Dining with a diabetic child

[mousehappync]

we are going to WDW IN January, and will be bringing my oldest son's (9 years) best friend with us, who is a T1 diabetic. We keep him overnight a good bit at home, and I'm pretty comfortable with meals and carb counting in our everyday life, but I'm concerned about how we will manage at WDW. I know he would love to have the kinds of treats we have there, but I also know that I need his sugars to stay stable for my own sanity--and because he REALLY beats himself up when they are high, and I don't want that. Can I get some recs for restaurants that have good sugar-free options? Is there such a thing as sugar-free LeFou's Brew? We usually split one dessert between 2-4 people anyway, so we will all just have more of a taste (is it wrong to order an Zooey Gooey Toffee cake to myself and eat it in the bathroom?!). I'm hoping that ad great as Disney is about allergies, they will be equally helpful with carb counting/accommodating a diabetic child. Anybody with experiences you can share?

 

[stobaugh6]

My 12 DS has type 1. In my experience it is very difficult to get carb counts from disney meals. On our WDW trip last year, we did a lot of guessing. Amazingly we didn't have too many issues with high blood sugars. In fact, we struggled more with keeping his blood sugar from going too low. Make sure your son's friend is doing the middle of the night blood sugar checks (we had a few overnight lows). And keep him from getting over heated as well. As far as sugar free items, we stay away from those. For one thing sugar free doesn't mean carb free, and we've had blood sugar issues with artificial sweeteners. My son knows he's diabetic and understands that he can't always have high carb treats when his siblings are having them. We sometimes save treats for him for when his blood sugar goes low. It sucks to be a kid with diabetes, but there are much worse things. It's very sweet of you to take your son's friend with you on a trip to WDW with your family. I hope y'all have a fantastic trip!

 

[stobaugh6]

Oh I forgot to ask, is your son's friend on the insulin pump, or does he take daily injections? That makes a HUGE difference when it comes to special treats.

 

[TreeFalls]

I can't comment on the restaurants specifically, but as was mentioned, if he has a pump you can be more flexible. Also with all the walking, I'd worry as much about a low as a high. Does he have a CGM or just do regular checks?

 

[mousehappync]

He does not have a pump now, although they've been working up towards that over the summer (testing the insertion thingies, sorry I have no idea how the pump,reLly works!) and I think it's a possibility for Jan. He tests several times a day during the day right now, and I almost never need to give a correction between mealtimes with him. I am hyper vigilant when he's with us-- his dad is also T1, and they are more a "eat whatever, then correct" family, while I am hyper vigilant about low-carb snacks with him. We just sent a week with them on vacay where the kids were constantly incredibly active-- his sugars before mealtimes were consistently 95-125, so he seems to respond really well to activity, although he sometimes drops with things like tennis camp, where they get super sweaty/exhausted. Thanks for the advice-- I don't want him to feel left out, and because we are WDW regulars, my kids expect that we will have certain snacks. I've alrady started prepare them that having him experience the parks is WAY more important than snacking, and they sort-of get that abstractly, but I know when we are in the parks it will be harder for them to skip treats. Our one saving grace is he really doesn't love sweet foods, but when they are as in-your-face as they are there it might be more tempting. He does LOVE carby things like noodles, though. That kind of food will be harder to steer him away from than sugar.

 

[mousehappync]

No CGM-- he's had reactions to the adhesives (and mom has advanced cancer, so poor kid has had a doozy of a year and his diabetes is kind of backseat now) but I know they want him to be on born CGM and pump eventually, so these might be up and running in Jan.

 

[TreeFalls]

You sound like you are such a support to him and his family, what a treat for him to get to go to Disney when things are so rough at home! I hope you have a great trip!

 

[stobaugh6]

I'm going to tell you what my DS's endocrinologist tells us...highs at his age are way less dangerous than lows.

Type 1 is different then type 2. I wouldn't worry so much about him having a few extra sweets on vacation. It sounds like he's probably not going to go back to WDW anytime in the near future, so I'd let him have a few treats and correct him later if you have to. But seriously, check him around 2 or 3 every morning if you can, because swimming and extra activity will bring his blood sugar down over night fast! When are y'all going in January? We will be there January 21-30!

 

[stobaugh6]

Also, there's no reason to keep him away from carbs. He can have noodles and potatoes and stuff like that. The important thing is to make sure he gets enough insulin. Children need carbs. My DS's endocrinologist at Texas Children's and DS's nutritionist have stressed to us over and over that he needs a balanced diet that includes all the food groups. We were actually told to stay away from "diet" and "sugar-free" items altogether, with the exception of pancake syrup. Lol! But like I said before, even the sf pancake syrup will still effect his blood sugar. One thing that does seem to help my DS is combine sweets or high carbs with protein and fat. Ice cream doesn't raise his blood sugar nearly as high as carrots. Lol! He literally can't eat carrots. Crazy!

