One of the things I have learned since Kay was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes is that managing diabetes is about so much more than counting carbohydrates.
Recently, I learned something about the meals being offered at Kay’s school that I hadn’t realized before: protein is not consistently offered as part of the school meal every day. There are certain days when a protein source is included and other days when it isn’t.
For most people, that might seem like a small detail. For Kay, it can make a difference.
Protein is important for everyone, especially a growing five-year-old. It provides important nutrients for growth and development and can also help with fullness. When protein is eaten alongside carbohydrates and fat, it can also affect how quickly a meal is digested and how blood sugar responds afterward.
For a child with Type 1 diabetes, that timing matters.
Carbohydrates have the most immediate impact on blood sugar, which is why Kay’s insulin doses are largely based on the carbohydrates she eats. But the rest of the meal can influence how quickly those carbohydrates are digested and when her blood sugar rises. Two meals with similar amounts of carbohydrates can sometimes result in very different blood sugar patterns depending on what else is included.
Kay’s nurse has noticed this with her as well. There have been noticeable differences in how Kay’s blood sugar responds depending on whether she has a more balanced meal that includes protein. When you’re managing Type 1 diabetes throughout an entire school day, those differences matter.
This isn’t about saying carbohydrates are bad. Kay needs carbohydrates. She is a growing child, and they are an important source of energy.
It is about balance and consistency.
Kay is five years old and isn’t independently managing her diabetes. She isn’t looking at her breakfast or lunch thinking about how the nutritional makeup of her meal could affect her blood sugar hours later. Those decisions fall on the adults caring for her.
So we are working with the school and Kay’s dietitian to find a reasonable solution.
I want Kay to participate in school meals just like everyone else. I simply want to make sure she has access to a balanced meal that supports both her nutritional needs and her diabetes management.
This may seem like a small part of managing Type 1 diabetes, but diabetes is made up of small details.
It’s what Kay eats, how much she eats, her blood sugar before breakfast and lunch, the insulin she receives, and what happens to her blood sugar afterward. None of those things exists completely on its own.
I’m grateful that Kay’s nurse is paying attention to these patterns and communicating what she is seeing, and I’m glad we can work with the school toward a solution.
For most kids, breakfast and lunch is just that.
For Kay, breakfast and lunch are part of her diabetes management plan.