Having diabetes can be stressful, unpleasant and affect the quality of your life and relationships, but it doesn’t have to take all the pleasure out of things. Here are some helpful ideas that you can use to improve your life and make sure you control your diabetes, rather than letting your diabetes control you.
Look at the glycemic index on the labels of the foods you buy. This is an indicator of how this food will affect sugar levels. Don’t forget: Lower GI numbers mean that the food is better for someone with diabetes.
Diabetics MUST visit their doctor regularly to keep tabs on their blood sugar, weight, and medications. Your physician might know of a new treatment that could be useful to you, or see something in your blood work that indicates there is a problem. Having your doctor weigh you will also give you an accurate measurement of how well you’re keeping your weight under control.
Go online for help with your Diabetes! There are many forums and groups of people who are just like you and they love to help others. You’ll find all kinds of advice about every facet of Diabetic life, from coping with family members who are not supportive to recipes and diet tips.
Learning to read the nutrition data on food labels is key to eating the right diet for your Diabetes. Keep track of how much carbohydrates, sodium, sugar, fat, protein, and fiber are in each food you eat and try to only choose those which will keep your weight in check.
It is possible to lower your blood sugar with exercise, so give it a try and see what it does for you. Make sure to test yourself immediately after you exercise to make sure your blood sugar has gone down to a level that is tolerable, otherwise you’ll have to take your insulin.
If you have been diagnosed with diabetes or at high risk of acquiring the disease, it is vitally important that you lose weight. About 80 percent of all diabetics are overweight carrying excess body fat has been proven to contribute to the development of the disease. Losing weight is often times all one needs to do to completely control all diabetes symptoms.
If you’re Diabetic, don’t overeat simply because your sugar is low. A single pack of sugary candy or a glucose tab is a much safer and more controlled method of bringing your sugar level back up. If you overeat in reaction to a low, you’re likely to spike your sugar instead of bringing it back to normal.
A great breakfast food for a Diabetic is grapefruit! It’s been known to assist people with weight loss even when they do nothing else. Be careful that you aren’t on any pills, like atorvastatin for cholesterol, that have adverse reactions when you ingest grapefruit. It can actually increase their potency and potentially lead to an overdose.
Walnuts make an excellent and nutritious addition to any salad. Walnuts are a source of monosaturated fats. These fats make it easier for cells to receive insulin, making walnuts an easy way to fight back against diabetes. Walnuts also contain large amounts of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. They are an all-around great, healthy food.
If you have diabetes and see that you have vision problems, make sure to visit with your doctor. There are a multitude of problems diabetes can cause with your eyes from cataracts to glaucoma to diabetic retinopathy, and these are all very serious. Fix these problems as soon as possible because they have the potential to cause blindness.
Try to avoid soda and other sugary drinks of you have diabetes. There are no health benefits from drinking these drinks and can in fact, cause your sugar levels to go higher. If you are going to drink juice, try to stick to ones that have no sugar in them.
Women, especially when in their teens and early twenties, may experience significant fluctuations in their blood glucose levels in the week immediately leading up to their menstrual period. Monitor your levels frequently during this time, then make any necessary adjustments in your insulin dosages and urinary ketone measurements, as this can prevent further spikes.
There really is not a diabetic diet. The American Diabetes Association recommends that you get 50 percent of your calories from carbohydrates, 30 percent from fats, and 20 percent from proteins. Proteins work to stabilize blood sugars and to help you feel satisfied. Proteins also help your body to rebuild and provide nutrients your body needs not found in carbs and fats.
Smoking has been attributed to the onset of diabetes. Smoking also raises your blood pressure and affects your whole cardiovascular system. It is definitely not a good idea to be smoking if you are diagnosed with diabetes. Smoking also causes lung cancer and affects many other parts of the body that are also affected by the symptoms of diabetes.
As a diabetes sufferer, it is important to know about the latest medical advancements. New medical advancements mean that there could be new treatments for diabetes in the near future. Be sure to ask your doctor about any new treatments that may arise and see if you qualify for them.
When dealing with a child that has diabetes, make sure that the focus of conversations is not always about the disease. While it is important to keep them informed on any recent news about the disease or to obtain feed back from them about it, it is also important to engage in normal every day conversation to establish a sense of normalcy.
When you have diabetes, foot problems are always a concern. Always make sure you are wearing the correct shoes so that you do not develop any of these problems. Shoes with proper ventilation are essential. The more air that gets to your feet the better circulation you will get. Sandals are important for summer weather.
Diabetes is never going to be a party, but with the above tips and some effort, you can make sure that it doesn’t keep you from enjoying every aspect of your life. Yes, living with diabetes can be inconvenient at best, but you can and will, find ways to overcome that.