Diabetes Management – Everything You Need to Know

Diabetes is a chronic disease. You need to take several steps to manage the health condition in order to prevent it from worsening. Keeping your blood sugar levels in check helps you lower the risk of serious complications such as nerve damage, foot problems, and eye problems.

With a healthy lifestyle, one can easily prevent diabetes.

However, people who already suffer from it, find it difficult to manage. You need to care for your health every day to live a long and healthy life.

This blog post will help you get a better understanding of how can you manage your diabetes and live a productive life.

 

Know what exactly Diabetes is?

Diabetes refers to a condition in which your body is unable to take glucose in cells and utilise it for energy. This causes an extra build-up of sugar in your bloodstream.

Controlling your glucose levels, cholesterol and blood pressure can keep your diabetic condition in check.

If badly managed, diabetes can lead to serious consequences. It can harm your body organs such as kidneys, heart, eyes, etc.

 

Symptoms

If you notice the symptoms mentioned below, consult your doctor.

1. Increased Hunger (Polyphagia)

2. Increased Thirst (Polydipsia)

3. Increased frequency of Urination (Polyuria)

4. Unexpected weight loss

5. Recurrent urination

6. Dry mouth

7. Increased thirst

8. Numbness in the hands or feet

9. Slow-healing sores or cuts

10Lethargy

11. Hazy vision

 

 

Risk Factors

Your risk factors depend upon the type of diabetes you will develop.

 

1. Risk factors for Type 1 diabetes

1. Injury, infection, tumour, or surgery to the pancreas

2. Family history of Type 1 diabetes.

3. Physical stress (such as surgery or illness)

4. Exposure to diseases caused by viruses

5. Autoantibodies are present (antibodies that mistakenly attack your own body’s tissues or organs)

 

2. Risk factors for Type 2 diabetes

 

1. Have gestational diabetes

2. Have polycystic ovary syndrome

3. Previous records of heart disease or stroke

4. Smoking

5. Family history of prediabetes or Type 2 diabetes

6. Having high blood pressure

7. Low HDL cholesterol levels (the good cholesterol) and high triglyceride level

8. Stays physically inactive

9. Have obesity

 

3. Gestational diabetes – More common in 25 years old

 

1. Family history of prediabetes or Type 2 diabetes

2. Being obese before pregnancy

 

Ways to Manage Your Diabetes Properly

To manage your diabetes, you need to keep your risk factors (Blood glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol) under control.

Here are some ways that you must follow to live a healthy lifestyle while you are diabetic.

1. Stop smoking: Abstaining from smoking is important when you are diabetic since both conditions narrow your blood vessels. This causes your heart to work harder.

 

Smoking Cessation is beneficial in many ways. For instance:

1. Improvement in blood circulation

2. Easiness in staying active

3. Reduce the odds for heart attack, stroke, nerve disease, kidney diseases, etc.

4. Improvement in blood pressure and cholesterol levels

 

2.  Stay active daily: Try to be as physically active as possible. Plan a 30-minute workout a day or at least for most days of the week.

 

Swimming, brisk walking, jogging, etc. are some of the activities you can try out. If you are starting fresh, it’s better to consult your health care team about the duration and types of physical activities you can practise.

 

 

3. Follow a diabetes meal plan: Get a diabetes meal plan developed by your healthcare team and practise it sincerely. This will help in keeping the blood glucose levels, cholesterol and blood pressure in control.

 

Include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk in your meals. Eat those food items that are easy on your stomach such as soups, salads, and so on.

 

Drink a lot of fluids (without sugar) to keep yourself hydrated.

 

4. Take your medication: You must continue to take your medicines even if you have kept cholesterol, blood glucose and blood pressure levels in control.

 

If you are unable to eat properly or are allergic to some medications, consult your doctor.

 

Follow your appointments with your health experts and get your laboratory tests performed as advised by your doctor on time.

 

 

5. Control your stress: Stress causes your body to produce hormones that may lead to a rise in your blood sugar levels.

 

Also, it would become difficult to follow your diabetes management plan if you are under a lot of pressure.

 

Hence, learn relaxation techniques and avoid regular stressors. Get in touch with a psychologist or clinical social worker to identify your possible stressors, unravel stressful concerns and learn new coping skills.

 

 

6. Check your blood glucose levels regularly: This step is vital if you want to properly manage your diabetes.

 

Especially if you take insulin, monitoring your blood glucose level becomes highly significant. The results derived can help you make the right choices regarding food, exercise and medication.

 

Final Words

The more you know about the factors that impact your diabetes, the better you can anticipate instabilities. And better you can plan accordingly.

If you experience symptoms of high blood glucose levels, talk to a doctor.

You might also be recommended a change in your physical activity schedule, diabetes meal plan, or medication.

Till then, properly follow the diabetes management tips in this article and keep your concerns at bay.

 

Disclaimer

Though all attempts are made to provide correct information on the subject, inadvertent & typographical errors arising out of manual intervention cannot be ruled out.

It is requested to bring any such discrepancies to the notice of the blogger for correction.