Important aspects of treating and monitoring diabetes include:
• Nutrition counseling
• Daily foot care and skin care
• Regular physical examinations and foot examinations
• Regular blood pressure readings and cholesterol tests
• A pneumonia vaccination and annual flu shots, if prescribed by doctor
• A sick-day plan devised by a physician
• Additional medical care before, during and after pregnancy
• Cardiac and neurological testing as needed
Facts about blood sugar
• Your blood sugar can get too high if you eat too much. If your blood sugar becomes too high, you can get sick.
• Your blood sugar can also go too high if you do not take the right amount of diabetes medicine.
• If your blood sugar stays high, especially for prolonged periods of time, you can get diabetes problems. Problems that can occur include injury to the heart, eye, foot, kidney, and other problems.
• You can also get sick if your blood sugar becomes too low.
• Eat about the same amounts of food each day.
• Eat your meals and snacks at about the same times each day.
• Do not skip meals or snacks.
• Take your medicines at the same times each day.
• Exercise at about the same times each day.
• The food you eat turns into sugar and travels to your blood. This is called blood sugar. Your blood sugar goes up after you eat.
• Keep your blood sugar at a healthy level by eating about the same amounts of food at about the same times each day.
• Your blood sugar will not stay at a healthy level if you eat a big lunch one day and a small lunch the next day.
• Eating at about the same times each day helps you keep your blood sugar from getting too high or too low.
• Eating at about the same times each day also helps your diabetes medicine keep your blood sugar at a healthy level.
Timing of medication
• Diabetes pills: Take these before you eat.
• Regular, NPH, or Lente Insulin Take this 30 minutes before you eat.
• Humalog insulin lispro: Take this just before you eat.
Points to remember
• Eat about the same amounts of food each day.
• Eat your meals and snacks at about the same times each day.
• Try not to skip meals and snacks.
• Take your diabetes medicines at about the same times each day.
• Exercise at about the same times each day.
Final proof of good control of diabetes is A1C test
(Also known as-glycated hemoglobin, glycosylated hemoglobin, hemoglobin A1C and HbA1c.)
Note: HBC has no bearing on the content of the article.
Unlike finger sticks you can do at home, which measure your blood sugar level at a given time, the A1C test reflects your average blood sugar level for the past two to three months. The A1C test doesn’t tell you what’s happening at the moment. Instead, it helps your doctor gauge how well you’re managing your diabetes overall.
| A1C level | Average blood sugar level |
| 5 percent | 80 mg/dL (4.4 mmol/L) |
| 6 percent | 120 mg/dL (6.7 mmol/L) |
| 7 percent | 150 mg/dL (8.3 mmol/L) |
| 8 percent | 180 mg/dL (10 mmol/L) |
| 9 percent | 210 mg/dL (11.7 mmol/L) |
| 10 percent | 240 mg/dL (13.3 mmol/L) |
| 11 percent | 270 mg/dL (15 mmol/L) |
| 12 percent | 300 mg/dL (16.7 mmol/L) |
| 13 percent | 333 mg/dL (18.5 mmol/L) |
| 14 percent | 360 mg/dL (20 mmol/L) |
It’s important to note that the effectiveness of A1C tests may be limited in certain cases. For example:
• If you experience heavy or chronic bleeding, your hemoglobin stores may be depleted. This may make your A1C test results falsely low.
• If you don’t have enough iron in your bloodstream, your A1C test results may be falsely high.
• Most people have only one type of hemoglobin, called hemoglobin A. If you have an uncommon form of hemoglobin (known as a hemoglobin variant), your A1C test result may be falsely high or falsely low. Hemoglobin variants are most likely in blacks and people of Mediterranean or Southeast Asian heritage. Hemoglobin variants can be confirmed with lab tests. If you’re diagnosed with a hemoglobin variant, your A1C tests may need to be done at a specialized lab for the most accurate results.
Also keep in mind that the normal range for A1C results may vary somewhat among labs. If you consult a new doctor or use a different lab, it’s important to consider this possible variation when interpreting your A1C test results.
Always know the science of exercise
• Exercise burns calories, which will help you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.
• Regular exercise can help your body respond to insulin and is known to be effective in managing blood glucose. Exercise can lower blood glucose and possibly reduce the amount of medication you need to treat diabetes, or even eliminate the need for medication.
• Exercise can improve your circulation, especially in your arms and legs, where people with diabetes can have problems.
• Exercise can help reduce your cholesterol and high blood pressure. High cholesterol and high blood pressure can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
• Exercise helps reduce stress, which can raise your glucose level.
• It can lower your risk for heart disease, reduce your cholesterol levels and your blood pressure.
• In some people, exercise combined with a meal plan, can control Type 2 Diabetes without the need for medications.
What about food and insulin?
If you plan to exercise more than an hour after eating, it’s a good idea to have a snack. Generally, it’s good to have a high-carbohydrate snack such as six ounces of fruit juice
If you’re doing heavy exercise such as aerobics, running or handball, you may need to eat a bit more such as a half of a meat sandwich and a cup of milk. If you haven’t eaten for over an hour or if your blood sugar is less than 100 to 120, eat or drink something like an apple or a glass of milk before you exercise. Carry a snack with you in case of low blood sugar. If you use insulin, exercise after eating, not before. Test your blood sugar before, during and after exercising. Don’t exercise when your blood sugar is more than 240. If you’re not an insulin user, test your blood sugar before and after exercising if you take pills for diabetes.
When is exercise a problem?
If your blood sugar level is over 300 mg/dl, if you are sick, short of breath, have ketones in your urine or are experiencing any tingling, pain or numbness in your legs, don’t exercise. Also if your medication is peaking, it’s better not to exercise.