Diabetic menus

[old lady]

Are there any options for diabetics at Disney?

 

[lanejudy]

If you are asking "do they provide carb counts?" the answer is no. There may be low or no-sugar added items available, but in general many locations will offer you fruit as "diabetic" dessert. You are best off bringing a Calorie King book or app to estimate carbs, watching portion sizes, and testing often.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[SueM in MN]

Most people with diabetes eat the same food as everyone else.
That is why carb counts become important - knowing what carbs are bring eaten determines how much insulin to give. Many of the 'no sugar added' items include artificial sweeteners, which can cause intestinal problems for many people. And, some of the 'diabetic foods' are actually higher in carbs than 'regular foods.

 

[anorman]

I am really disappointed in Disney regarding their lack of concern for people with diabetes. My DD12 has type 1 diabetes for the past 3 yrs and when we went to Disney it was a complete guessing game as to how much insulin to give because of the lack of information from them. Disney did suggest that the chefs would be more than happy to come to our table to discuss my DDs dietary needs, but the few times I availed of this, I found the information very vague and next to useless. Disney is so good about people with allergies and gluten free options, etc. but they really drop the ball on this one.

 

[bookgirl]

Why not ask for the allergy book that lists ingredients, then you can look at what's in it and figure out the carbs, just like you would at home. They aren't going to figure out your carbs and calories for you but they will show you what's in an item.

 

[minnie mum]

[

I am really disappointed in Disney regarding their lack of concern for people with diabetes. My DD12 has type 1 diabetes for the past 3 yrs and when we went to Disney it was a complete guessing game as to how much insulin to give because of the lack of information from them. Disney did suggest that the chefs would be more than happy to come to our table to discuss my DDs dietary needs, but the few times I availed of this, I found the information very vague and next to useless. Disney is so good about people with allergies and gluten free options, etc. but they really drop the ball on this one.

While I understand your concerns for your child, I fail to see a particular disregard towards diabetics. How about those on low sodium diets? Or low potassium diets? Or those who need to avoid purine? Or a hundred other dietary restrictions? If Disney was to include nutritional lists for every item in their restaurants, their menus would rival the bible in size and would need to be rewritten every time a menu item was changed. How do you manage when you eat out at home? As a pp mentioned, most diabetics eat regular food, learn about portion control and carb estimation, using a reference book or app for guidance. I wouldn't expect any chef to know the calorie count or carb content of every single thing served, but I would expect him to be able to suggest lower carb alternatives. And more frequent testing is definitely in order on a WDW trip. Its not just the food that can throw off a diabetics insulin requirements.

 

[buffettgirl]

Carb totals are becoming more and more common on many restaurant menus. So I think eventually we'll see this information. But, the long and short of it is that the food served at disney isn't magical. It has the same carbs as food served at any restaurant at home. 1 cup of mac and cheese at disney is still 1 cup of mac and cheese. 1 hamburger roll is still 1 hamburger roll. 1c of fruit is still 1 c of fruit. So a good carb counting app or Calorie King is still your best bet. Also, eventually you do learn to just know how many carbs are in foods. At least you should.

Now, I don't want to sound insensitive because early on it really DID bother me. A whole stinking big bunch. A difference in even 1/2u of insulin for a little kid can make a huge difference (especially if 1u drops your child 300 points like it did mine), so correctly counting those carbs before dosing the insulin is imperative. But, kids grow, and eventually if you get 10 or 15 carbs off, it's not as big of a deal.

I don't think Disney is showing a lack of concern for people with diabetes. They aren't stuffing their food with carb laden pixie dust and not telling us.

 

[Goddesstree]

I understand how hard it is to be diabetic - my dad was a diabetic who ignored that he had it, and my mom is on the edge of type 2. She probably is, but has so many other medical issues right now that she's kind of ignoring it too. Which makes it worse, and adds to her other medical issues, sigh...

I don't understand how restaurants can do carb counts though, as most plates are served as ordered, not prepacked, right? So if one server scoops out a bigger serving of mac and cheese than another, how do you trust a posted carb count? It would just make me too nervous! I used to travel with one of those little calorie books, and it was pretty easy to use. I was doing it for a semester of biochem though, not because I was diabetic. With my family track record though, I feel it's just a matter of time, even though I keep my weight in the lower end of healthy. Type 2 runs in my family, both sides.

 

[anorman]

[


While I understand your concerns for your child, I fail to see a particular disregard towards diabetics. How about those on low sodium diets? Or low potassium diets? Or those who need to avoid purine? Or a hundred other dietary restrictions? If Disney was to include nutritional lists for every item in their restaurants, their menus would rival the bible in size and would need to be rewritten every time a menu item was changed. How do you manage when you eat out at home? As a pp mentioned, most diabetics eat regular food, learn about portion control and carb estimation, using a reference book or app for guidance. I wouldn't expect any chef to know the calorie count or carb content of every single thing served, but I would expect him to be able to suggest lower carb alternatives. And more frequent testing is definitely in order on a WDW trip. Its not just the food that can throw off a diabetics insulin requirements.

Many restaurants do have nutritional information available if you ask for it and the information does include sodium, potassium, along with much more detailed information. It is not uncommon to provide an online site to access this information. I am not saying that diabetes is more important than other dietary concerns, but this has been my personal experience with Disney. They do so many things so well, but for some reason they will not provide nutritional information to those who require it. Diabetes is such a common diagnosis, particularly among children, that I would think Disney would try to do better. A pp has mentioned about just a small miscalculation in a child can cause a significant blood glucose change, so unless we all carry around scales to weigh food and can magically guess as to the sugar content in sauces, etc. then we are out of luck.

 

[Goddesstree]

Anorman, how do you trust the serving size at a restaurant though? They could give you an average carb count, but it could be off, so measuring is the best way to be safe anyways, IMO. I think having the list of ingredients would be very helpful though! But, unless the sauce is premade, in large batches (which it could be) the amount of sugar could vary from day to day. I think it all depends on how Disney prepares all those thousands of meals each day.

 

[lanejudy]

Many restaurants do have nutritional information available if you ask for it and the information does include sodium, potassium, along with much more detailed information. ...

I believe this may vary widely by state. My state recently (well, maybe a year or so) starting requiring calorie counts and other nutritional information to be provided on menus. It was really chaos when it first started, and in all honestly - most people with special dietary needs (such as carb counts) do not consider it to be terribly accurate at most restaurants. YMMV

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[anorman]

We will have a great time and will bring along our trusty Calorie King pocket book like we did last time. It's not perfect but it's better than nothing !

 

[Nia20]

i'm a type 1 diabetic and have been taught how to estimate the carb content and therefore estimate insulin. the only real advice i can give is test more often than you normally would, the changed diet and increased exercise need to be monitored. i also find the change in climate can affect my sugar levels, so i was testing every few hours.