A recent study found that carb counting is not much better than other meal planning approaches in managing type 1 diabetes. I have mixed feelings.
Drawbacks to carb counting include giving a message of “eat whatever you want and cover it with insulin” (not to be confused with “People With Diabetes Can Eat Anything,” which is a completely different message). This practice can lead to weight gain and all the health conditions that go along with it. In addition, carb counting typically does not focus on protein and fat, which can lead to over- or undereating these nutrients.
What carb counting does well, however, is give us well-deserved freedom. As long as we are well-informed and making healthy choices (most of the time), freedom is a good thing. Freedom means not having to take insulin and eat meals at certain times. It means not having to eat when we aren’t hungry or not eat when we are hungry. It allows us to respond to our bodies’ signals, sleep in if we want to, exercise with much more ease, and generally live our lives the way we want to. Carb counting, in many ways, removes the shackles of have to and replaces them with choose to. And that, my friends, is empowering. And empowerment, in my humble opinion, leads to better attitudes, which lead to better outcomes.
The thing we can’t forget, however, is that it’s the insulin that has made carb counting possible. Fast-acting insulin is what gave us freedom – from late lows and required snacks. We can choose to follow whatever meal plan works best for us – carb counting or otherwise – and use the “fancy” insulins that are available to make it all work together.
The most empowering part of all is that we get to choose.