19
LIVING
My go-to diabetes
kit always includes
glucose tablets,
cereal bars, a
spare insulin
cartridge and
insulin pen, spare
sensors and GP
letter.
Here are her Top 10
Tips (and "comments")
for festival goers:
Plan ahead with festival
organisers:
Contact the festival in advance to
explain your condition and request
permission to bring in essential
snacks, drinks, and medication. You
can get a GP letter to help smooth
this process.
"Once, my insulin was taken to
the medical tent and I wasn't allowed
to keep it with me, which made me
anxious. Now I always bring a GP
letter and contact the festival in
advance to explain my condition."
Keep your medication
accessible and safe:
Use a cooling pouch to keep
medicine, like insulin, at a safe
temperature and carry your
essentials in a small, secure bag. If
needed, you can also request to keep
medication in the fridge facilities in
the medical tent.
Pack a medical kit, with
back-ups:
Bring essentials like glucose tablets,
snacks, and any medication you may
need to manage your condition, as
well as back-ups.
"My go-to diabetes kit always
includes glucose tablets, cereal bars,
a spare insulin cartridge and insulin
pen, spare sensors (I use FreeStyle
Libre 2 Plus sensors) and GP letter."
Stay hydrated and be
mindful with alcohol:
Hot weather and increased activity
can raise your risk of dehydration
and affect glucose levels. Bring a
refillable water bottle and drink
water or sugar-free drinks regularly.
If you are drinking alcohol, monitor
levels more frequently and let friends
know how to help if needed.
Haydock says: "You can check
food and drinks ahead of time by
messaging the festival organisers or
checking their website. I always make
sure diet drinks are available, and if
not, I bring my own."
Avoid long gaps between
meals and snack smart:
For conditions like Type 2 diabetes,
it's important to think about food
choices. Festival food can be high
in carbohydrates, so try to choose
high-protein options and bring wellbalanced
snacks to help maintain
stable glucose levels.
Use tech to stay on track:
Continuous Glucose Monitoring
(CGM) devices like Abbott's FreeStyle
Libre 2 Plus sensor can help people
with diabetes to manage glucose
levels with readings in real time,
through an app on their phone4.
Alarms5 can be set up for when
readings are too high or too low, and
some smartwatches helpfully mirror
the notifications from the app6.
"Before using the FreeStyle
Libre technology, I had to check my
glucose levels using a finger prick.
This was not only challenging in a
festival environment but also meant
I didn't have continuous monitoring