Managing Type 2 Diabetes With Diet And Exercise

Add Extra Activity To Your Daily Routine

If you have been inactive or you are trying a new activity, start slowly, with 5 to 10 minutes a day. Then add a little more time each week. Increase daily activity by spending less time in front of a TV or other screen. Try these simple ways to add physical activities in your life each day:

• Walk around while you talk on the phone or during TV commercials.
• Do chores, such as work in the garden, rake leaves, clean the house, or wash the car.
• Park at the far end of the shopping center parking lot and walk to the store.
• Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
• Make your family outings active, such as a family bike ride or a walk in a park.

If you are sitting for a long time, such as working at a desk or watching TV, do some light activity for 3 minutes or more every half hour.5 Light activities include

• leg lifts or extensions

By Eating Healthy And Exercising Regularly People With Diabetes Can Improve Their Insulin Sensitivity And Glycemic Control And Reduce Their Dependence On Medicines Or Insulin Injection Said Dr Santosh B

Diet and exercise are essential components of a healthy lifestyle, especially for people with diabetes. A healthy diet and exercise have numerous health benefits, like controlling blood glucose levels and ensuring that they are within the target range. To keep the blood glucose levels in control, one must consistently eat a well-balanced diet and exercise regularly.

People with diabetes often find it challenging to exercise regularly and to consume a diabetic-friendly diet. Still, by making small changes in the diet and including physical activity, one can manage their blood sugar levels. By eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly, people with diabetes can see a positive change in their blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels too, said Dr Santosh B, MBBS, MD General Medicine, DNB Endocrinology, Bangalore Baptist Hospital, Bengaluru

What foods can people with diabetes eat?

A healthy diet consists of food from all food groups in moderate amounts. People with diabetes can include the following food groups in their diet:

Vegetable: Broccoli, carrots, greens, peppers, and tomatoesFruits: Oranges, melon, berries, apples, and papayaGrains: Whole grains, like wheat, rice, oats, cornmeal, barley, and quinoa.Protein: Chicken, fish, lean meat, nuts and peanuts, eggs, beans, dried beans like chickpeas, and tofu.Non-fat dairy products: Oats milk, Almond milk, yogurt, low-fat milk, and cheese.

Tips To Get Started With Exercise

1. Get the go-ahead from your healthcare team. Talk to your primary care physician or endocrinologist before beginning a workout program, recommends Colin Laughlin, CSCS, founder of QualityLife Fitness virtual workout center. This will help you ensure that youre choosing a form of exercise that is best suited for any coexisting health conditions that you may have, such as heart disease or diabetic neuropathy.

2. Make a plan to ensure your blood sugar stays in a healthy range. Exercise must be carefully planned with intake of food and insulin to prevent hyper- or hypoglycemia, explains Kristen Gasnick, a board-certified doctor of physical therapy based in Livingston, New Jersey. Again, talking to your medical team can be important, as is testing your blood sugar before and after exercise. When first getting started with exercise, you may also need to test during your workout, she says. Continuous glucose monitors can be helpful for exercisers.

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3. If youre new to exercise, take baby steps. If 150 minutes per week seems like a lot, start with a goal of 45 minutes of exercise for the week, then 60, then 75, and continue until you hit and maintain the goal of 150 minutes, Occhipinti says. In addition to being one of the best ways to stay motivated to exercise when you have diabetes, this gradual approach to exercise will reduce the risk of exercise aches, pains, and injury.

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Results Of Following A Diabetes

Your specific results depend on where you started before embarking on your diabetes-friendly diet journey. But Palinski-Wade notes that there are short- and long-term results you can expect.

Pretty quickly, you should see benefits to your blood sugar at the outset. You will start to see your daily blood glucose readings improve within a few days, she says. Then youll notice your A1C start to get better in three to six months. These are a measurement of your blood sugar levels on average of the past three months, so consistent improvement for at least three months needs to happen to see this number decrease, Palinski-Wade adds.

If your doctor advises you to lose weight, making these diet changes along with increasing your activity level can help you lose weight and shed body fat. Be careful about monitoring the scale too closely in the early days. Its important to note that if your blood sugar levels were uncontrolled and weight loss resulted from this, you may notice an initial weight gain as blood sugar comes back to a normal level. Do not be discouraged. Generally, this weight gain is minimal, and once blood sugar stabilizes, weight stabilizes as well, she says.

Goal : Attain Normal Lab Results

Your physician will work with you to establish individual goals for blood glucose, blood cholesterol, and blood pressure. Regular testing will help ensure that your diet plan, exercise strategies, and medication, if necessary, are all working together to keep your blood sugar, lipids, blood pressure, and your body weight in healthy ranges.

