Counting carbs at disney (and universal)

[4first timers]

Hi all
Our 12yo DS has type 1 diabetes and is on an insulin pump. He has to count the carbs he eats and calculate how much insulin to take. I have emailed disney to ask if they have any info on the carbs in their food as we are in the disney plan so will be eating on site, but unfortunately they got back to me to say they are unable to provide any carb info! His insulin needs will all have to be adjusted due to the heat and being on the go all day so I would have loved to have the carb info to assist in at least calculating for food intake. I am surprised they cant provide any info on the carbs. Has anyone else had to count carbs while at Disney, or has anyone found any info on any other websites? We will also be staying on idrive and at universal during our stay.
We have downloaded the American food database on carbs and cals app but would appreciate any further information we can gather before going as it would be nice to have the info in advance so we can all eat while food is hot instead of trying to guess portion sizes and carbs!
Thanks in advance

[ch1ps]

I do carb counting, but nothing to offer up other than carbs & cals.

Off site restaurants do have nutritional info on their websites.

[4first timers]

Thanks so much for the reply. Looks like carbs and cals it is then.

[Hidden mickey]

We have always had fab experiences with Disney chefs around dietary requirements x

[ch1ps]

Originally Posted by 4first timers

Thanks so much for the reply. Looks like carbs and cals it is then.

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no problem, hopefully someone else might have some info.

[Floridatilly]

Hi, my daughter has been type 1 for 8 years now and will be 14 on our up coming trip. We carb count to work out her insulin needs in the UK but that goes out of the window in Florida because she burns the insulin off at a very high rate. She ends up having far more carbs and less insulin because the heat and excitement causes her loads of hypos so we can't carb count there as such, not ideal but after a few days we get to grips with the insulin adjustments. Hypos happen fast for her in Florida too, not sure if that's all diabetics but she has gone from blood readings of 10 to 1.2 in less than 30 mins!
We test her far more than normal, rest lots, drink loads of water and don't sit out in the sun for long.

[Shani]

My son (11 now) has been T1 for over 3 years and has been on an insulin pump and dexcom for the last year.

We've been twice to Florida since he's been dx.

With regards to carbs, we do something we call SWAG... Scientific wild a$$ guess!

My son's actually needed more insulin over there, contrary to what I thought. The heat and excitement send him high, for some weird reason, and I also think I underestimate the carbs in the foods out there simply because they add so much sugar and corn syrup to absolutely everything and general carb counts are higher than what we'd expect here in the UK.

I also needed to do a set change every 2 days, I think because the heat got to the insulin in the pump & tubing (he uses the animas vibe) which made it less effective.

Dexcom last time we were there was a godsend. It allowed us to try at least keep on top of his levels without having him stop to finger prick every 30 minutes. If you don't want to go down the CGM route, have you looked into the Freestyle Libre? Low set up costs and may give you a bit more freedom whilst on holiday?

[lexie32]

My son is also type 1 and on a pump, we just used our carbs and cals book and guesstimated! It wasn't too difficult and we didn't have too many disasters. We did find the insulin in his pump went off a lot more quickly so ended up doing pen corrections and set changes a lot more frequently than normal.

We also needed more background insulin than normal except when he was in the pool, he could spend 3 hours unattached from his pump in the pool and still have great numbers. We tended to leave his pump in the room when we went to the pool and check his bloods every hour and correct with his pen if needed.

[BabyM]

This is my first trip since I have been diagnosed with type 1. I am very unsure what will happen to my bloods whilst there. I'm not on a pump sand have a nurses appointment to try and discuss everything. Wish Disney would provide carb info though.

[4first timers]

Thanks all for the replies.

Originally Posted by Floridatilly

Hypos happen fast for her in Florida too, not sure if that's all diabetics but she has gone from blood readings of 10 to 1.2 in less than 30 mins!

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this is one of my worries too as my sons bloods can be erratic here. Are you able to keep all testing equipment and glucose with you in the queues etc!,

Originally Posted by Shani

With regards to carbs, we do something we call SWAG... Scientific wild a$$ guess!

I also needed to do a set change every 2 days, I think because the heat got to the insulin in the pump & tubing (he uses the animas vibe) which made it less effective.

Dexcom last time we were there was a godsend. It allowed us to try at least keep on top of his levels without having him stop to finger prick every 30 minutes. If you don't want to go down the CGM route, have you looked into the Freestyle Libre? Low set up costs and may give you a bit more freedom whilst on holiday?

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Love SWAG! My holiday motto! I hadn't thought about having to change the cannula more often. He is on the animas vibe and as he is a water baby on holiday it works well. He is also on the freestyle but last year even with tegaderm we couldn't keep it on in the heat and with the pool!

Originally Posted by lexie32

My son is also type 1 and on a pump, we just used our carbs and cals book and guesstimated! It wasn't too difficult and we didn't have too many disasters. We did find the insulin in his pump went off a lot more quickly so ended up doing pen corrections and set changes a lot more frequently than normal. .

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Originally Posted by BabyM

This is my first trip since I have been diagnosed with type 1. I am very unsure what will happen to my bloods whilst there. I'm not on a pump sand have a nurses appointment to try and discuss everything. Wish Disney would provide carb info though.

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me too. It's still frustrating that so many restaurants here in the U.K still don't provide the carb info! Hope all goes well on your first trip with type 1. Prepare to have more medical stuff to bring with you rather than clothes and toiletries