 Poster: A snowHead
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Just wondering what your regular routine is for a day on the slopes?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Nick-o, insulin-dependent?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Yep! I have had type 1 diabetes since I was 4, I'm now 33 years old and would consider myself a pretty an active guy. Typically, on a ski holiday my breakfast would consist of a large bowl of porridge if available. If we're self catering I'll normally take a mix pack of the Oats So Simple's and have two possibly three sachets and a portion of continental breads. I often find what with the warmth of the chalet, all my clothing and carrying skis, I burn a load of energy getting to the first lift! I'll carry a load of Jelly Babies, have a Camelbak with a diluted energy tablet and a handful on Rocky / Nature Valley bars to snack on during a coffee break.
Last season, I skied for the first time with a Dexcom G4 which monitors blood sugar levels every 5 minutes. If they drop or raise above set targets the device will vibrate and alert you, pretty handy. When my blood sugar levels drop they'll often cause me to get a little cold, the Dexcom stopped this from happening.
In the evening I'll pretty much demolish anything that I'm presented with at dinner time and adjust my insulin accordingly 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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One of our regular posters is a Type 1 diabetic, and is quite well experienced at coping in the mountains. I'm sure he'll be along later.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Sounds like you have it pretty well sorted, Nick-o. My OH was diabetic - I've dealt with a few hypos on the slopes! The Dexcom sounds brilliant. My only comment would be to try to identify low GI foods wherever possible. Baguettes are very bad from the GI point of view (as are jelly babies - emergency only). And best not to have massive insulin doses in the evening.
Lord knows what's in those Oats So Simple flavoured sachets - they have masses of sugar.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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pam w, Oats 81% , Sugar 18% and 1% 'flavouring'
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Nick-o, sounds like you're sorted. I'm just approaching 40 years of type 1, (age 54) so fairly used to and comfortable with life of the slopes. Tends to be little and often through the day, (OK, not so little, and often...) and generally aim to keep slightly on the high side, say try for 9 or 10 reading by the time I get to evening meals. Regular testing is important as you say, but I like the idea of this Dexcom G4.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I've had type 1 for 15 years now (from age 10) and I tend to have a decent breakfast, little and often through the day, usually mid morning, lunch and mid afternoon, and then I teducey insulin intake a little with dinner as any dips in blood sugar tended to have been at night after the days hard work.
I'm a regular sports person though so it's only really altitude and temperature I need to adjust for as I have a regular training pattern that my medication is already adjusted to.
I find skiing easier to manage than Christmases spent at home surrounded by roast dinners and chocolate.
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Well I was DX'd at 10 years old, and have been rock and ice climbing for 27, with skiing taking up the last 11 years. I am pretty brittle so bounce around a lot, in fact I had to pause while skiing the WC run at Schladming when my blood glucose level hit 1.5  I carry the High5 gel sachets, along with other carb sources and use the tiny (and handy with it's led torch) Freestyle lite meter quite a bit when out. In common with a few other people I know about I am not adverse to using a pen to take a few units IV if I hit a high spike. The main problem I have found is managing the transition between getting breakfast inside you without a high rise by the time you actually start exercising hard. Touring is much easier as it is a steady level of exertion ratehr than the all or nothing of lift based skiing.
I highly recommend MADidea... Mountaineering for Active Diabetics, it has a facebook page as well and boasts mountain guides and Himalayan climbers amongst it's members, it's a great resource for swapping info.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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53 year old T1 diagnosed at 17, who's been skiing for 31 years without too many problems, mainly due to me having high BG for much of my annual ski holiday... which is not exactly great, but perfectly understandable.
Like others have mentioned I try to have Tracker bars or similar in my pockets along with dextrosol just in case. I've been toying with investing in a Dexcom device since I've been trying to get fitter via a lower carb diet and more exercise and I'm now down to 66kg from 74kg in May. This has been accompanied by much better HbA1c results, but at the cost of a couple of hypos and with my confidence rocking a wee bit, my HbA1c has gone up again a little. I like the idea of knowing a bit more about what my BG is doing all through the day.
This season will be more challenging - I'm determined not to overeat and not to be running a BG of 12 when I sit down to lunch, but that might mean more stops to test. One thing that I tend to do is zone out when I'm skiing in a group and completely forget that I'm diabetic until I'm sitting in the chairlift thinking that it's 11am and I've not had any carbs since 8.15 which is a bit daft.
The big chalet or hotel dinner can be a challenge though, particularly if it's later than you'd normally eat. You can end up with high BG in the morning and the dilemma of taking some more bolus to offset that can see you going hypo by 10am.
If I remember I'll come back to this and let you know how it has gone.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I'm a late-onset Type 2; on a mountain day, I make sure I have plenty to drink (not vodka! ), take my medication (six different tablets!) at breakfast, a reasonably sized lunch and check my levels reasonably soon after finishing skiing for the day. Seems to work for me!
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You know it makes sense.
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My son who is 8 has had type 1 for 8 years. I carry a load of mini Mars bars and give him 1 every 30 mins. If I don't do that then he gets a Hypo. He is on a pump but we still need to test his blood.
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FAQ
baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad 
