Coaching a Diabetic girl, any help on treats

As treats I would suggest: sugar-free jello jigglers (actually concentrated jello cut into cubes that are eaten by hand), most nuts, cheese (hard to do that in the summer though - string cheese?), certain fruit that she knows she can eat maybe with some peanuts, probably salted nuts are good because the players will be sweating.  No watermelon as that's really too much sugar.  Talk to her parents.  They must be able to tell you what she can have, or they must ask her doctor.  I wouldn't second guess this.  She might be on insulin and she has to be careful of her blood sugar dropping.  And participating in sports may have different requirements and cautions than someone who's in class or working in an office.

Lanie 

Thank you. Actually I never thought of nuts, I'm sure all the girls would enjoy that. Her parents haven't been at any of the games so far, and when I spoke to her, she seemed a bit embarrassed and didn't want to talk about it. I thought about calling her parents, but once again, I don't want to be too pushy. They didn't put anything at all on her form under conditions to be aware of. The only reason I know about it, is cause she asked my husband, the actual coach, if she could go check her blood sugar at one of the practices. I just was thinking that if one of the snack choices was a "good" choice then she wouldn't feel singled out and no one else would have to know. I may end up calling her parents to check on things but I don't want to seem pushy or nosey. I tend to be a bit hesitant to ask too many questions, given the fact that people are always asking me questions about my disease and making me feel a bit like an outcast. I really don't want to do that to her or her family. I was hoping to catch them at one of the games. The season has just started so there is still plenty of time. Unfortunately, a lot of the parents don't come to the games at this age, cause they are at the younger ones games.

Thanks for your suggesstions so far, keep them coming.

I absolutely agree with Jeannie. This isn't just a matter of her being embarrassed, it is a matter of her life. If she did have a hypoglycemic reaction someone needs to know how to help her. This is definately a situation where embarrassed or not someone needs to speak to her parents. There is no reason she can't participate in sports but someone does need to be aware of how to treat her in the event she needs help. I have been her age with diabetes. (long past it now) You and your husband should both know her symptoms of a hypo and it wouldn't be a bad idea for you to have glucose tablets or glucose gel on hand. They are cheap and available over the counter at any pharmacy or at walmart. Also during a hypo it is possible that she wouldn't be thinking as clearly as she normally would. You NEED to call the parents this time.

Doesn't the league have rules about disclosing illness such as insulin-dependent diabetes? They might be liable for damages if something happened to the girl. The parents don't come for the games. If that girl gets in trouble with her sugar level or requires any sort of medical assistance she's all alone and in big trouble.

EMTs aren't psychic and if she is unable to speak, they could do as much harm as good. Your husband should call the parents and inquire- after all she did ask to go and check her sugar levels. Both the girl and her parents need some education. When I was in the classroom, I got more info about two of my diabetic 7th graders and how to take care of them than your husband. Parents supplied me with gels and glucose tabs, told me when and how they were to be used, how to call the Medicalert People. I had a card in my desk with phone numbers etc- every teacher and the front office got them (and I don't teacher phys ed- no 'activity' in my classroom).

PLease follow-up for the sake of that little girl. She needs somebody on her side.

sandy

The more I'm hearing from you all, the more I'm getting concerned too. I had my husband double check her form cause I thought it was odd too. I may have mistyped on the parents not coming to the games. We've only had one game so far, and it was a very cold wet night. A lot of the parents stayed in their cars and watched from there, so I don't really know if they were at the field. Especially since she is new to the team and I don't know what her parents look like. But, having a chronic illness myself, all be it, not a life threatening one, I would think that the parents would let us know. At first I thought maybe she just had a little blood sugar issue, like from not eating, but she actually used the word Diabetic last night to me. I will seek out her parents when she gets dropped off next.

Thanks again for educating me. Just like the Crohn's board, you guys are very helpfull.

 

DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE TRIED IT, BUT MY HUSBAND IS DIABETIC, AND HE REALLY LIKES SPLENDA-SWEETENED FOODS....DRINKS, CAKES, CUPCAKES, cookieS, ETC., AND SPLENDA HAS A SITE CHOCK FULL OF RECIPES...ALL FREE...AND BEST OF ALL, THEY TASTE LIKE SUGAR BECAUSE SPLENDA IS SUGAR...JUST THE PART OF SUGAR THAT THE BODY CASTS OFF...NOT THE DAMAGING PART THAT CAUSES DIABETICS PROBLEMS WITH THEIR INSULIN.

JUST TYPE IN  www.splenda.com  and it takes you to their site for recipes.  To our knowledge, there are no side-effects associated with it as with aspartame or saccharin, as it is supposed to be the most extensively tested sweetener on the market (found this out while doing research for hubby).

Here are two quick ones:

TEA/KOOL AID BY THE GALLON: if you and the team are on the move, just take 52 packets of Splenda and add it to a gallon of unsweetened tea...it is really good (even to me and I'm not even diabetic)

STUFFED ANGEL-FOOD: take one angel food cake and cut it into 3 layers (we like to keep it in fridge before slicing)...set aside.  Mix all these ingredients (and nothing else!) together: one sugar-free vanilla (or french-vanilla) instant pudding mix, one 20 ounce can crushed pineapple, and one small tub sugar-free, fat-free Kool Whip...mix by mixer and spread between layers (if runny, just chill about 15 min. before spreading between layers) . Keep cold until served...usually keeps out of fridge about 45 to 60 min. without getting too sloppy.  We like to give it a punch by adding a few blueberries and some chopped fresh strawberries between layers and 6 or 7 whole strawberries on top with some more fresh blueberries...looks great on July 4th and tastes so good all our friends love it and don't even realize it's sugar-free...usually have to make 2....we use the large size AF cakes with the hole in middle and fill that with the extra filling.

here's one we use as an alternate with sugar:  Use chocolate instead of vanilla pudding, two 10 ounce jars marchino cherries with juice (chop in food processor) instead of pineapple, and use the chocolate Kool-whip instead of regular....this is really good too...top with extra cherries.......

Good luck and God bless...you can also get a Splenda/sugar mix......

I'm anxious to hear what the parents have to say about this.

Could it be that she's not being honest? I have a girl in Sunday School who wanted everyone to think she was Diabetic, but she got her meter froma cousin. Had us all fooled for a while. She really liked the attention.

Of course, since she's acting embarrassed about it, that's probably not the case. But I do wonder why it wasn't included on her form. Perhaps she's on a pump and her parents think she's okay and can handle it all on her own?

As the mother of an insulin dependant diabetic, I can say that I make sure everyone one knows about his disease and what to do in an emergency. And sports is critical. You definitely have my curiosity up...

D