Diabetes is a disease in which the body cannot properly make or use the hormone insulin. Insulin allows the body’s cells to get the sugar (glucose) needed for energy.
When you have diabetes, you must work harder to keep your blood sugar levels in your target range. This can be difficult because many factors can affect your blood sugar.
Knowing how different foods and lifestyle choices can raise or lower your blood sugar. So is knowing how to help your body make the insulin that works as it should.
You can’t avoid your diabetes, but you can take charge of it. By making smart choices and getting the care you need, you can make your diabetes work for you.
Today, let’s take a closer look at how your lifestyle and routine can affect your blood sugar:
Sleep and Exercise
Regular physical activity helps your body make more insulin and use it more effectively. It also allows you to manage your weight, which can help keep your blood sugar in the target range.
Don’t skimp on sleep. A proper amount of sleep is vital for your overall health and diabetes management. Your blood sugar levels naturally rise in the morning — even if you haven’t eaten anything — so you’ll want to wake up, get up, and move.
A good diabetes management plan includes a regular exercise program, and you should follow this plan consistently.
Your lifestyle choices affect your blood sugar levels, so you should stay on top of what you eat and the amount of physical activity you get.
Food and Nutrition
Food is the fuel your body needs to stay healthy and go about its daily activities, including helping blood sugar work the way it should.
Food and exercise fuel your body needs to stay healthy and go about its daily activities, including helping blood sugar work the way it should.
Remember that carbohydrates raise your blood sugar the most. These carbohydrates get broken down into glucose in the body, which is what your cells need for energy.
Your body can’t store glucose, so it needs to make and keep it as glycogen in the liver or muscle tissue. But if your liver or muscle tissue is full, your body needs to find someplace else to store the glucose, and that place is fat.
Emotion and Stress
Anger and depression can also raise your blood sugar. When your blood sugar isn’t where you’d like it to be, try to focus on your target range instead of your last meal or what you might eat later. Remember, your blood sugar will always go up and down.
By focusing on your target range, you can help your body stay in the range more often. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed, take a few moments to do an activity that relaxes you. You might go for a short walk, take a bath or read a magazine.
Stress can also cause your blood sugar to go up. When you’re stressed, your body burns glucose faster, which can cause your blood sugar to rise.
The Bottom Line
Your lifestyle choices can affect your blood sugar, so it’s essential to be aware of how foods, exercise, stress, and sleep can affect the way your body works.
There will never be a one-size-fits-all approach to diabetes management, but there are many things you can do to help. By thinking about how your choices affect your blood sugar levels, you can take control of your diabetes.
If you are looking for a family medical clinic in Santa Fe, you’re in the right place. Unity Medical Clinic is a family-oriented medical practice passionate about helping families take charge of their health. Our goal is to provide high-quality and reliable medical services for all our patients. Contact us today to learn more or go to our patient portal now.