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What To Drink When You Have Diabetes

Your choice of drinks can make a difference in your blood sugar levels. Palinski-Wade recommends focusing on unsweetened beverages, such as water and seltzer.

If you like coffee or tea, you may notice that caffeine increases your blood sugar levels, so Palinski-Wade advises monitoring your glucose response after consuming these drinks to see where you stand.

Foods To Eat With Type 2 Diabetes

Although you can include most foods in a diabetes diet, you do need to pay most attention particularly to the types of carbohydrates you choose in order to control and prevent spikes, or unhealthy increases, in your blood sugar. The glycemic index ranks foods based on the effect they have on blood sugar levels: Low glycemic foods have less effect than high glycemic foods like white rice, breakfast cereals and cereal bars, and sweetened dairy products.

Foods high in simple carbohydratesmostly from added sugars and refined grains are high on the glycemic index. This means they will cause your blood sugar levels to rise more quickly than foods that contain fiber, such as 100% whole wheat and oats, which have a lower glycemic index.

Examples of healthy lifestylepromoting carb choices for people with diabetes include:

• Whole-grain breads and cereals and foods made with 100% whole wheat, oats, quinoa, brown rice, corn, and cornmeal

• Dried beans, lentils, and peas

• Fresh fruits like berries, apples, pears, and oranges

• Vegetables. Both starchy and non-starchy vegetables are healthy carbs that have less effect on your blood sugar

• Dairy products including yogurt, milk, and cheese. The best yogurt is Greek-style or strained yogurt since these contain triple the level of protein.

For breakfast, you can learn to prepare your favorite pancakes or waffles with oat flour or almond flour. Check out our handy guide to help you make healthy swaps and promote balanced blood sugar management.

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You Can Eat Many Types Of Foods

There’s nothing you cannot eat if you have type 2 diabetes, but you’ll have to limit certain foods.

You should:

• eat a wide range of foods including fruit, vegetables and some starchy foods like pasta
• keep sugar, fat and salt to a minimum
• eat breakfast, lunch and dinner every day do not skip meals

If you need to change your diet, it might be easier to make small changes every week.

Information about food can be found on these diabetes sites:

• food and nutrition message board

Can I Eat Sugar Substitutes With Type 2 Diabetes

The current belief is that people who need to follow a diabetes diet should avoid added sweeteners of all kinds, including sugar substitutes and artificial sweeteners. Researchers have found that people who consume foods with any form of sweetener typically crave more of these foods and end up gaining weight.

Your best bet is to begin using fruit to get your sweet fix. By adding fruit to foods, you totally avoid the added sugars and sugar alcohols and get the added benefit of dietary fiber, which is better for blood glucose control.

If you want to use a non-caloric sweetener, of all the , stevia is the one I recommend most often, says Lori Zanini, RD, CDE, author of The Diabetes Cookbook and Meal Plan for the Newly Diagnosed. Its a great natural and zero-calorie option for blood sugar control when added to beverages, hot cereals, and other foods. Youll have to experiment with stevia, she adds, because it works better with some foods than with others.

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Why Should I Be Physically Active If I Have Diabetes

Physical activity is an important part of managing your blood glucose level and staying healthy. Being active has many health benefits.

Physical activity

• burns extra calories so you can keep your weight down if needed
• improves your mood
• can prevent falls and improve memory in older adults
• may help you sleep better

If you are overweight, combining physical activity with a reduced-calorie eating plan can lead to even more benefits. In the Look AHEAD: Action for Health in Diabetes study,1 overweight adults with type 2 diabetes who ate less and moved more had greater long-term health benefits compared to those who didnt make these changes. These benefits included improved cholesterol levels, less sleep apnea, and being able to move around more easily.

Even small amounts of physical activity can help. Experts suggest that you aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate or vigorous physical activity 5 days of the week.3 Moderate activity feels somewhat hard, and vigorous activity is intense and feels hard. If you want to lose weight or maintain weight loss, you may need to do 60 minutes or more of physical activity 5 days of the week.3

Be patient. It may take a few weeks of physical activity before you see changes in your health.

When Should I Call My Doctor

Its important to monitor diabetes very closely if youre sick. Even a common cold can be dangerous if it interferes with your insulin and blood sugar levels. Make a sick day plan with your healthcare provider so you know how often to check your blood sugar and what medications to take.

Contact your provider right away if you experience:

• Confusion or memory loss.

