Type 1 diabetes snacks for kids

[lifesgr8]

If you child is in public school with type 1 diabetes ...... Do you allow snacks? How do you handle daily things while you are not there such as testing, shots, highs, lows etc. also for long bus rides?

My ds is 8 so I'm looking for feedback for less independent kids.

 

[Talking Hands]

If you child is in public school with type 1 diabetes ...... Do you allow snacks? How do you handle daily things while you are not there such as testing, shots, highs, lows etc. also for long bus rides?

My ds is 8 so I'm looking for feedback for less independent kids.

My daughter had a type one child in her class at that age. Yes, parents provided acceptable snacks to the teacher. His Dad was one of the room parents and I was the other (type 1 myself) so we planned snacks for parties to include acceptable items such as fruit, cheese and veggie plates as well as some of the normal chips and such. We even did sugar free snow cones and popcorn for one party. Testing he did himself and his parents were called if he was high or low. Shots were not taken at school as we did not have a nurse. In our county if there is a child who needs shots at school a nurse comes to do it. Some schools have a full time nurse while others share with schools close by. With an elementary kid who is completely independent I would request the teacher leave information in the sub plans on your daughters needs and also a contact number. I was able to work out a solution of a surprise party for another student by contacting the parent of the child with diabetes and setting up with the other child's parent that instead of a big cake that she would bring cupcakes and 2 would be without icing and we would have it after playground time where the child needed a snack anyway. Make sure that anytime the teacher must be out she informs the sub about your child. Also you might ask that you be informed if she will be out and you can make the call whether or not your child will attend that day.

 

[chrissy92972]

My son Ryan has type 1 diabetes. He is in 5th grade now but was diagnosed at age 5 a few months before beginning KD.

We are lucky that we have a full time school nurse. Ryan is currently on an insulin pump. Now he operates it himself at school, but the nurse counts the carbs for lunch or snacks, he tests and enters the numbers.

In the past the nurse operated the pump when he was younger and before the pump the nurse did all shots.

When he packs a lunch I include the carb count for everything in his lunch box, otherwise if he orders in the cafeteria the nurse has that information.

As for school snack time at 10am, if he wants to take a snack it is usually water and string cheese, but no matter what he has he goes to the nurse to test and to cover carbs or high numbers if needed.

In the nurses office we keep his meter, extra sites, glucagon, juice boxes, crackers, fruit snacks etc.

In the bag that he always has with him it has fruit snacks, meter, and glucagon.

In case of nurse not available or school lockdown or restrictive movement he has the basics needs with him.

On party days like for Halloween, Christmas, and Valentine's Day. He brings his plate of food to the nurse, she figures out the carbs the best she can and he gets insulin for what he is eating.

No real restrictions since we were told at diagnosis he can basically eat anything within reason and cover the carbs. There is no way I am going to make him feel any different from his siblings or classmates by having him eat different food because he is diabetic.

Christine

 

[Talking Hands]

Personally I would had preferred that the child have the same cupcakes as the other students but it was not my call. The parent made the decision how to handle it after I called. I would never presume to make that decision for a child with diabetes. It is up to his parents or guardian. If they had told me he could not join in the celebration that would have been what I did. Just because I am versed in diabetes having type 1 myself I need to leave the decision to the parent or guardian.
What I can do is call the parent if I have a number and ask how they want the situation handled. I've learned to keep my eyes and ears open for information that would clue me in to problems and consult the parent. In one case keeping my ears open, being observant and willing to speak up kept on off our kids from going into ketoacidosis. I was the para for the class and the kid kept asking to go to the bathroom. I remembered that her Mom had said the day before that the doctor was going to adjust her insulin. I clued the teacher into the fact frequent urination could indicate high sugar and she should contact the parent. Mom called, came and tested and the child was already reading over 500. Off to doctor and then home for observation until sugars were back in control. I was so glad I was assigned to that room that day and the child got treated quickly.

 

[chrissy92972]

Thankfully you were in the class that day. It scares me so much to think about not having a knowledgeable school nurse or parents there all day. So much could go wrong so quickly.

Chrissy

 

[Schmeck]

If you child is in public school with type 1 diabetes ...... Do you allow snacks? How do you handle daily things while you are not there such as testing, shots, highs, lows etc. also for long bus rides?

My ds is 8 so I'm looking for feedback for less independent kids.

Is there a school nurse? Full time or part-time? Does your child have a 504?

In our school district there is a dedicated full time nurse in 4 of our 5 schools. (Not sure if our part-time charter school has one) If a student with health issues that require a nurse goes on a field trip, a nurse goes on that field trip and a sub nurse fills in at the school. Sometimes a parent volunteers to chaperone their own child so the nurse doesn't have to go, but that is totally up to the parent.

