Samantha Walsh
Samantha Walsh has lived with type 1 diabetes for over five years since 2017. After her T1D diagnosis, she was eager to give back to the diabetes community. She is the Community and Partner Manager for T1D Exchange and helps to manage the Online Community and recruit for the T1D Exchange Registry. Prior to T1D Exchange, Samantha fundraised at Joslin Diabetes Center. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a Bachelors degree in sociology and early childhood education.
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How often do you pre-bolus at least 5 minutes before eating? Cancel reply
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Sometimes would be more accurate than rarely, but it’ll do.
I thought the same. Sometimes it will be 5 mins or more but I wouldn’t call it rare. Just not as often as I bolus and then immediately start eating 😉
It’s about the only way avoid after meal spikes.
The other way to avoid those spikes is with insulin indicated to bolus at mealtime… inhaled
With inhaled insulin, there is not the need to pre-bolus, luckily.
It actually somewhere between “rarely” and “almost always”. Probably 1/2 of the time.
No need to prebolus with inhaled insulin. I’m curious of those folks taking FIASP and Luymjev. Do they find they need to prebolus?
When off pump and taking Fiasp or Lyumjev I bolus right before, during, or right after once I determine the carb content and release time of what I am eating.
I only pre-bolus when I’m splurging on something like cake. Sugary stuff hits me quick, normal food takes a while. If I pre-bolus, I go low waiting for the meal carbs to kick in.
Same response as yesterday’s question. I almost always pre-bolus before meals, except when I forget, or when my blood glucose is very low.
Usually bolus 20 minutes or longer before eating unless I am already low.
Almost all
Need a “sometimes” as a choice. Between almost always and rarely. 😄
“Rarely” because frequently, my BG is below 100, at which time I wait a bit before bolusing.
As others commented, need a sometimes or depends option. Every food/day hits different. There is no one size fits all for T1 (no matter how hard the doctors try to tell us otherwise)
[A little less than almost always.] And, yet, I sometimes prebolus as much as 15-30 minutes with a faster acting insulin(Lyumjev).
I try to when I can, about 50/50. Did not see an option for half the time.
I do 10-15 minutes depending on the meal but if my bg is low or dropping I will do no prebolus
Depends on my glucose and trend and what I’m eating.
I was going to say almost always, but not 5 minutes before. I take my insulin at the same time I eat.
On injections found it I dose 30-35 minutes before eating there’s a minimal glucose rise, and if there is it drops close to the original point more quickly (thus my 5.2 and 5.3 a1Cs). Ironically pumping I now dose 20-25 minutes or risk going low before eating (the Medtronic 780G controls the basal dose, great at preventing lows not as aggressive with highs but my a1C was 5.8 last time). The exception is if I plan on a fast acting or food high on the glycemic scale would try to dose maybe 45 minutes (milkshake or other sweetened treat!) or earlier but tough to plan on a treat and just wait I guess so I do enjoy in less time than plan to correct.
(NOTE: found most physicians prescribe a higher basal dose so levels drop slowly between meals making the need to eat or snack on a schedule of some kind necessary. The relieves the need for such accurate meal dosing (that generic 50/50 thought for basal/bolus?) although I have a ratio about 25-30% basal and have gone 7-8 hours through the day not eating. My meal dose and timing is kind of important?
I’m on MDI rather than a pump, so whether I pre-bolus depends on what my current glucose number is and whether it’s steady, going up or going down. If it’s low & steady (around 90), I don’t pre-bolus because if I did I would go into a hypo. It’s a constant balancing act.
About 50% of the time.