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Will Supplements And Vitamins Help My Diabetes

No clear proof exists that taking dietary supplements such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, or spices can help manage diabetes.1 You may need supplements if you cannot get enough vitamins and minerals from foods. Talk with your health care provider before you take any dietary supplement since some can cause side effects or affect how your medicines work.2

Dietary Guidance For Managing Type 2 Diabetes

Fundamentally diabetes is a problem metabolising carbohydrates, so addressing your carbohydrate consumption is a very strong first step. If youre sensitive to gluten, youd avoid it. If a particular washing powder made your skin react, you wouldnt use it. Consider yourself in a similar boat with carbohydrates you dont have to avoid them altogether, but you certainly have to limit their consumption.

Carbohydrates include foods such as bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, sweets, noodles, sweet potatoes, squash, cakes etc. Aim for a small portion, once per day and make sure its on a day youre exercising. A good rule of thumb could be to not eat carbs you havent earned.

Instead, according to a naturopathic doctor in Scottsdale, prioritise your consumption of good quality protein and high fibre fruit and vegetables .

Taking a multivitamin supplement, a vitamin D supplement and a fish oil is helpful too. I see them as a nutritional insurance that will plug any mineral gaps in your diet. It takes a few seconds and will help to keep your vitamin and mineral levels high.

Keep yourself well hydrated with water. Avoid sugary drinks at all costs, because frankly theyre full of sugar , theyre not great when it comes to hydrating and theyre also high in calories. Coffee and tea are fine, but dont have any sugar or cream in it. Perhaps a skimmed or semi-skimmed milk only.

In summary

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Connect With The Patients Emotional Needs

The management of diabetes is routinely focused on the clinical aspects of the disease involving lifestyle management and therapy however, as previously discussed, diabetes is also associated with emotional and distress-related experiences that directly affect the behavior and quality of life of the people who live with it .

For patients who have low health literacy, or where language is an issue, they may benefit by having someone close to them join them during consultation to help facilitate information exchange.

Managing Diabetes With Diet And Exercise

by Drew | Dec 5, 2018

Generally speaking, Type II diabetes is the version of this disease that can be managed with diet and exercise. However, for those with Type I, these healthy lifestyle tips may help relieve symptoms and enhance management of the condition. Here are some tips for managing diabetes with diet and exercise.

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The Importance Of Assessing Health Literacy

In preparing the delivery of diabetes education to enable shared decision-making, it is important to understand that health literacy varies from person to person . The American Diabetes Association Standards of Care state that clinicians and diabetes care/education specialists should provide easy-to-understand information and reduce unnecessary complexity when developing care plans in collaboration with people with diabetes . It is important to note, however, that matching the complexity of language used to a persons health literacy is associated with better understanding than the use of oversimplified language . People benefit greatly from acknowledgment of their emotional needs as well as clear explanation of the goals of therapy and how treatments work, using language tailored to their level of health literacy. Consideration of language barriers and cultural health beliefs, such as beliefs in traditional folk remedies and health misconceptions, is vital .

Effectively Managing Type 2 Diabetes Yourself

Being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes is one thing, but how you respond is another. If you take a passive approach to your treatment, relying on medication to bail you out whilst you continue to make poor lifestyle choices, youll suffer the worst effects of the condition .

If you decide to take a proactive approach, you can dramatically reduce the severity of your condition and in some cases may even be able to come off medication. I wouldnt be willing to jump on the cure is possible bandwagon just yet, because the evidence isnt strong enough so far. You can however, give yourself the best possible chance of avoiding the worst of the problem and lead a long, full and healthy life.

Eat well, exercise well, life a good life and youll avoid diabetes or at worst, reduce its impact!

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Lifestyle Advice For Managing The Condition

This is general advice that will help you to keep control of your condition and improve your overall health. These are simple, actionable tips that done correctly will transform your life

Know your numbers by monitoring

Half of the battle when it comes to managing your diabetes is knowing what your blood sugar levels are. By using a free glucose monitor you can be kept aware of your sugars, especially in response to food and exercise. Id suggest you perform frequent tests to build up a personal data set on how your body reacts to certain food and exercise choices. That way youll know the best way to manage your condition.

Sleep well

High quality sleep is one of the bedrocks of great health. There is solid research that shows improved sleep helps to improve insulin sensitivity and reduce insulin resistance. Furthermore, good quality sleep helps you to regulate your appetite better, so you wont be constantly tempted by poor quality food choices.

Manage stress

Many people find comfort in food, so understanding your triggers and avoiding stress can help you to turn away from poor quality food choices. Stress happens, so being more proactive in dealing with it, building your resilience and teaching yourself how to cope with difficult situations without resorting to food or booze will help you.

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