Mostrando las entradas con la etiqueta Exercise. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando las entradas con la etiqueta Exercise. Mostrar todas las entradas

viernes, 28 de noviembre de 2014

Remembers The Advice On Managing Your Diabetes

Tip 1: Take stress seriously.

If you're stressed, it's easy to neglect your usual diabetes care routine. The hormones your body may produce in response to prolonged stress may prevent insulin from working properly, which only makes matters worse. To take control, set limits. Prioritize your tasks. Learn relaxation techniques. Get plenty of sleep.

Above all, stay positive. Diabetes care is within your control. If you're willing to do your part, diabetes won't stand in the way of an active, healthy life



Tip 2: If you drink alcohol, do so responsibly.

Alcohol can cause low blood sugar, depending on how much you drink and whether you eat at the same time. If you choose to drink, do so only in moderation and always with a meal. Remember to include the calories from any alcohol you drink in your daily calorie count.



Tip 3: Consider a daily aspirin.

Aspirin reduces your blood's ability to clot. Taking a daily aspirin can reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke — major concerns when you have diabetes. Ask your doctor whether daily aspirin therapy is appropriate for you, including which strength of aspirin would be best.






Tip 4: Pay attention to your feet.

High blood sugar can damage the nerves in your feet and reduce blood flow to your feet. Left untreated, cuts and blisters can lead to serious infections. To prevent foot problems:

Wash your feet daily in lukewarm water.
Dry your feet gently, especially between the toes.
Moisturize your feet and ankles with lotion.
Check your feet every day for blisters, cuts, sores, redness or swelling.
Consult your doctor if you have a sore or other foot problem that doesn't start to heal within a few days.



Tip 5: Take care of your teeth.

Diabetes may leave you prone to gum infections. Brush your teeth at least twice a day, floss your teeth once a day, and schedule dental exams at least twice a year. Consult your dentist right away if your gums bleed or look red or swollen.




Tip 6: Keep your vaccines up to date.


High blood sugar can weaken your immune system, which makes routine vaccines more important than ever. Ask your doctor about:

  • Flu vaccine. A yearly flu vaccine can help you stay healthy during flu season as well as prevent serious complications from the flu.
  • Pneumonia vaccine. Sometimes the pneumonia vaccine requires only one shot. If you have diabetes complications or you're age 65 or older, you may need a five-year booster shot.
  • Hepatitis B vaccine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends hepatitis B vaccination if you haven't previously been vaccinated against hepatitis B and you're an adult aged 19 to 59 with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. The most recent CDC guidelines advise vaccination as soon as possible after diagnosis with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. If you're age 60 or older and have diabetes and haven't previously received the vaccine, talk to your doctor about the whether it's right for you.
  • Other vaccines. Stay up to date with your tetanus shot and its 10-year boosters. Depending on the circumstances, your doctor may recommend other vaccines as well.


Tip 7: Schedule yearly physicals and regular eye exams.

Your regular diabetes checkups aren't meant to replace yearly physicals or routine eye exams. During the physical, your doctor will look for anydiabetes-related complications — including signs of kidney damage, nerve damage and heart disease — as well as screen for other medical problems. Your eye care specialist will check for signs of retinal damage, cataracts and glaucoma.



Tip 8: Keep your blood pressure and cholesterol under control.

Like diabetes, high blood pressure can damage your blood vessels. High cholesterol is a concern, too, since the damage is often worse and more rapid when you have diabetes. When these conditions team up, they can lead to a heart attack, stroke or other life-threatening conditions.

Eating healthy foods and exercising regularly can go a long way toward controlling high blood pressure and cholesterol. Sometimes medication is needed, too.



Tip 9: Don't smoke.

If you smoke or use other types of tobacco, ask your doctor to help you quit. Smoking increases your risk of various diabetes complications, including heart attack, stroke, nerve damage and kidney disease. In fact, smokers who have diabetes are three times more likely to die of cardiovascular disease than are nonsmokers who have diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. Talk to your doctor about ways to stop smoking or to stop using other types of tobacco.



Tip 10: Make a commitment to managing your diabetes.

Members of your diabetes care team — doctor, diabetes nurse educator and dietitian, for example — will help you learn the basics of diabetes care and offer support and encouragement along the way. But it's up to you to manage your condition. After all, no one has a greater stake in your health than you.


Learn all you can about diabetes. Make healthy eating and physical activity part of your daily routine. Maintain a healthy weight. Monitor your blood sugar level, and follow your doctor's instructions for keeping your blood sugar level within your target range. Don't be afraid to ask your diabetes treatment team for help when you need it.



domingo, 26 de octubre de 2014

Diabetes Mellitus

Diabetes Mellitus is also simply known as diabetes. It is the disease characterized by a malfunctioning metabolism and a high blood sugar level.


The result can be low levels of insulin or abnormal insulin resistance. This mixed with inadequate levels of insulin secretion results in diabetes.

Symptoms of diabetes mellitus include increased urine production, excessive thirst, extreme fatigue, and
excessive thirst and weight loss. These symptoms though may not be present in those people with only mildly elevated sugar levels.