 

[lifesgr8]

Is there a school nurse? Full time or part-time? Does your child have a 504?

In our school district there is a dedicated full time nurse in 4 of our 5 schools. (Not sure if our part-time charter school has one) If a student with health issues that require a nurse goes on a field trip, a nurse goes on that field trip and a sub nurse fills in at the school. Sometimes a parent volunteers to chaperone their own child so the nurse doesn't have to go, but that is totally up to the parent.

No school nurse. An aide does his lunch time shot. Other than that we are on our own. No 504, I know what it is, just have not done that yet.

 

[buffettgirl]

If you child is in public school with type 1 diabetes ...... Do you allow snacks? How do you handle daily things while you are not there such as testing, shots, highs, lows etc. also for long bus rides?

My ds is 8 so I'm looking for feedback for less independent kids.

When my son was in grammar school we used to just ask the teacher call the nurse in the morning if there was a special snack happening that day. The nurse would just call me and we'd work out a carb count and decide if it was going to require an extra shot or not.

Since you've only got an aide, you're going to have to come up with a plan of attack with the teacher and aide and just decide for yourself how you want it handled. There's just no "one size fits all" answer here.

This is where a 504 comes in handy, because you'll be hashing out these things in advanced , and implementing them in your child's medical management plan which is then referred to in the 504. So the 504 might say "classroom teach must notify parent of any snack" "child needs to test and visit aide before classroom snack" and the medical management plan would outline specifically how that happens.

 

[dyna]

Almost 50 yrs ago my best friend was type1 when we started 1st grade at that time there was no such thing as 501's but she gpt her snacks as needed it was her parents responsibility...actually my friends responsibility to bring her snacks she was already taking care of her mom who had MS.

My friend usually had carrots or crackers an milk at about 10 am at her desk. Yes the teacher was given a note saying that this student required snacks morning an afternoon. I don't think her blood sugars was ever checked at school of course at that time we checked our pee with a dip stick. At that time students was allowed to carry their own medications themselves take them when it was time. Times sure have changed.....

 

[acebatonfan]

Hi! I am a high school senior recently diagnosed with T1 diabetes.

I do carry snacks with me at all times. Typically, this will include an Atkins meal bar for whenever I do not want to stab myself for lunch, a snack that is around 15-20g of carbohydrates and some source of protein or fat to treat a low, and fast acting glucose in the form of either glucose tablets or a Capri Sun pack (1 pouch is 17g sugar). I like to keep a travel-size vial of glucose tablets in my backpack and another vial in my lunch bag, so I know that, if I go low, I can treat myself in class for up to 10 lows (about 150 minutes or two and a half hours of hypoglycemia), and have an unopened vial I can quickly grab if there is a fire/lockdown drill and keep with me. I also have two or so granola bars in my diabetes box in the nurse's office to treat lows.

Currently, I am not given rights to my meter, and all testing and injecting is done in the nurse's office. These are done independently though, and the nurse is only there to put my BG into the computer and confirm that my calculated insulin dosage is correct. There are two nurses at my high school in addition to a few nursing and med tech students, so I know there is someone trained at the school at all times.

I am independently managing my diabetes (I still need to teach my parents how to test my BG and administer insulin/glucagon. That is how clueless they are. ). After returning from the hospital, I did get a 504 plan set up for myself. Essentially, the plan explains that I am allowed to take unlimited trips to the bathroom/fountain/nurse for diabetes-related care, should be allowed to eat and drink in the classroom (a lot of my teachers oppose this, but I still sneak in a glucose tablet if I am going low), and I am allowed extended testing for if I need to leave the classroom to treat a high/low. Surprisingly, all of my teachers were very cooperative when I emailed them at 3 AM explaining that I was in the ER for DKA and will be in ICU for a few days and will need the makeup work for both my hospital stay and the additional week I took off to help me manage the diagnosis.

For lows, I tend to treat in the classroom when symptoms appear. If I am still feeling symptoms after treatment (and there is nothing going on in class), I will go down to the nurse to double check my BG, take more glucose, and have a snack. My BG has not been incredibly high yet, so having a correction bolus during my lunch is suffice.

It is a lot simpler for me to pack my lunch instead of buying it in the cafeteria. My school lunch program only gives the average carb counts for the entire week, so it is not the best thing to use when bolusing. With it, I could go deathly low on Monday, and I can be spiking up into the 300's on Tuesday even though I bolus the exact same amount. I tend to keep a piece of paper in my lunch bag that has my total carbs for the day and my BG for it plus any additional notes, like whether I bolused the full amount or took some off to correct for a lower BG.