high number of carbohydrates. Your husband will have to learn how many carbohydrates he can handle and still keep his sugar in "goal range", this is something that is pretty unique to each person and has a lot to do with portions. They will also discuss a healthy weight that he needs to maintain.

Disney has a lot of healthy options for eating, but every diabetic is different. I for example can eat full fat ice cream, candy, and chocolate with little impact on my blood sugar, however a piece of bread (even whole wheat), a banana, potatoes, or rice will send my sugar into orbit. I have very good control of my sugar, but I know if I want a sandwich I need to cut carbs other places and also exercise more that day [Looking at a one hour swim, makes the bread basket look less attractive]. My father on the other hand, is barely affected by bread products, but if he eats fruit (especially apples) his sugar spikes, go figure and we are genetically linked.

So they key for your husband is going to be seeing his nutritionist, probably food label reading and carb counting in the beginning, and most importantly frequent testing. Nothing Disney has is different from the real world.

As far as the Dining Plan goes, it is too much food for most people (not just diabetics) I know I don't eat dessert at every meal at home.

We don't purchase the dining plan, but have been at Disney during free dining. I never hesitated to ask the server if instead of an entree it would be possible to have a nice dinner salad (A salad without dressing (I don't like dressing) has nearly no carbohydrates, add a little protein, skip the carrots and it is a nearly perfect net zero carb meal for nights I may want some disastrous dessert). They have always been accommodating. For me I also ask them to keep the bread off the table, since it is one of my "bad sugar" foods and also something I would eat all day.

Finally, I ask them if I can substitute some fresh fruit for dessert. I am not saying I won't have a bite of my husband's, or even sometimes order my own; but every night I don't need dessert. [Not sure which dining plan you are on, but the counter service locations can give you either apples or grapes (can't remember which) from the kids meals instead of cake].

This is going to just be a long trial and error for you and your husband. When I was diagnosed as a diabetic, it was immediately after having my thyroid removed due to cancer, I attended a 4 week class at my hospital "diabetic education" with my husband. My husband is not diabetic, but wanted to get an idea of my new challenges, since I was a healthy weight I just needed to learn sugar control. Husband was overweight, with annoyingly perfect blood sugar numbers, and actually managed to learn enough about nutrition to lose some pounds. Then a few months after the class, I started seeing a nutritionist because I was finding that some of the information that seem appropriate for the "masses" of diabetics did not really apply to me--such as the whole grain bread thing? Meeting with her really helped me to customize a plan that was both healthy and workable in every day life.

What I guess I am saying is this is going to be a life long journey for your family, not just your husband. A trip to disney as a diabetic means, making smart food choices, drinking lots of water, and maybe getting to be a little bad because your doing extra walking. For me it's not really different that being at home, and having dinner at a restaurant. There are always things on a menu that are "bad sugar options" for me, but I just need to make balanced choices.

 

[PatsMom]

We don't do the DDP so having a dessert at every meal is not an issue for me. I avoid the sugar free desserts. They tend to have just as many carbs as the regular dessert and the sweeteners can cause some serious gastric distress. If I want a dessert, I usually just limit the carbs in my meal and split with my husband or daughter. Or just have a couple of bites of theirs. One other thing that I have been allowed to do is to order a dessert from the kids menu. This gives me a smaller portion. The Plaza has a kids ice cream that is awesome!

I count carbs mostly. I don't ask for any special menu items but will sometimes ask for a dish to be prepared differently, especially if I don't have any idea of the amount of carbs that might be in a sauce - I will just ask for it on the side or left off entirely. I have ordered an appetizer as an entree and had dessert and that was my whole meal. I have also ordered from the children's menu. You don't even need to tell them you are diabetic, just ask if it is OK to order the childs chicken, etc. That gets you a smaller portion.

Disney with diabetes is pretty much like every day life with diabetes. Pay attention to your numbers. If you are not on medication, lows probably won't be an issue but it they are, know how to treat them. Test, 15 grams of carb, wait 15, test again. Repeat as necessary. The Calorie King book has lots of info on carb counting. Disney does not provide carb counts so you have to be able to estimate them.

 

[Bete]

with his new medicines you do have to be careful. There are peaks and valleys at the beginning with these new meds with blood sugars. You don't want to be too low or high; neither is good. Testing often is a good idea.

There are recommendations of better foods that can be easily found on internet for diabetics. Go to the library and get a few books or even a video on the topic. You can learn about it more right now if he's too busy. Bring lists with you to the parks. The other posters are right with saying that everyone has different triggers. There's a trial period where you have to figure all this out. Watching carbs is a good thing, too. In small portions you can probably tolerate a lot of different foods (even the wrong choices), as long as, you monitor yourself well. It is best to stay away from the wrong choices. You need to find your triggers and then avoid those wrong choices. This is were taking multiple readings everyday can help. There are recommendations for your blood sugar levels during fasting and not fasting times. Your blood sugar will normally be higher after eating.

Exercise has a tendency to lower blood sugars and walking more at Disney World should help to keep the numbers lower, but again you don't want to be too low. It's normally recommended to eat more meals, but smaller meals. The idea being your body is on a more steady path that way. Always, have a good snack available ready to eat at the parks if the blood sugar gets too low. Many say you feel weak when your numbers are getting too low.

Be aware where the first aid stations are at each park. The maps show you where they are at in each park.

Unfortunately, it seems everyone is a little bit different who are diabetic. There's some common ground, but there are differences, too.

There are better restaurants at Disney that will customize your food if asked. Normally, this is done in advance to a certain degree like with a phone call. I think they want you to tell them what's good and what's not for them to help you this way. I doubt if the restaurants will be too kind in doing substitutions like you can't take an appetizer instead of a dessert. There are better choices at most restaurants there when it comes to getting a dessert. When we get the dining plan we often give away a dessert to a neighboring guest there that's not on the plan. Some folk like going to the buffets; so, they can pick exactly what they can eat there. Usually, there's enough healthy options to choose from with buffet. One tends to over eat at buffets and that's not exactly a good thing for a diabetic. There's a delicate balance that has to be reached when you are diabetic. The sad thing is most often what worked for you at the beginning as a diabetic changes down the line and you have to adjust your eating habits and meds when this happens. It's somewhat of a constant battle with being diabetic.