 

[bumbershoot]

I also know that I need his sugars to stay stable for my own sanity--and because he REALLY beats himself up when they are high, and I don't want that

The above is what might be getting missed. This boy doesn't like it when he goes high. She's trying to help him with that.

Type 1 is different then type 2. I wouldn't worry so much about him having a few extra sweets on vacation...so I'd let him have a few treats and correct him later if you have to.

 

[Selket]

The best thing is to let him eat as you typically let your own (non-type 1) kids eat - the same treats, snacks, foods, etc.

However since he isn't your child I can especially understand the extra caution. I do agree that high blood sugars temporarily are not going to hurt him and the lows would be more serious. Poor little guy definitely shouldn't be beating himself up over having a high blood sugar - at 9 years old he's going to burn out by the time he gets to be a teenager! If possible, I'd let him eat like your own kids eat (typically) and do the best you can - higher blood sugar is better than too low - and mostly focus on having fun and not diabetes. And lastly - you are a WONDERFUL friend to that family - kudos to you!

 

[mousehappync]

Thanks so much guys-- I really appreciate it. I wasn't really clued in to how badly the highs make him feel (about himself) until we did a hibachi restaurant to celebrate his brother's birthday. He LOVES noodles, rice, etc, and had a ton, plus some cake. He then spent the night with us, and he was really high at breakfast-- in the high 200's. He got SO moody, quirky, refused to eat anything but a plain egg. I was talking to his babysitter about it when I dropped him off, and she's the one who said she'd noticed how he seems to have a lot of guilt about highs-- like he's not doing a good enough job of watching his diet (not that he should have to-- he's nine!). I noticed that this week-- we traveled with them, and one night he pitched a FIT about having to test after a really high-carb meal because he didn't want to see the high number on the meter. He's either early enough into diagnosis (about 18 months) or just lucky, but when he eats high-protein and moderate carb, with low-carb snacking, his sugars are really great. We want him to have a great time, be happy, and feel good, and I'm trying to check all the boxes for that. This is all really helpful information!

 

[mrzrich]

Also look into whatever type of documentation you might need if god forbid he needed medical attention while in your care.

 

[Pumbaa_]

watching his diet (not that he should have to-- he's nine!).

he DOES have to, now and for the rest of his life. Fair? no, but it is reality. Pretending otherwise does him no favors.

Also, SF is NOT low carb. Read the labels. It is very nice of you to want to take him with you, but you may also need to make some modifications in your normal disney eating. Skip some of the high carb meals and treats you like. It won't hurt you and will make things so much easier for your son's friend (like no more hibachi with him)

You may also want to check in on the disabilities board. Things other T1 families do or watch out for

 

[TheRustyScupper]

In my experience it is very difficult to get carb counts from disney meals

1) Alas, this is true.
2) Disney DOES NOT want you know what is in the food.
. . . in some cases, people would be shocked at the nutrition information
. . . have seen foods with 2-3 days the recommended amount of sodium (in one serving), as an example

3) If you are at a TS eatery, you can ask the chef for ideas, and they might be able to help out
. . . the chef can *usually* come up with a solution
4) If you are at a QS eatery, take your best guess.
. . . they do have some allergy books available at the eatery, but usually does not help for sugar levels

 

[EEva]

- in the high 200's. He got SO moody, quirky, refused to eat anything but a plain egg.

This moodiness could also be a symptom of HAVING high blood sugar. I know when my 9 yo daughter is high she is super moody and gets frustrated very easily.
Poor little guy! It's such a challenge for them. We are constantly walking the line of letting our daughter be a kid yet making sure she understands the seriousness of her Type 1 and needing to be vigilant about her blood sugars.

I hope you all have a great trip!

 

[ParksPixar&Pizza]

I've been T1 for about 6 years now and trust me, if your BS is 200+, you just feel so off. You get thirsty, tired, annoyed easily, moody, nauseous the list just goes on and on. I'm the same way, if my sugar goes high, I get really disappointed in myself because I feel like I'm not taking care of myself. But, like everyone else said...all the walking and sweating really kept me sugar down!

 

[mousehappync]

Y'all are the best-- thanks for all the encouragement and recs!

 

[Glee1973]

My problem has always been lows from all the walking. Make sure to keep juice in the room because the dining areas are often far from the room. And the rooms all come with a fridge now! It's a lifesaver for me!