Carbohydrates (carbs) from the food you eat are broken down by the body into glucose to use for energy. If you eat more carbohydrates than your body can use, your blood sugar can climb to an unhealthy level. Keeping track of how many carbs you eat—counting carbohydrates—and checking your blood sugar levels before and after meals will let you know if you are eating too many carbohydrates compared to your insulin level.
Learning to balance your carbohydrate intake with your insulin needs will help you keep your blood sugar under control. To do this, you and your healthcare provider will need to determine how much insulin you need to "cover" a certain amount of carbohydrates. A good place to start may be 1 unit of insulin for every 15 grams of carbohydrates. But insulin works a little differently for each person. You may need 1 unit of insulin for every 10 grams, or 1 unit for every 25 grams of carbohydrate.
