What Helps Bring Blood Sugar Down

Food Items That May Help To Control Blood Sugar

When your blood sugar levels are higher than normal, carbohydrates such as cereals, pasta, fruits, milk, dessert and bread are usually responsible. When one is diabetic, a meal plan is very important because it guides you on what kind of foods to eat. It should be good enough to fit in your eating habits and also your schedule. A good meal plan should include:

• Glycemic index
• Carb counting
• Plate method

Foods with low glycemic index values are better choices for stabilizing blood sugar than foods with high glycemic index values. The glycemic index basically depends on the physiological ability of dietary carbohydrate to lower or increase the level of blood sugar in reference to the type of food consumed by the diabetic patient. Relatively high glycemic index foods have ratings above 50, and often between 75-100.

The purpose of a good meal plan is to help keep your weight on track, improve your cholesterol level, blood sugars and also blood pressure. According to past research & health educators from the American Diabetes Association , a healthy diet along with a healthy lifestyle of exercising to maintain a healthy weight can help to reduce diabetes type 2.

Here is a list of 45 foods that can help you to maintain/reduce your blood sugar:

Getting Those High Levels Lower

If you have a consistently high blood sugar level and high a1c you really need to take some action to lower it.

Anything over 140 mg/dl or 7.8 mmol/l for prolonged periods of time is damaging to the body and can lead to complications.

So what can you do?

1. Cut The Carbs

The best way to lower your blood sugar is to cut back on your carbohydrate intake, its an absolute must. Carbohydrates are the one food group that has the most significant effect on blood sugar levels.

Less Carbs = Lower Blood Sugar = Less Meds!

To get good control, the carbohydrate amount is often much lower than most people are eating.

2. Exercise

You must do regular exercise. Try some smart exercise techniques like this:

1. Walk for 5-10 minutes after meals this is when your blood glucose will increase the most so walking helps move glucose directly out of the blood stream, lowering overall levels.

2. Stand sedentary and do 20-30 squat exercises after each meal. Squats pump one of our biggest muscles, the quadraceps in the legs, and this helps move glucose out of the blood stream and into the muscle cells.

3. Try interval training interval training burns more fat and is a more efficient way to exercise.

4. Lift weights this helps build lean muscle mass, improve insulin sensitivity, and improve blood glucose control. Dont worry, you wont look like a body builder, it takes hours every day to look like that!

3. Eat Real Food

The 10 Best Foods To Control Diabetes And Lower Blood Sugar

If you have diabetes, you know how difficult it can be to manage your diet and control your blood sugar levels. Certain foods cause massive spikes while others actually lower blood sugar, but many people go through years of trial and error before they find out what works for them. Luckily, thanks to years of scientific findings, weve been able to determine what foods are better than others. In this article, well discuss the 10 best foods to control diabetes and lower blood sugar.

To get the most out of your food, consider diabetic meal planning. Planning and preparing meals ahead of time will reduce the likelihood of snacking or unhealthy eating and will help you save time and energy throughout the week.

How To Measure Blood Sugar Levels

There are two main ways to check your blood sugar levels: 

How Can I Be Better Prepared For Hypoglycemia

You can take some steps to be ready for hypoglycemia:

• Be aware of the symptoms and treat them early.
• Carry some fast-acting carbs with you all the time.
• Check your glucose levels frequently, especially around meals and exercise.
• Inform family, friends and co-workers so they know what do if you need help.
• Talk to your healthcare provider regularly to make and update your plan.
• Wear a medical bracelet that lets people know you have diabetes. Carry a card in your purse or wallet with instructions for hypoglycemia.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Hypoglycemia is quite common in people with diabetes. If not treated, it can cause troubling symptoms, and even serious health problems. Fortunately, you can avoid hypoglycemic episodes by monitoring your blood sugar. You can also make small adjustments to eating and exercising routines.

How Can I Prevent Hypoglycemic Episodes

The key to preventing hypoglycemic events is managing diabetes:

• Follow your healthcare providers instructions about food and exercise.
• Track your blood sugar regularly, including before and after meals, before and after exercise and before bed.
• Take all your medications exactly as prescribed.
• When you do have a hypoglycemic event, write it down. Include details such as the time, what you ate recently, whether you exercised, the symptoms and your glucose level.

Sleep For More Than 6 Hours A Night

Poor sleep doesnt just make us feel sluggish and grumpy. Poor sleep plays havoc with the body, by disrupting blood sugar levels, which surge as we snooze. For a healthy person, insulin can handle this sugar boost. It just tells the muscle, fat and liver cells to absorb the glucose from the blood, to keep levels balanced.If you are at risk of Type 2 diabetes, it’s much more dangerous. In this case your insulin cant do its job properly, so blood sugar levels will rise higher.

What causes Type 2 diabetes? Poor diet and obesity contribute to the risk of having diabetes. But did you know too little sleep can also put you at risk?

One study found that people who often slept for less than 6 hours a night were twice as likely to develop diabetes or to have cells that were less sensitive to insulin. This was true even after researchers took other lifestyle behaviour into account.

Can I party all night and catch up with sleep in the morning? No, not too often. When you stay up late your body makes more of the stress hormone cortisol. This disrupts the way your insulin works.So, to lower blood sugar levels, try to get at least 7 hours of sleep each night.

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What Are The Symptoms Of Dangerous Levels Of Blood Sugar

A patient with high blood sugar presents the symptoms such as a dry mouth, , dry, and itchy skin and an increased appetite. Some people also experience being more thirsty and increased frequency of urination, especially at night.

