Drinking Alchohol

[SCAPER]

I have read that it's a good idea to avoid alcohol for diabetics. And for the most part, I'm okay with that. I wasn't a big drinker anyway. But I wouldn't mind having a drink or two once in a while.

Let's say I wanted to try it out one day and my BG levels were under control. What kinds of alcohol have the LEAST affect on BG levels?

Hard liquor? Beer? Those would be the things I'd be most interested in. I'm allergic to most wines and all liqueurs (e.g. schnapps, baileys, etc.) anyway.

So anyone have experience with what affects BG the LEAST in terms of beer or hard liquor (e.g. rum, bourbon, etc.) I'd love to know. Thanks.

[Granny Shanny]

How about tequila?! There's a killer margarita recipe around here somewhere; it's no-carb at all & tastes great!

Take a can of Fresca, add a tube of Crystal Light lemonade, a good shot of tequila & ice. There you are! 'Course I always need the salt crystals on the rim of the glass . . . :D :D :D

Bottoms up!

[dbaratta]

I have read that it's a good idea to avoid alcohol for diabetics. And for the most part, I'm okay with that. I wasn't a big drinker anyway. But I wouldn't mind having a drink or two once in a while.

Let's say I wanted to try it out one day and my BG levels were under control. What kinds of alcohol have the LEAST affect on BG levels?

Hard liquor? Beer? Those would be the things I'd be most interested in. I'm allergic to most wines and all liqueurs (e.g. schnapps, baileys, etc.) anyway.

So anyone have experience with what affects BG the LEAST in terms of beer or hard liquor (e.g. rum, bourbon, etc.) I'd love to know. Thanks.

For me straight liquar, shots of crown is what I like best. This way I have to watch that my sugar doesn't go too low, it causes me hypyos from the insulin. But I can drink,,,,just gotta be careful.:)

[balcy24]

Hard liquor? Beer? Those would be the things I'd be most interested in. I'm allergic to most wines and all liqueurs (e.g. schnapps, baileys, etc.) anyway.

For me, alcohol causes me to go lower and then rebound high after the alcohol wears off. Something to do with alcohol causing the liver to quit dumping sugar into your system when processing the alcohol. There is also the "I am hungry and going to eat carbs" factor. Alcohol affects your judgement so be careful not to over eat (but try and eat something when drinking)!

Generally, hard liquor, wine and beer are all about the same for me. The alcohols to look out for are the syrupy liqueurs -- Kahlua, Bailey's, etc as they contain lots of sugar. Before being diagnosed one of my favorite drinks was a black Russian but it has been years since I had one because of the Kahlua. My drink of choice these days is a Rum and Diet Coke!

Good luck,
Dave

[SCAPER]

.......My drink of choice these days is a Rum and Diet Coke!

Good luck,
Dave

Hey, if I can have a rum & diet coke or two once in a while, I'll be in like Flynn!

[dme100]

Michelob Ultra has less than 3 carbs, and while it is a fairly light beer it tastes ok, so I have one or 2 a week.
I never have a drink within 5 hours after using insulin, or when I am going to use insulin within the next 3-4 hours.

[ant hill]

If drinking is the main thing then I would be worried about BG falling to rather scary levels. I would enjoy having a good beer with something to eat as well. This may seem a bit much not a danger as if you were to look at the harder stuff like vodka or whiskey. Then you really need to see the BG fall. So just on the safe side eat!!

[DeusXM]

Are you a T1 or T2? I would cautiously suggest the rules are slightly different, depending on type.

I would imagine that T2s have a bit more flexibility in that the risk is more from high than low blood sugar. In which case, low-carb is the way to go for convenience, so spirits with diet mixers are probably ok.

T1s like me have a double-edged sword - we can be more flexible because carb are less of an issue BUT we've a much higher hypo risk.

Generally a T1 can drink anything provided they are very good at covering any carbs in the drink and eat some sort of carb cushioning (like a kebab or chips!) before going to bed.

Personally as a T1 I regularly drink lagers, wine, absinthe, whiskey, and rum and diet Coke (with a dash of lime!) and don't have many problems because I know from trial and error how to cover for all of these. I suggest you try the drinks you're interested in, in a controlled environment (ie. at home and in moderation) to find out what your personal requirements are. You can then work with these if you're going on a night out and drinking a bit more!

Be VERY careful about injecting while drunk - make sure you really really know what you're doing if you're going to do this.

But yeah, the odd rum 'n' diet Coke ain't gonna be a problem by any stretch. :D

[SCAPER]

I really don't know for sure what I am so far. I just went to the Dr. last week for something else. They ran a blood test on me and then they called me back over the phone and said my BG test came back normal for the other stuff they were checking for, but that I had a BG of 300. It was about 2 hours after lunch. So they prescribed me 5mg of Glyburide once a day and made me an appt. with a family Dr. for next week.

Since then I've been reading this forum and other diabetes sites a lot. I've been testing myself 7-8 times per day (before every meal and then 2 hours after every meal and again at night before bed.) I've also gone all low-carb too. So with the meds and diet I've been able to keep myself at around 85-140 most of the time. I do get a spike up to about 160-170 in the mornings when I wake up. But other than that, it stays around 85-140 most of the time.

So I assume I am type 2 at this point???

[ant hill]

But yeah, the odd rum 'n' diet Coke ain't gonna be a problem by any stretch. :D

Funny enough I bolus against rum as there is some sugar in the alcohol but not too much insulin though, But still test. :T Hic!! :D

I would test more if you are drinking. :o In the next day (With the hangover :() You will find yourself high. ;) As the liver will find there's demand for glucodon for the body. :cool:

[DeusXM]

I'm the opposite to you Peter - I find the alcohol liver-blocking mechanism means I don't need to bolus when drinking rum, and that same effect also means I tend to run low for the next day if I drank a lot. Guess your liver's tougher than mine!

However, I've found if you continually drink a lot for 5 or 6 days, my liver sorta breaks and starts gushing out glucose like there's no tomorrow.

[ant hill]

I'm the opposite to you Peter.

Realy :eek: If you don't mind me asking, Are you heavy in weight? I weigh a ton. :o

Sorry if I am off the topic here. :topic:

[DeusXM]

Nah, my BMI hovers between 22 and 23 depending on whether it's winter or summer. I'm a pretty scrawny guy and a lightweight with booze!

[ant hill]

Geez Dues, I can only just dream. OK I now see why as I can tolerate more alcohol as you cannot. Anyway I have been told buy my endo to have metaformin so I may take this up as I have at least TDD of 300U a day!! Yes that's huge. :(

[davef]

Scaper,

As Deus asked, are you T1 or T2, are you using insulin?

I'm T2 on Metformin only, I drink Red wine most weekends, I also drink Vodka occasionally and if I'm out "with the boys" I'll drink beer. The golden rule is test often, if you can alternate your drinks with water and remember to eat.

Alcohol can lower your numbers (less so with beer because of the carbs) so you need to check you are not going low, I *think* this is especially important for T1's especially if you have taken a bolus before starting to drink.