Prevention: Tips to Keep on Top of Your
Diabetes
Today you do not have to look far to find
someone you know who is affected by diabetes. The International Diabetes
Federation estimates there are 135 million people worldwide living with
diabetes and the number is growing. While researchers around the world
have made promising advancements in their search for a cure for diabetes,
there is still progress that needs to be made. What can you do today to
prevent complications from diabetes or protect family members that may be
at risk for developing diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease that affects how you
live day-to-day. Therefore, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can make all
the difference. From choosing what to eat, and whether or not to exercise,
to how many times a day to test blood sugar levels, good habits can keep
people with diabetes healthy and prevent complications like heart disease,
blindness, and kidney failure.
"It is important that people with diabetes
develop good testing, diet, and exercise habits to achieve and maintain
optimal health," said Susan Barlow, RD, CDE, marketing manager in Diabetes
Care at Roche Diagnostics and person with type 1 diabetes.
Research from the United Kingdom
Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) shows that with proper diet, exercise,
routine monitoring of blood sugar levels, and medication when necessary,
people with diabetes can lower the risks of complications.
What does this mean for you?
Make the extra effort to start the New Year
off with healthy habits. What may be a small change for today, can result
in long-term improvements in your health for tomorrow. Don't know where to
start? Try re-examining your health management routine, diet, and exercise
plan. How can people with diabetes break bad habits? Here are a few tips
to get you started on the right track.
- Start by keeping a
written logbook, or electronic record of blood sugar test results and
other key activities such as diet, exercise, illness, and medications.
This record can be useful when visiting your doctor to track progress
and, if necessary, adjust treatment plans.
- Examine your diet. Try
to cut back on your sodium and fat intake and track carbohydrates.
Substitute healthy snacks such as a piece of fruit in place of candy and
chips. Whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, your food choices can
help you balance your blood sugar levels and help control your weight.
- Keep active by adding
a low-intensity workout into your schedule. Add it to your daily
calendar to make it a priority. If just starting an exercise routine, be
sure to see your doctor before exercising. Try to make long and
short-term goals to maintain realistic expectations for an exercise
program.
- For people living with
diabetes, testing blood sugar levels is an essential step to good health
management. Some research now shows that just increasing testing
frequency can result in better blood sugar control.
- Visit your doctor
regularly to keep track of your progress and if necessary, adjust your
current medication therapy.
Looking to the future
By making the extra effort to start healthy
habits today, you can delay and even prevent the onset of complications
from diabetes tomorrow. Looking to the future, researchers hope to
determine whether type 2 diabetes can be prevented through potential
combination of diet, exercise, and medication.
Remember, managing your diabetes is a skill
you'll need to develop. Bad habits can be hard to break, but with
determination, good health management can be a habit that will last a
lifetime.
