Taking care of your health after a diabetes diagnosis isn’t just a matter of taking your medicine. Diabetes is an unpredictable condition that can change quickly in relation to your daily choices. Knowing the details of your condition and the best way to improve your symptoms can help you keep your blood sugar levels under control.
Contributing Factors
Diabetes is an illness with many factors that contribute to the way you feel and how you manage your health. The progression of the disease depends on your ability to pay attention to your symptoms and make healthy choices. The foods you eat, your activity level, and your ability to track your health all have a major effect on how you keep diabetes under control.
The Effects of Carbs
Since carbohydrates turn to sugar when broken down, they can quickly change your blood sugar levels and the way you feel. It’s vital to keep track of your carb intake to keep the right balance both daily and long-term. Carbohydrates are present in many foods, and it’s easy to overindulge with a snack or a favorite meal. Utilizing portion control and eating complex carbs that are also a good source of protein can help keep your sugar levels under control.
Tracking the Numbers
You should have a schedule to check your blood sugar daily. Using additional spot checks can give you a clearer picture of where you stand at all times. Keeping your blood sugar levels as close to normal as you can is the best way to keep diabetes under control. Tracking your numbers multiple times a day will help you learn what actions to take for optimal success.
Activity Levels
If you have diabetes, exercise is like medicine. Diabetes is a condition that causes the insulin in your blood to work less effectively. During an activity, insulin becomes more effective. This effectiveness is maintained for hours after you exercise.
Your medications are only useful if you take them every day. Exercise works the same way. Even if you’ve been exercising regularly for a year, the effects can wear off as early as a week after you stop. Finding an enjoyable way to incorporate 30 minutes of daily exercise into your schedule can help keep your blood sugar stable.
Signs your Diabetes is not Under Control
Controlled diabetes is not an immediate danger to your daily health. However, if your condition is not under control, you could quickly be on your way to serious side effects that will land you in the emergency room. If you aren’t keeping track of your blood sugar levels, your sugar may be creeping up to dangerous levels without you realizing it. These subtle symptoms might be a sign your diabetes isn’t under control:
•Increased hunger without weight gain – When insulin doesn’t turn sugar to energy, your body uses other available sources like fat and muscle mass. The food you eat isn’t doing its job, so your body thinks you need more which results in chronic hunger.
•Extreme fatigue – When insulin isn’t doing its job, sugar doesn’t convert to energy. The result is fatigue and lethargy.
•Excessive thirst and frequent urination – When sugar builds up in your blood, your kidneys work harder to eliminate it. Frequent urination can quickly cause excessive thirst and dehydration.
•Blurry vision – High blood sugar levels create fluid buildup. This fluid can leak into your eyes causing the lenses to swell. Blurred vision and difficulty focusing are the most common symptoms.
•Skin changes – Skin tags or dark patches are indicators of insulin resistance. Other skin problems like blisters and infections can be a sign of high blood sugar levels.
•Numbness and tingling in hands and feet –Numbness, tingling, and pain in the hands and feet (diabetic neuropathy) are usually symptoms of progressive diabetes. Uncontrolled diabetes can also cause these symptoms.
•Slow healing injuries – Poor circulation and nerve damage caused by uncontrolled diabetes restricts blood flow and slows healing.
Potential Dangers
Early symptoms of diabetes often go unnoticed by patients. For the same reasons, it may not be obvious when the condition is getting worse. Ignoring symptoms can be dangerous or even fatal. Diabetes affects every part of your body. Keeping your sugar levels under control can help you manage the symptoms and control the progression of the disease.
Ignoring your health plan to keep your diabetes under control has immediate effects on the way you feel. Lack of energy and other physical symptoms are present immediately as sugar levels rise. Ignoring your symptoms will lead to rapid progression of other serious symptoms. Uncontrolled diabetes can lead to blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, nerve damage, coma, and death. Understanding your condition and taking measures to keep it under control can help you stay healthy and avoid dangerous symptoms.
Routine visits to your doctor and a healthy lifestyle are essential tools in fighting the progression of diabetes. If you are unsure whether your diabetes is under control, contact your doctor today.
Sources:
1.WebMD – 5 Steps to Get Your Diabetes Under Control
2.Livestrong – Things that Impact Fasting Glucose Level
3.Everyday Health – 7 Signs your Blood Sugar Is Out of Control