After being diagnosed with diabetes, knowing where to begin and how to handle your condition may be devastating. If you do not receive proper Lansdowne diabetes management, you may experience complications that can result in hospital admissions, missed work days, kidney problems, and even amputation of a leg. Below are tips for managing diabetes.
- Manage your weight
Significant weight loss may help overweight or obese individuals move their blood sugar from the diabetic to the nondiabetic range.
You may manage your weight through regular exercise and eating a balanced diet. Also, consuming fewer calories than the body needs for activities and biological processes is the key to weight loss.
- Eat a healthy diet
If you have diabetes, you know the potential impact food may have on your blood sugar levels. Although no foods are forbidden, consume the amount of food your body needs. Eat a diet high in whole grains and plant-based meals like fruits and vegetables: select lean meat cuts and low-fat dairy products.
Eat fewer meals that are heavy in fat and sugar. Limit your intake of these meals since your body transforms carbohydrates into sugar. Keep your eating habits constant from meal to meal by following a routine. This is crucial if you take insulin or other medicine to maintain stable blood sugar levels.
- Drink responsibly
Drinking alcohol can cause low blood sugar symptoms. When you consume alcohol, your liver strives to process the alcohol, which may keep it too busy to carry out another crucial task: releasing sugar from storage in reaction to low levels. Additionally, drinking alcohol might impede your capacity for rational thought and sensible treatment choices.
- Quit smoking
Doctors urge patients to quit smoking to improve blood sugar management for several reasons. Smokers have a 30 to 40 percent higher likelihood of getting diabetes than nonsmokers. Exercise is more difficult for smokers.
Smoking momentarily elevates blood sugar levels, making it more difficult to maintain nondiabetic blood sugar levels. This raises a person’s risk of acquiring diabetic complications, including nerve damage and kidney disease.
- Exercise regularly
If you have diabetes and don’t exercise, it is time to start moving. However, it does not mean you have to go for weight lifting and a gym membership. You can go for a walk or a bike ride or do anything physically active.
You should try to exercise for sessions that last at least 20 mins, five days a week. Exercise can help you lower your blood sugar, which can help you manage your diabetes. As a consequence, your risk of
- Reduce stress
Although stress does not cause diabetes, it can worsen it. Stress causes the production of hormones that disrupt the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar. Additionally, it increases an individual’s likelihood of participating in behaviors like smoking and overeating, making it more difficult to control blood sugar. You can reduce stress by spending time in nature, yoga, swimming, and taking a break from electronics.
Living with diabetes can be very challenging. However, you can manage your condition by exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol intake, and reducing stress.
Call CN Internal Medicine to book your appointment for diabetes management.
