Food That Needs Insulin
Between Meals
Large Snacks
If you are very hungry and want to eat a
large snack, (e.g. after school), then you
will have to carbohydrate count the food
and give insulin, logging the dose on your
smart meter to ensure that the insulin in
your body does not overlap and cause a
hypoglycaemic event.
As with any meal we would encourage you
to check blood glucose levels before and 2
hours after any snacks, so that you understand the effect of snacks on you, or your
child’s blood sugar, as everyone is different.
Please contact Alison Ashworth or Julie
Wood on 01254 732 463 if you have any
questions.
Useful Contact Numbers
Paediatric Diabetes Specialist
Nurses
Office: 01254 732 558
Carol Wade
Mobile: 07866 441 041
A Guide To
Eating Between
Meals When You
Have Diabetes
(MDI Injections )
Peter Doyle
Mobile: 07740 803 786
Vicky Phillips
Mobile: 07973 315 298
Clair Kneale
Mobile: 07713 089 470
Mary Nightingale
Mobile: 07943 580 088
Karen Smith
Mobile: 07943 579 965
Paediatric Diabetes Dietitians
Julie Wood
Alison Ashworth
Office: 01254 732 463
Authors: Dietetics
Issue Date: April 2015
Document ID:
Version: 1
Review Date: April 2018
East Lancashire
Children and Young
Peoples Diabetes
Team
It is proven that Children who do
not eat between meals have better
diabetes control and better weight
management. Both of these are
important for reducing the long
term complications of diabetes.
Food That Should Not Need
Insulin If Eaten Between
Meals (Insulin Pump Patients
Should Give Insulin For ALL
Carbohydrate)
Therefore,
discouraged
diabetes.
Vegetables and Dips
snacking
when you
is
have
We appreciate, however, that
children and young people are
often hungry between meals. If
you are hungry between meals
then there are certain foods that
you can eat that should only affect
your blood glucose by a small
amount, if at all.
Peppers, carrots, cucumber, celery, sugar
snap peas, cherry tomatoes.
100g of one of the Dips below for
Vegetables
Low Fat Cottage Cheese
Low Fat Soft Cheese, (not chocolate
flavoured)
Low Fat Hummus
Salsa
50g Guacamole, (as it is high in fat)
50g No Added Sugar Peanut Butter, (as it is
high in fat and energy)
Pickles
However, these should, be eaten
in moderate quantities, as eating
too much between meals may
increase blood glucose levels and
lead to eating less at main meals,
which results in further snacking
later on.
Onions, Gherkins, Beetroot, Cauliflower
Drinks
Well diluted sugar free cordial
Savoury Options
10g Savoury Popcorn
100g Unsalted nuts, (over the age of 5 years)
Sweet Options
1 Low Sugar Ice Lolly, (home made using no
added sugar cordial)
Sugar Free Jelly
Fruit
Fruit is not low carbohydrate but is allowed in
moderate quantities between each meal as it
contains fibre, and is a natural unprocessed
food that takes some time to digest and
release the sugars.
Fruit Allowed
One handful of fresh fruit such as 2
Satsuma’s, or 1 Apple, or 1 Orange, or 10
Strawberries, or 10 Grapes, or half a large
Banana, or a small Banana, or 2 Kiwi Fruits.
Not Suitable Fruit Snacks
Dried fruit, smoothies, fruit flakes, fruit
winders and natural fruit juice. These contain
sugars which are easily digested, and so will
increase blood glucose levels. They can
lead to tooth decay and also insulin will need
to be taken.