Cruise with Diabetis Tipe1 question

Hello,

I'm considering to go on cruise with my daughter, who is type 1 diabetic. She is on insulin pump and we need to know amount of carbs and protein in everything she eats. Is it possible to obtain nutritional information for prepared dishes on board or we will have to guess it? I would appreciate if anyone can share their experience with similar situation.

I'm thinking of going on Celebrity or Princess line, is this a good idea or is it a better choice to pic different cruise line or land resort instead?

Thank you,

Nina

I would call Princess and celebrity for this info . On 22 cruises I have never seen a nutritional guide onboard. DW only has to worry about Gluten in her food. The medical departments should be of some help in this case.

We have cruised with our T1 DS, excellent memories. We did estimates of carbs and found he could manage well. Even found we were so active that lows were the issue rather than highs. As nutritional guides are now more common I would suggest contacting special needs. DS hated attention being brought to his diabetes so he did not want to involve the waiter/maitre de in planning discussions. Did have a true medication refrigerator in the room as well as a sharps container. Have a great time.

We have cruised with our T1 DS, excellent memories. We did estimates of carbs and found he could manage well. Even found we were so active that lows were the issue rather than highs. As nutritional guides are now more common I would suggest contacting special needs. DS hated attention being brought to his diabetes so he did not want to involve the waiter/maitre de in planning discussions. Did have a true medication refrigerator in the room as well as a sharps container. Have a great time.

Thank you for info!

My daughter was diagnosed at early childhood and is very open on people to know about it. Did you brought you own juice to treat lows or it is available on board? Did your son tried children/teen programs, is staff trained to recognize low blood sugar symptoms and help? I'm planning on using Dexcom, but some times it misses lows :(.

Thank you!

Thank you for info!

My daughter was diagnosed at early childhood and is very open on people to know about it. Did you brought you own juice to treat lows or it is available on board? Did your son tried children/teen programs, is staff trained to recognize low blood sugar symptoms and help? I'm planning on using Dexcom, but some times it misses lows :(.

Thank you!

He was a teen at diagnosis and just didn't want to be treated "special" (those years are already uncomfortable). I know nothing of the kids program - sorry. We carried on a case of the shelf stable chocolate milk, his favorite to treat lows. There are certainly drinks around but I didn't trust that we migh have to look hard to find sugar at a critical moment, he tends to carry Starburst for quick sugar.

I suggest discussing your needs with the Maitre d' on embarkation. He may have some information for your child's situation based on what is actually available onboard.

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My boyfriend is also Type 1 and he just used his best guess on our last cruise.

my friend's mom with T1 travels with us often. I think she does injections, because I've never seen a pump on her. She only gets one entrée at dinner, keeps it low carb by eyeballing it, and always gets a sugar free dessert.

She and her husband found Princess (they only go on Regal or Royal Princess) food to be much better that other cruise lines (Celebrity or Royal Caribbean).

Once you book a cruise, you can go into your personalizer and choose the Diabetes option in your Medical and Dietary requests. Here is what it says on Princess website once you chose it:

We offer items low in carbohydrates as well as the following items onboard: sugar-free applesauce, sugar-free jams and jellies, sugar-free syrup, Sweet & Low sugar substitute, Splenda sugar substitute, Equal sugar substitute, sugar-free pudding and a variety of sugar-free desserts.

Please contact your Head Waiter or Maitre d'Hotel once onboard to discuss your special dietary needs as they will be happy to assist you with making suitable selections from our standard menu.

also, check out the Disabled Travel board. They may have some additional tips.

I'm a type 1 insulin pumper. I've cruised many, many times and have never had an issue selecting items off the menu in the dining room or from the buffet. My problem is the desserts! :p

Going off topic, I also bring along a back-up pump and some syringes. On two separate cruises my pump stopped working and I had to buy syringes from the medical facility to get me through. What a pain that is!

Karen

We met a couple on NCL on boarding day....due to Gluten Intolerance their adorable 19 y/o daughter needed to be on a Gluten Free diet.

The NCL dietitian hovered over her, creating luscious meals and appetizers every meal, every day. I am sure ships dietitians can help with other food requirements and information.

I am type 1 diabetic and wear an insulin pump. If you can before you go I'd recommend a visit to your diabetes educator and nutritionist at whatever clinic you go to. They can teach you how to effectively count carbs and dose without the use of a nutrition facts label.

It might be scary at first but after a while you get comfortable with counting just by eyeballing items and can do it really well.

I think all of the cruiselines i have been on have been extremely accommodating for any dietary questions I had. But I did need to count the carbs for dosing myself.

I hope this is helpful.

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Thanks everyone for info!

I've been counting carbs for 11years and my main concern with estimating amount of ingredients in particular portion. Did anyone asked for this info on board and received answer?

Of topic question : kgm0612, how did you get second pump? Our pump company refuse to provide backup pump.

Nina,

I've been pumping almost 15 years and have always had a Medtronic Pump. I contacted them about a month prior to my cruise and they sent me out a loaner, which I had to give my credit card number in the event that I didn't return it. Two years later I was due for a new pump and Medtronics wasn't offering much for a trade-in (less than $500), so I kept it as a back up.

Karen

Thanks everyone for info!

 

I've been counting carbs for 11years and my main concern with estimating amount of ingredients in particular portion. Did anyone asked for this info on board and received answer?

Of topic question : kgm0612, how did you get second pump? Our pump company refuse to provide backup pump.

I'm guessing it'd be hard to get that information and know it's reliable from your wait staff. Questions I have had about specific menu items they have always tried to help with as best they could. Overall I never really pressed hard for too many specific details about what was in a particular dish though. I'd just make my best guess and know that there may be a correction later.

I honestly found taking several cruises that I just had to be extra diligent with testing and keeping on top of corrections. My average day on cruise ship was never like an average day at home, so there are always some unexpected highs and lows.

I fortunately have a CGM that helps me see which direction I'm heading and make adjustments.

Side note Medtronic does provide travel loaner pumps for a $50 fee (they'll bill you for the whole pump if you don't send it back in a timely manner)... I'm not sure what company you said you had as I didn't read the whole thread.

If you're an experienced carb counter and generally stick to items you can predictably count well.. I think you'd do just fine on the cruise. [emoji2]

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