Importance of diabetes control
Controlling diabetes means maintaining blood sugar levels as normal as possible. High blood sugar levels can be harmful to the blood vessels through which blood is supplied to vital organs of the human body, increasing the risk of heart disease, strokes, kidney failures, eyesight problems, nerve damages, and high cholesterol levels. Diabetes goes out of control when the blood sugar level rises or too low due to some commonly found causes like
- Lack of consumption of medication as prescribed,
- Not following the routine of diet plan,
- Exercise or sleeps schedule not adhered,
- Negligence in monitoring blood sugar levels and
- Then not making the necessary adjustments in the diabetes treatment plan.
All this give rise to diabetes complications which then develops the risk of various disease associated with blood sugar.
But studies have shown that diabetic patients who keep a regular check on their blood sugar levels and perform all the activities that are required to maintain a balanced sugar level are likely to have a much lower likelihood of developing diabetic complications.
How to keep blood sugar levels in control
Achieving good blood sugar control, it can be a challenging task. Below are some simple ways that can be followed in day-to-day routine to achieve the goal:
Exercising: Exercise is the best way to unwind and relax things down. Exercise helps in releasing endorphins that make one’s brain feel good. It helps to make blood sugar levels more stable as physical activity increases insulin sensitivity and helps muscles to extract sugar from the blood, which leads to reduced blood sugar levels.
A diabetic patient should always keep a check on how his/her blood pressure reacts to various exercises. Depending upon how the exercise sets the mood, one can choose to meditate, play long tennis, just adopt daily running, etc. Not only blood sugar but exercise also eases stress, which is another proven factor to increase complications in diabetes.
Monitoring the food intake: The most important factor of the sugar formation in the body of a diabetic patient is what he/she eats. Eating healthy is a central part of managing sugar levels. The type of foods consumed decides the blood sugar level rise or falls. For instance, starchy or sugary foods increase blood sugar levels rapidly. Whereas proteins or fat cause a more moderate increase. Similarly, its recommended to reduce carbs intake and increase fiber consumption in the meal. A low sugar diet helps to lower and control blood sugar levels and block blood sugar spikes, whereas fiber helps carb digestion and sugar absorption.
As a step towards maintaining a healthy diet routine, it is recommended that a diabetic patient should design a meal plan. A right balance of proportional amounts of
- Proteins,
- Fat,
- Carbs,
- Foods that include magnesium,
- Potassium, etc. and
- Keeping a check to avoid foods that do not increase glycaemic.
Monitoring blood sugar levels and medication: Monitor the blood sugar level and maintaining a routine to keep a thorough check on sugar levels. Examine the various activities one follows every day, right from measuring the food, medication, and its response to the blood sugar levels can help a diabetic patient to adjust the measures and control the glucose levels in the body for certain activities.
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- A measure on these responses or their health parameters levels, every day,
- Keeping track of the numbers in a log, and
- Then changing the diabetes treatment accordingly.
- Once one starts noticing some patterns, one can discuss with the physician and change the medications or treatment depending upon the requirement to reduce or increase the insulin doses.
Sound sleep and stress management: Diabetic patient’s sound sleep is very important for them not to feel exhausted the other day. Sleep is the natural function of the body when the body is at the state of rest. Sleep also get impaired due to glucose tolerance. If one takes insufficient sleep, there are chances they might feel exhausted and tired the other day.
To get some energy, more food is consumed and majorly such foods that contain high sugar, which further can spike blood sugar levels.
Low to no sleep can disrupt important metabolic hormones. Sleep deprivation increases cortisol. This cortisol also triggers the enzymes that help to move fat out of the fat cells storage or deposits and locate in the abdomen, giving rise to belly fat. The central fats in the body are a greater risk of heart disease.
Stress affects mental health by leaving one tense or anxious. Anxiety, depression can lead to less to no sleeps in the night. Stress can directly affect one’s health by attacking their physical aspects like blood sugar and metabolism levels and can also cause mental issues like anxiety, depression, and panic attacks. Stress is also one of the reasons for boosting disease severity as it has a direct effect on one’s blood pressure. Hence it is necessary to manage stress.
Eliminating toxic habits: A diabetic patient already has diet restrictions. It is highly recommended to avoid toxic habits like smoking and consuming alcohol. Smoking has its harmful consequences that directly affect the heart and lungs. Being a diabetic patient and developing respiratory diseases can complicate diabetes. Also, it can generate high chances of heart attacks, asthma, and lung infections.
Similarly, alcohol has dangerous effects on blood sugar levels. Diabetic patients are already recommended not to undertake any activities that directly or indirectly put stress over the liver and kidneys. When one consumes alcohol liver has to work out on removing the alcohol from the blood instead of regulating the blood sugar for the body. Drunkenness can cause dizziness, weakness, and disorientation.
The condition might worsen or confuse the already faced symptoms of blood sugars and complicate diabetes. Those habits can cause numerous diseases like heart and kidney disease, poor blood circulation to legs and feet leading to infections, eyes blindness, numbness, lack of body coordination, etc.
Staying hydrated: Drinking suffice water helps to keep blood sugar levels within healthy limits. Also, it prevents dehydration that, in turn, helps the kidneys to flush the excess blood sugar through urine. Drinking water regularly re-hydrates the blood and reduces the blood sugar levels and risks associated with diabetes. Drinking plenty of clear liquids helps to stay hydrated. Still, while choosing the different liquids and juices, one should keep in mind that sugar-sweetened drinks should be avoided as it raises blood glucose, increases weight, and thus other risks.
Controlling portions and weight gain: The basic idea is to eat reasonable portions throughout the day, thereby minimizing overeating at any meal of the day. Also helps to keep a thorough check over a healthy weight, which in turn promotes healthy blood sugar levels and also studies has shown that it has reduced various risk.
The more the portions are controlled, the serving sizes of eating the more chances to have better control over blood sugar levels. Overeating can increase the fats in the body, thus increasing the excess sugar to directly enter the blood and increase blood sugar levels causing heart risks.
Along with following different ways to lower diabetes, a diabetic patient can adopt Blood Sugar Formula as a supplement that helps to optimize glucose levels that stabilizes sugar and insulin levels.
Conclusion
Any person who is diagnosed with diabetes, his/her life is no more the same as how it was earlier. The major reason behind this is that whatever activity a diabetic patient undertakes has affected the health in one or the other way.
Achieve a healthy and low-risk or risk-free life, and the only way is to do activities that lower diabetes complications and teach them in daily routines. It is very common to feel sad, upset, over, or underwhelmed when dealing with diabetes. But it is required to follow the beneficial steps to stay healthy and stick around the daily developed plan and follow the routine to cope up with diabetes and reduce the complications over some time.
Diabetes complication can be prevented by working on a plan that helps to maintain the blood sugar levels by following a routine that focuses on
- Diet intakes
- Strictly adhering to medications
- Check blood sugar levels daily against certain foods or activities and changing the requirements accordingly
- Exercise and physical activities to be performed to maintain stress levels, healthy weight and eliminate obesity
- Avoid unnecessary toxicity that can directly attack vital organs that serve as an important part of the blood circulations
Related: 5 Diet Snacks For Diabetic Patients