Diabetes mellitus includes type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes, which occur only during pregnancy. Each type has a different cause and different severity of symptoms.

But all forms of diabetes are dangerous if not treated. With proper management though, people with diabetes can live a long, healthy, normal life.

The main cause of type 1 diabetes mellitus is the loss of insulin producing cells in the pancreas. This ultimately leads to an insulin deficiency.

Type 1 diabetes mellitus is typically found in children and young adults. It is also termed juvenile diabetes. The common treatment for type 1 diabetes mellitus is daily insulin injections to replace the insulin the body is not producing properly, along with careful blood glucose monitoring.

Without careful monitoring and treatment, complications from diabetes could include loss of limps such as arms, legs and feet, blindness and diabetic comas, which can be fatal.

It is extremely important that if you suspect you or your child to have symptoms of diabetes, that you visit your doctor to be tested. If the tests are positive it is not the end of the world. With careful monitoring and care, type 1 diabetics can live long healthy lives.


jueves, 18 de septiembre de 2014

Diabetes Management

As of 2007, there is no cure for either type 1 or type 2 diabetes. This may seem like a dim outlook for many people, but the fact is that even though there is no cure, there certainly are ways to manage your diabetes.

Proper management can give you many years of healthy living.

Diabetes management starts with a visit to your doctor. first, finding out you have diabetes, what type you have then arming yourself with as much information as possible about the diabetes you are diagnosed with.

All management begins with controlling the glucose cycle.

The glucose cycle is affected by two factors, entry of glucose into the bloodstream and blood levels of insulin to control the transport out.

Your glucose levels are very sensitive to both diet and exercise, so change in either should first be discussed with your physician. Proper management of diabetes can be very intrusive to the patient.

Proper management requires a complete lifestyle change and frequent, sometimes multi-daily checks of glucose in the blood.

It can change as people grow and develop and no two cases are ever really the same. Today it is easier to measure the blood sugar level.

Glucose meters are readily available and are quite easy to use with a little practice and patience.

With a small drop of blood to the testing strip attached to the glucose meter, the user is given the number, which represents their blood sugar level. This in turn will let the user know if and when insulin is needed.

Exercise Tips To Help You Properly and Effectively Manage Diabetes

Exercising is one of the keys to having a healthy body. It doesn’t only make you look better, but it will also help you feel a lot better. If you don’t exercise, then you will eventually risk getting diseases that can really affect your life. Inactivity can lead to heart related diseases and it can also lead to diabetes.

First of all, type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease of lifestyle that many people are experiencing today. This disease is affected by a lot of factors, such as your weight and your activity levels. These two things are in your complete control and you need to do the right thing in order for you to effectively manage the disease.

Exercise does help diabetes. It can reduce your body's insulin requirements in many ways. The first is that exercise will be able to increase the body's sensitive to insulin. What this means is that the cells in your body will be able to better absorb insulin. Exercising can also help enhance the use of blood glucose in your body.

What this means is that it will be able to lower the blood glucose levels in your body, which can possibly reduce the amount of medication you need in order to treat and manage the disease. If you have type 2 diabetes, exercising regularly can even eliminate the need for constant medication, especially if you accompany exercise with a healthy eating plan.


You also need to keep in mind that diabetics have higher risks of high blood pressure and acquiring heart related disease as well as stroke. This is why it is more important for you to exercise now in order for you to reduce the risk of heart related diseases.

Through exercise, you will also be able to improve circulation, especially in the legs and arms. This is where people suffering from diabetes usually have problems and with exercise, it will be able to help.

You also need to keep in mind that stress can raise blood glucose levels. And, everyone knows for a fact that exercising helps reduce stress levels. So, if you want to keep your blood glucose levels from spiking, you have to reduce stress through exercise.

Lastly, one great benefit of exercise for diabetics is that it will be able to significantly improve the quality of life.

The next step is by knowing the right exercises for diabetics. You need to remember that the best exercises for diabetics are cardiovascular and aerobic exercises. However, you need to choose an exercise that is not hard on the feet as injuring the feet may lead to more serious problems especially for diabetics.

So, go for gentle walking, swimming and cycling. These exercises will be able to work your heart and circulatory system. You can also try playing racket sports, such as tennis. Just make sure that you wear proper fitting shoes in order to prevent injuries on the feet.

Before you start exercising, it is wise to consult your doctor about it first. This way, you will be able to know what kind of exercise you should do and for how long each day.

These are the things that you need to remember about being diabetic and the importance of exercising. Through exercise, you will be able to manage the disease effectively and let you live a full and normal life.



domingo, 24 de agosto de 2014

10 Tips for Managing Diabetes

Diabetes is a lifelong, total-body problem. Manage blood sugars and overall health with these smart tips.

Get your team together. 
Although your primary-care physician may have been the one to order blood-glucose testing, you need a team of professionals to guide you through all of diabetes' medical details. Ideally your team will include your primary-care physician, an endocrinologist (a hormone specialist who understands the intricacies of insulin), a registered dietitian to help you fine-tune your eating plan, an ophthalmologist (an eye specialist who can look for diabetes-related signs of damage to the retina), a podiatrist (a foot-care specialist who can help prevent complications from diabetes-related nerve damage and skin sores), and a dentist to keep periodontal disease and other infections under control.
Monitor your blood-glucose levels every day.

