Carbohydrate Counting Resources for Children and Adults with Type 1 Diabetes
We are proud to collaborate with the International Society of Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD) in developing a comprehensive series of resources on carbohydrate counting – Healthy Eating and Carbohydrate Counting for Children and Adults with Type 1 Diabetes. This resource is designed to teach and empower persons with diabetes and their families and carers in the essential skill of carbohydrate counting as an important aspect of diabetes self-management. Each resource has three sections:
- Section 1: Covers the basics of healthy eating and provides insights into typical carbohydrate sources.
- Section 2: Provides a list and pictures of carbohydrate foods commonly eaten in a specific country.
- Section 3: Provides a list and pictures of carbohydrate foods commonly eaten in most countries.
The resource is suitable for persons with diabetes and their families and carers, and healthcare professionals.
For more information on how you can maximize the use of this resource as a part of diabetes and nutrition education, please refer to our 2023 Education Bulletin.
If you find this resource is useful and are interested in developing one for your country, please contact us via email. Also if you have developed a similar resource, please let us know.
LFAC carbohydrate counting books
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting, Indian Foods (in English)
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Indian food (56 pages)
Source: Life for a Child (LFAC), International Society for Paediatric & Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD). 1st edition, 2021.
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Mexican food (in Spanish)
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Mexican food (Alimentación saludable y conteo de carbohidratos – Platillos Mexicanos) (48 pages)
Source: Life for a Child (LFAC), International Society for Paediatric & Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD), Mexican Diabetes Federation. 1st edition, 2023.
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Ecuadorian food (in Spanish)
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Ecuadorian food. Alimentación saludable y conteo de carbohidratos – Comida Ecuatoriana (48 pages).
Source: Life for a Child (LFAC), International Society for Paediatric & Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD), Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Ecuador, ESPOL. 1st edition, 2023.
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Pakistani food (in English)
Healthy eating and carbohydrate counting: Pakistani food (in English).
Source: Life for a Child (LFAC), International Society for Paediatric & Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD), . 1st edition, 2024.
Other carbohydrate counting books and resources
Carbohydrate counting book for Sri Lanka
Carb counter for peole with diabetes (76 pages) is a comprehensive carbohydrate counting resource that is designed for the Sri Lanka culture and food including photo illustration.
Source: StEP-D, Sri Lanka College of Endocrinologist and Sri Lanka Diabetes Federation. 2021.
Carbohydrate counting book for Somali
The Somali carbohydrate counting guide (24 pages) is a comprehensive carbohydrate counting resource that is designed for the Somali culture and food including photo illustration.
Source: Brunzell C, Moran A, Purcell L, Farah D, Kyllo J, Plager P, Sunni M. 2016.
Calorie King Food Database
CalorieKing offers a free food search App for iOS and Android as well as online search. It provides nutritional information for over 150,000 foods, including data from 260 fast food chains and restaurants. It is a valuable tool to count carb intake for people with diabetes. It is available for different regions and languages such as calorieking US (available in both English and Spanish), UK and Australia.
Source: Calorie King. The last access by LFAC in 2024.
Carbs & Cals
Carbs & Cals is a UK-based visual carb and calorie counter app, available for iOS and Android. It’s designed to track nutrients especially the carbs and calories.
Source: Carbs & Cals. The last access by LFAC in 2024.
MyFitnessPal
MyFitnessPal offers a free food search App for iOS and Android. It is one of the most widely used nutrition tracking app that can track the carb intake or to be used as a food search database for carb counting. It can be linked to 35+ health and fitness apps or devices like Garmin and Fitbit.
Source: MyFitnessPal. The last access by LFAC in 2024.