High blood sugar is one of the symptoms of Type 2 diabetes. However, you can only get a diabetes diagnosis after a series of confirmatory tests carried out in a medical facility. Diabetes is not a life threatening condition, however poor management of the condition can lead to complications which are life threatening.
If you have received a diabetes diagnosis, the following are some of the things you should to maintain a healthy happy life-
Understand And Accept The Condition
It is not easy to hear that you have diabetes. However, once you understand the condition, it is easy to accept and take care of yourself. You should get information from a health care professional, you can talk to a doctor or a nurse of even enroll on a program that will help you understand the condition better and teach you how to manage it yourself. Most diabetes management practices are done at home and rarely in the hospital, unless there are complications and this is why it is important to understand what it is all about.
Get Started On Medication
You doctor will advise you on the kind of medication necessary to control the blood sugar level. The first line of treatment for diabetes is metformin, which helps to bring the blood sugar to a healthy level. It is also advisable to get cholesterol-lowering drugs in order to reduce the risk of heart disease, which is one of the most common causes of fatality in type 2 diabetes.
Get A Meal Plan
Diabetes management heavily relies on lifestyle and diet. You need to change your diet to less carbohydrates and fats and more sources of dietary fiber. Consuming too much carbohydrates causes your blood sugar level to shoot up to dangerous levels and fatty foods can also raise your blood cholesterol levels, which can lead to further complications. Consuming more dietary fiber helps to control the rate of absorption of glucose into the bloodstream during digestion. Your meal plan should be inclusive to the timings of your medication intake. You can get help from a dietician to plan on which foods to eat and at what time you should eat them.
Start Exercising
If you have not been one to exercise in the past, this is a good time to start. Exercising helps you to maintain a healthy weight and blood sugar levels. You need at least thirty minutes of exercise, five times a week. You can also incorporate exercise into your daily activities such as using the stairs instead of the elevators, parking your car father away from the store and walking the rest of the way and playing with your kids. These can also be great ways of maintain an active lifestyle.
Go For Regular Check Ups
Besides having your own blood sugar monitors at home, you should go for full body checkups on a regular basis. This will determine how your body is responding to the medication. It will also help the doctor diagnose any underlying complications in good time.
