Type 1 diabetes meal planning to keep kids happy and healthy

When you create a type 1 diabetes meal plan for young children, the overall goal should be no different than it is for every kid: a diet that keeps them healthy and enables them to thrive. Children with type 1 diabetes (t1d) confront extra dietary challenges since they need the right balance of carbohydrates, insulin, and exercise to manage their condition. Here are some tips for creating a meal plan for your child to promote good health, energy, normal growth, and happiness.

Put a plan in place

You can have a lot of flexibility with the foods you serve to a child with t1d, but it's easier — and healthier — to devise a meal plan.

It's best to develop a type 1 diabetes meal plan with the help of your doctor and a registered diabetes nutritionist. Together, you can create a plan based on your child's food preferences and nutritional needs. While it should factor in a rough number of carbohydrates and insulin units for most meals or snacks, it should also be flexible enough to accommodate recipes that call for more or fewer carbs than usual.

Choose the right diet for your child

There is no such thing as an ideal "diabetic diet," according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA). The ADA notes that "many different eating patterns can help you manage your diabetes — from Mediterranean to low-carbohydrate to vegetarian." That applies to kids with t1d as well as adults. But you can follow a few simple guidelines to find out what works for your child to avoid blood sugar highs and lows.

When I was a child diagnosed with t1d more than five decades ago, my mother insisted that I eat what she called a "balanced diet," with a combination of carefully measured carbohydrates, protein, and non-starchy vegetables like salads or green beans. When I look at the dietary recommendations for kids with t1d, most of them agree with her even still.

One good guide for healthy food ideas for children with t1d comes from Children's Health. The guide emphasizes the importance of choosing from a wide variety of healthy foods with different nutrients that every child needs. Recommendations include vegetables prepared in many ways, (including steamed, roasted, in salads, or dipped in dressing or hummus), fresh fruits with nut butter, eggs prepared any way your child prefers, and lean meats. It also includes carbohydrates like whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, whole-wheat bread, and high-fiber cereal.

You can find some good recipes with carb counts and other nutritional information in the Diabetes Food Hub, which includes options for those who choose to eat a Mediterranean or low-carb diet.

Often, finding out if any young child will like a recipe or type of food is a matter of trial and error. In the case of kids with t1d, of course, it's also important to check the impact of foods on blood sugar levels. You can make that job easier with a continuous glucose monitor (CGM).

Don't treat fibers as regular carbs

If you opt for giving your child high-fiber foods, keep in mind that fiber is a type of carbohydrate that doesn't affect blood sugar levels. It's important to work with your health care providers to figure out how to subtract the grams of fiber from the total carbohydrate counts in foods.

Let kids enjoy sweets — in moderation

Just about every kid has a sweet tooth, and children with t1d can also enjoy delicious snacks and treats as long as they get the proper amount of insulin.

Helping young children grow accustomed to healthy and tasty snacks without excessive amounts of sugar is a great idea. Experts at the University of Iowa provide a good list of snacks with 10-15 grams of carbs that incorporate treats like animal crackers, graham crackers, and waffles.

On occasions that generally involve a lot of candy or desserts — like Halloween or Christmas — kids living with t1d can also enjoy some of the same candies other kids do as long as you know the carb counts and make sure they take enough insulin to cover the extra carbohydrates. JDRF provides a handy list of common candies with carb counts. When special treats like candy or cookies are added to regular diets, it's vitally important to monitor your child's blood glucose levels.

Kids with t1d also need to learn a tough lesson: they can't stuff themselves with candy or cake the way their friends might be doing. However, totally banning sweets can backfire. If they're forbidden, children might be more tempted to eat them when you're not looking. Instead, you can teach them how to eat sweet foods in moderation as a small part of their healthy diet.

For example, my mother used to occasionally make milkshakes with a very small amount of ice cream for my friends and me. That helped me feel like I wasn't missing out on one of life's most basic pleasures.

Consider artificial sweeteners

Another common way to sweeten the diet of a child with t1d is to use artificial sweeteners, which can be found in diet drinks, chewing gum, yogurt, baked goods, frozen desserts, and some candies. Many types of artificial sweeteners are safe for people with t1d, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Specifically, there are six artificial sweeteners (acesulfame-potassium, aspartame, neotame, saccharin, stevia, and sucralose) that have been tested and approved by the FDA or put on the agency's Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) list.

Think beyond just carbs

Parents creating a t1d meal plan also need to remember that their child's health depends on more than just balancing the right amount of insulin and carbohydrates. You also need to keep watch over too much sodium. Salt can raise blood pressure, and people living with t1d are more likely to be affected, which can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, strokes, kidney disease, and other problems.

When you read food labels, you should also pay attention to the amounts of saturated fat and trans fat, which can contribute to the development of heart disease. People with diabetes are at greater risk for cardiovascular disease, especially if they have abnormal blood lipid levels. Ask your doctor or dietitian about the extent to which your child should limit fats.

Looking for more information about supporting your child with diabetes? Check out the Health Insights blog for more articles for T1D parents and caregivers.