Impact of carbohydrate counting on glycemic control in children with type 1 diabetes

Abstract

Objective: To study the association between parent carbohydrate counting knowledge and glycemic control in youth with type 1 diabetes.

Research design and methods: We assessed 67 youth ages 4-12 years with type 1 diabetes (duration >or=1 year). Parents estimated carbohydrate content of children's meals in diet recalls. Ratios of parent estimates to computer analysis defined carbohydrate counting knowledge; the mean and SD of these ratios defined accuracy and precision, respectively. A1C defined glycemic control.

Results: Greater accuracy and precision were associated with lower A1C in bivariate analyses (P < 0.05). In a multivariate analysis (R(2)= 0.25, P = 0.007) adjusting for child age, sex, and type 1 diabetes duration, precision (P = 0.02) and more frequent blood glucose monitoring (P = 0.04), but not accuracy (P = 0.9), were associated with lower A1C. A1C was 0.8% lower (95% CI -0.1 to -1.4) among youth whose parents demonstrated precision.

Conclusions: Precision with carbohydrate counting and increased blood glucose monitoring were associated with lower A1C in children with type 1 diabetes.

Figure 1

Child A1C (mean ± SE) by quartiles of parent carbohydrate counting accuracy (A) or precision (B). A: The A1C of children whose parents overestimated carbohydrate content (Q4) was higher than the A1C of children whose parents were most accurate (Q2–3). The A1C of children whose parents underestimated carbohydrate content (Q1) was not significantly different from the A1C of other children. B: The A1C of children whose parents were the least precise (Q4) was significantly higher than the A1C of all other children (Q1–3).