How Diabetes Affects You – First Plan of Action

Diabetes affects every patient differently, for some it is life threatening, for others the loss of limbs is possible. For those recently diagnosed with diabetes, please know that you can control your disease by following the advice of your doctor or physician, losing weight, changing your diet and taking your medication.

The first step of controlling your diabetes is moving beyond the ‘denial stage’. For some, believing they have diabetes is a hurdle, even though it has become a national epidemic. A person who is overweight and eats lots of sweets isn’t necessarily a potential diabetic. Diabetes can strike any person, and some indications state that it can be an inherited disorder. So, those with relatives suffering from first degree diabetes should tell their physicians to see if they should be tested to see if they are at risk as well.

For any type II diabetic, you will need to get a blood sugar monitor, which you should use to start charting your sugar level. This should be done a few times a day, per your physician’s instructions. Always try to test after you’ve eaten a meal.

The next major step for diabetics is to change your diet, start taking medications and begin monitoring your blood sugar levels, as all are crucial steps once you are made aware of your diabetes. For any type II diabetics, eating foods rich in carbohydrates could be disastrous as they will have a hard time absorbing or breaking down sugars and starches in their system. Some carbohydrates rank higher than others on the glycemic index sheet, so be aware of everything you are putting in your body.

The carbohydrates are ranked based on how long it takes for a body to break down the food. Some break down very slowly, which releases glucose gradually into your system, giving it a low glycemic index. For any insulin dependant diabetic, a low glycemic index is preferred. Foods with a low glycemic index allow insulin and medications to respond better to the glucose in the blood, allowing the sugars to break down more naturally.

While a diabetic should limit their carbohydrate intake, they should also increase their protein intake. A good diabetic diet would be very similar to a ‘low carb’ diet which were popular some years back. These diets either limited or completely eliminated carbohydrates.

In summary, a newly diagnosed diabetic has to make a change in lifestyle in order to ease the symptoms of this awful disease. The first thing they need to do is admit they are diabetics so that they can make the changes they need to survive. The second thing to do is take the medications prescribed, as they are prescribed. Next, monitor your blood sugar and change your eating habits and eliminate carbs. And last, get active. When you follow these guidelines, you give yourself the best chance to succeed against this debilitating disease.