Monitor your blood-glucose levels every day.
Some people resist checking their blood-sugar levels, but daily monitoring really is the only way to know if they are under control. Foods, activity level, medications, illness, and even stress can affect blood glucose. Unless you check, you might not know whether your levels are holding steady or spiraling out of control. Ask your doctor how often you need to check — and what to do if your blood glucose readings are abnormal.

Take diabetes medication as directed.
Diabetes symptoms are silent, so you may not notice an immediate repercussion when you neglect to take your medicine — and that means far too many people decide against taking prescribed medications (or "forget" to take them). Don't be one of them! Untreated diabetes carries the grave risks of heart disease, nerve damage, and other complications. Take medications or insulin as directed by your physician. If you have uncomfortable side effects or questions about your medication or treatment plan, talk with your doctor.

Exercise.
Next to weight control and medical treatment, exercise is the most important thing you can do to take control over diabetes. Exercise decreases body fat and promotes weight loss — but even if you don't lose weight as a result, exercise will improve blood-sugar control and your body's response to insulin and even help prevent heart disease. Aim for 30 minutes of activity, five days per week. Studies show that all levels of exercise are beneficial, from moderate-intensity walking to high-intensity resistance training with weights. The key is to find something you enjoy doing and will stick with — whether it's walking, swimming, cycling, or dancing — and then get moving!

Keep a food record.
As you are learning to gain control over your weight and blood sugar, it can be helpful to keep a log that includes some specific information about your eating habits. Every time you eat, jot down where you are; what time it is; how hungry you feel before beginning to eat and again when you stop eating; the foods and amounts eaten; and your thoughts or feelings at the time. Over time, you'll start to see patterns. By identifying the situations in which you're most likely to make poor food choices — something we often do as a response to anxiety or stress — you can learn to substitute new activities.

If you smoke, quit.
Smoking increases the risk of developing diabetes, and once you have it, smoking makes every problem and complication associated with diabetes even worse. Smoking raises blood-glucose levels, constricts blood vessels, and causes inflammation, and smokers have an increased risk of kidney disease, nerve damage, blood-vessel damage, and foot and leg infections. Note that many people gain weight after quitting smoking because they try to satisfy their nicotine cravings by eating more — a particularly dangerous strategy for people with diabetes. Therefore, it's super-important to quit smoking, if you smoke — and to be mindful of your food intake as you kick the bad habit.

Drink alcohol only in moderation…if at all.
Drinking between one-half and two alcoholic drinks per day has been shown to reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by an average of 30 percent, compared with nondrinkers or heavy drinkers. However, among people who already have diabetes, there is some question about the benefits of alcohol. Talk to your doctor to make sure that alcohol is safe for you and that you understand how it might affect your blood-glucose levels. And if you don't already drink alcohol, don't start.

Brush and floss regularly.
Just as unregulated diabetes leads to high levels of glucose in your blood, it also leads to higher-than-usual levels of glucose in your saliva, which raises the risk for dental decay. Plus, diabetes makes fighting infection harder, so that if gum disease develops, you'll have a more difficult time getting rid of it than someone without diabetes. However, research suggests that people with diabetes who gain control over their periodontal problems have better glycemic control after gum treatment than before. For healthy teeth and gums, dentists and nutritionists alike recommend that you see your dentist regularly, brush with a fluoride toothpaste at least twice a day, and remember to floss.

Seek treatment for little sleep or daytime sleepiness.
Excessive daytime sleepiness is often a sign of sleep apnea, a disorder that causes interruptions in breathing during sleep up to several times per night. It may be caused by faulty signals from the brain or because the soft tissue at the back of the throat relaxes and blocks the airway (called obstructive sleep apnea, or OSA). Most people with sleep apnea don't know what is happening or why they feel so tired after what seems like a full night's rest. People with diabetes are more likely to have sleep apnea than people without diabetes — and OSA itself increases the risk of insulin resistance and may be a roadblock to diabetes control. If you have sleep apnea, or if you experience unusual sleepiness during the daytime, talk with your doctor. A full night's sleep is not just a luxury, it's a health necessity.

Be meticulous with your foot care.
Diabetes can cause neuropathy, or nerve damage, in the extremities — usually starting in the feet, so good foot care is critical. The key words are clean and dry. Wash your feet daily in warm water, and dry with a clean, soft towel. Do not soak your feet or use hot water. If you have nerve damage, due to the lack of sensation in your feet you may not notice sores, blisters, calluses, swelling, bruising, or breaks in the skin — so you'll need to be meticulous about inspecting your feet every day. Also, talk to your doctor right away about how to treat any problems. Don't walk barefoot — always wear shoes or slippers — and wear clean, soft socks with your shoes. Talk with your podiatrist about other ways to keep your feet safe.

Learn about what foods help prevent blood sugar spikes and control diabetes.