I have been learning about "looping". Looping is when a person uses an electronic CGM (Constant Glucose Monitor) to measure blood glucose about every 5 minutes. This data is sent to a computer that can now watch and predict the trends of your blood glucose. The computer then sends a signal to an insulin pump to inject insulin.
This constant injection of tiny amounts of insulin helps to prevent any spikes. Sort of an artificial pancreas.
The people that build these systems are electronic and computer hobbiests, that have Type 1 diabetes.
This looping should mean that any food you eat, will have it's carbohydrates countered by the injected insulin. This appears similar to carbohydrate counting.
Carbohydrate counting is where you measure the carbohydrates of the meal you are going to eat, and compute the amount and type of insulin needed to maintain the desired blood glucose levels after the carbohydrates are converted to glucose. Carbohydrate counting, and looping can both result in large doses of insulin if it is needed.
The other approach to control is to minimize the carbohydrates consumed, which will minimize the amount of insulin needed.
As an example, if you eat a zero carbohydrate diet. You will still need a basal dose of slow acting insulin to counter the release of sugar by the liver, but you would not need the bolus doses of rapid acting insulin to counter the carbohydrates in the food you eat.
In reality, a hybrid approach is what happens. I try to eat a low carbohydrate diet to reduce the dose of bolus injections, but my carbohydrate input is never zero.
Yesterday I tried a bolus of 2ui that I took at breakfast. Before Breakfast I was 6.7, and an hour later I was 12.6. That 2ui didn't seem to do anything. I found this chart online.
Since my oatmeal spikes me, I need to take my shot about 15 minutes before the meal.
I'll try that tomorrow.
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