How to Avoid Diabetes Complications

Managing your diabetes means learning how to get blood sugar in control. But, it doesn’t stop there.

Follow these tips lifestyle and nutrition tips, and they will help you reduce your chances of long-term problems from diabetes. They will also help you improve your overall health.

1. Control your blood glucose with a healthy eating plan. Keep your blood sugars within a healthy range. This is the best way to prevent long term problems from diabetes. Here is what your Nutritionist who specializes in Diabetes Management recommends. Have an A-1-c test (“hemoglobin A1c”) at least twice a year. If your A1c is under 6%, that is good control. ???

?Your blood sugars:

o A fasting blood sugar level of?99 mg/dL or lower is normal, 100 to 125 mg/dL indicates you have prediabetes, and 126 mg/dL or higher indicates you have diabetes.

Keep a record of your blood sugar levels. Share it with your doctor or other health care team members. Work out a care plan for good blood sugar control.

2. Eat healthy. Follow a food plan that includes lots of :

o Vegetables

o Fruits

o Whole grains.

This is the best way to eat for health. Eliminate foods that contain the?bad fats (“saturated fat”) and cholesterol.

Drink plenty water and skip sugar free drinks, and sugar added drinks. ?Chose coffee and tea, smoothies and sweeten properly. Make your own juices from fresh fruits and veggies.

3. Be sure to be active every day. When you exercise on a routine basis, it pays off; it can help you control your blood sugar with less medicine.

4. Control your blood pressure. High blood pressure makes you more prone to heart and kidney disease, and stroke. Exercise, lose weight, and eat a clean diet. Doing these will help you control your blood pressure. And, allow your physician to reduce your blood pressure medicine.

5. Be sure to keep your cholesterol in check by avoiding high cholesterol foods. ?High blood cholesterol makes you more prone to heart disease and stroke. If you have diabetes, keep your LDL ("bad" cholesterol) low; it should be less than 100 mg/dL. Ask your nutritionist about the best methods for meeting this goal.

6. Check your feet every day. Diabetes can damage nerves and cause pain or loss of feeling. Often this happens in the legs and feet (called “peripheral neuropathy”). This can increase the risk of foot infections, leading to amputations.

Your doctor should examine your feet for early signs. Wear well fitting shoes and always wear socks. Check your feet every day. ?See your doctor if you have any signs of infection, a cut, or sore on your foot that doesn’t heal.

7. Know the signs of heart disease. If you have diabetes, you may have common signs of heart disease. These include chest pain or shortness of breath. But, you may also have signs that are not common: pain in the jaw, shoulder, or abdomen; pain down the arm; nausea and dizziness.

8. See your eye doctor yearly. Diabetes can damage the small blood vessels in the eye (“retinopathy”). Often, the first symptom you will notice is poor vision. And, it even leads to blindness. An eye doctor (“ophthalmologist”) can find problems early. This doctor can examine the back of the eye. This will detect signs of damage before your sight is impaired.

9. Quit smoking now! If you smoke, you are more prone to heart and kidney disease, stroke, and nerve damage. So, if you do smoke, quit. It’s one of the most vital things you can do to prevent these diseases.

If you have diabetes or any other chronic illness and want to work with a nutritionist skilled in helping clients reverse diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or kidney failure, let’s connect. [email protected]