type 1 diabetes and drinking alcohol

Hi, I am a twenty three years old woman. I have been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was thirteen. Since then I have followed my doctor's orders to the letter. Now I have a question that my doctor and I have not discussed. It regards alcohol drinking. What I would like to know is am I allowed drinking alcohol when I have type 1 diabetes?

Hi, I can understand that you had to give up a lot while you were growing up because of your diabetes. Having to deal with such serious condition at such a young age must be an overwhelming experience. Now that you are older you would like to enjoy some moments of relaxation. And I believe that you feel that a glass of wine might help you to do that. And if you have it at proper time it may just do that. The thing is that alcohol drinking can have serious side effects on people with diabetes if they are not careful with it. If you have too many drinks you could end up with hypoglycemia. This happens because the liver starts to break down the alcohol. While this is going on the liver is not doing anything else. If your blood glucose levels fall, your liver will not be able to break down storage glucagon and supply you with glucose. And if you had insulin shot prior to alcohol drinking, than the glucose levels can get really low. This does not mean that you may not drink alcohol, you just have to be more careful. A glass of wine after a nice dinner wouldn't have this effect. However, you should talk to your physician about your concerns. He will be able to give you more advice on this subject.