Perhaps you are like most people who just check your blood sugar in the morning when you get up. Although that reading is needed, you may not realize that checking your blood sugar after eating can be more crucial than checking it before eating. [...]
Over the past several years, we have gained a much better grasp of the relationship between blood sugar and diabetic complications. Two research trials in the 1990’s though showed that blood sugar control can prevent diabetes-related health issues such as eye disease, kidney problems, nerve damage and heart disease. This research has helped health care providers to set healthy ranges of blood sugar levels for diabetics to use as targets to avoid complications. [...]
Whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, what you eat, when you eat it and how much you eat all affect your blood glucose. Glucose is the main sugar found in the blood and is the body's major source of fuel. If you have diabetes and eat too much or do not take the right dose of diabetes medicine, your blood glucose can spike too high. When this happens, you can get sick. [...]
Several recent studies have shown that people taking only pills to manage their diabetes do not get much benefit from checking their blood glucose levels at home. Their A1C levels are about the same as people who do not monitor very often or at all. That may seem surprising, but it makes sense. After all, you would not expect people who weigh themselves every day to lose more weight than people who did not weigh themselves if they did not use what they learned to make changes in their eating or exercise habits. Knowing how much you weigh doesn’t change the results. [...]
Checking your blood glucose can be frustrating—if your numbers are too low, too high, or you are not sure what the numbers mean, your meter can start to feel like your worst enemy. HIGH BLOOD GLUCOSE How high is too high? Generally a blood glucose reading above 250 mg/dL is too high, especially [...]
Are you tired of all the fuss involved in taking insulin when you are away from home? Do you find it a hassle to carry syringes and bottles of insulin? Do you worry about keeping your bottles of insulin at the right temperature? If your answer is “yes” to any of these questions, then an insulin pen may be a solution for you. [...]
If you take insulin and struggle to manage high and low blood glucose numbers, one reason may be the timing of your injections. Coordinating when you take your insulin with the timing of your meals, your physical activity, and other parts of your diabetes care plan can help. Here are some tips to help you time your insulin just right. [...]
For many people with type 2 diabetes, deciding to start insulin is a hard choice to make. Even when your pancreas can’t keep up and your blood glucose levels are increasing, it is easy to put it off. But once you make the decision, the next question is how to get started. Here are some tips that may help you start and stay with insulin. [...]
Checking blood glucose daily is important. But don’t forget to check your A1Cs regularly, as well. The A1C test is a blood test that shows your average blood glucose results over the previous two to three months. It gives you the big picture of your blood glucose levels, including all of the ups and downs. [...]
Checking Your Blood Glucose Allows You to check the pattern of your blood glucose levels so you can make changes in your diet and exercise program or insulin dose. [...]
Checking your blood glucose gives you the information you need to understand how your diabetes treatment plan is working. Check your blood glucose several times per day at specific times, such as before a meal and two hours after. Look at the results from a period of several days or a week. You can see patterns in the times your blood glucose is up or down. You’ll see how your food, a regular walk, a stressful day or the addition of a new medication affects your blood glucose. [...]
If you have diabetes, you may take an aspirin each day as a way to help prevent heart attacks and strokes. But the guidelines developed by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and other organizations about who will benefit from aspirin have recently changed. Although it is frustrating when guidelines change, it can be a very good thing. It means that more and better studies are being done all the time, and people with diabetes will benefit from more accurate, up-to-date information. [...]
Both men and women benefit from making healthier food choices, becoming more active, losing some weight and, if needed, taking medicines to improve blood fats (lipids) and lower blood pressure. However, there are differences in how men and women respond to these measures. For example, men recover from coronary artery bypass surgery better than women. This is thought to be because women have smaller arteries in their heart because of their generally smaller body size. [...]
Your health care provider has probably talked to you about your cholesterol level, and if it’s high, there are many ways to help bring it down. Has he or she also talked with you about your triglyceride level? If so, you might be wondering exactly what this is. [...]
Heart disease is the number one killer in America today. This article will help you learn about the common tests used today to detect heart disease. It also helps you learn the signs and risk factors that mean you might get or already have heart disease. [...]