If not corrected early it can lead to symptoms of dangerous levels of blood sugar like difficulty in breathing, , rapid weight loss and confusion of mind. Blood sugar level of 300 or above is dangerous and if not treated a condition known as diabetic ketoacidosis or diabetic coma can occur.

Diabetes Mellitus Is One Of The Most Common Conditions This Chronic Disease Occurs When The Pancreas Produce Little Or No Insulin Here Are 4 Drinks That You Can Include In Your Diet To Manage Blood Sugar Levels Better

NDTV Food Desk

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common conditions that is prevalent in India. This chronic disease occurs when the pancreas produce little or no insulin. In either case, the blood sugar cannot get into the cells for storage, which further leads to complications. The World Health Organisation has estimated that India about 31,705,000 diabetics and may grow up by over 100 percent to 79,441,000 by the year 2030. Our changing lifestyle is one of the biggest reasons of developing diabetes. A high-calorie diet paired with sedentary lifestyle with less physical activity puts you at a greater risk of diabetes. A tweak in the diet and day-to-day life can actually help manage diabetes or reduce the risk of developing the condition. Apart from eating the right food, you must also drink beverages that may help reduce blood sugar levels. By beverages we mean healthy juices and teas and not fizzy drinks or fruit juices. While water is one of the best solutions to keep your blood sugar levels in check, these essential drinks also help manage diabetes better.

What Is The Outlook For People With Hypoglycemia

Hypoglycemia can be managed when you and your healthcare provider understand what causes your blood sugar to go down. Give your healthcare provider as much information as possible about any hypoglycemic episodes. Fixing the problem may be as simple as changing the times you take medication, eat and exercise. Minor changes to the types of food you eat may also help.

When Should I Check My Blood Sugar

How often you check your blood sugar depends on the type of diabetesyou have and if you take any diabetes medicines.

Typical times to check your blood sugar include:

• When you first wake up, before you eat or drink anything.
• Before a meal.
• Two hours after a meal.
• At bedtime.

If you have type 1 diabetes, have type 2 diabetesand take insulin, or often have low blood sugar, your doctor may want you to check your blood sugar more often, such as before and after youre physically active.

General Tips On How To Keep You Blood Sugar Levels In Control

• Foods to eat

You should eat foods that are high in protein, fiber, and lower in carbohydrates. You should aim at having around 45 to 60 carbs for each meal. Consistency throughout the day is key to keeping blood sugar levels in control. Foods low in fat and high in nutrients should be picked to maximize your nutrition.

Vegetables and fruits are great as well as eggs, fish, beans, and oatmeal. There is also research that shows cinnamon and apple cider vinegar can help lower your sugar.

• Foods to avoid

Avoiding foods like soda, juice, pasta, candy, and other desserts can help keep your sugar from climbing too high. These foods are high in sugars and fat but low in other nutrients.

Avoiding excess alcohol is also better for you. Read the following article that I wrote about drinking alcohol when you have diabetes to learn more about this topic:

• Signs and symptoms

Signs of high blood sugar include: increased thirst and hunger, blurred vision, irritability, dry mouth, tired, and urinating a lot.

• Look for patterns

Patterns can be great because they help you figure out what is causing undesirable blood sugar values. A good way to track of it is to keep a journal of all of the food you eat, activities you do and your blood sugar levels for 1 week. During this week, check your sugar before and after you eat, as well as in between meals. Also document any insulin that you give yourself.

• Test sugar levels regularly

• Make small incremental changes to your lifestyle

Further reading:

Keep A Healthy Weight

At present, two out of three adults in the US are considered to be overweight or obese .

Being overweight or obese can make it more difficult for your body to use insulin and control blood sugar levels.

This can lead to blood sugar spikes and a corresponding higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

The precise ways it works are still unclear, but theres lots of evidence linking obesity to insulin resistance and the development of type 2 diabetes .

Weight loss, on the other hand, has been shown to improve blood sugar control.

In one study, 35 obese people lost an average of 14.5 pounds over 12 weeks while they were on a diet of 1,600 calories a day. Their blood sugar dropped by an average of 14% .

In another study of people without diabetes, weight loss was found to decrease the incidence of developing type 2 diabetes by 58% .

Summary

Being overweight makes it difficult for your body to control blood sugar levels. Even losing a little weight can improve your blood sugar control.

Sweet Potatoes And Yams

Regular potatoes have a high GI score, but sweet potatoes and yams have low scores and are very nutritious.

Some indicates that the flesh of the sweet potato contains more fiber than the skin, indicating that the whole vegetable could be beneficial for those with .

Reporting the findings of an animal study, the researchers also noted that sweet potato consumption may lower some markers of diabetes.

While there is still no conclusive evidence that sweet potatoes can help to stabilize or lower blood sugar levels in humans, they are undoubtedly a healthful, nutritious food with a low GI score.

People can substitute sweet potatoes or yams for potatoes in a variety of dishes, from fries to casseroles.

Oats have a GI score of 55 or lower, making them less likely to cause spikes and dips in blood sugar levels.

Oats also contain B-glucans, which can do the following:

• reduce glucose and responses after meals
• improve insulin sensitivity

2012 study found that incorporating legumes into the diet improved glycemic control and lowered the risk of coronary heart disease in people with type 2 diabetes.

Avoid legume products that contain added sugars and simple starches, such as those in syrups, sauces, or marinades. These additions can significantly increase a products GI score.

Garlic is a popular ingredient in traditional medicines for diabetes and a wide variety of other conditions.

The compounds in garlic may help reduce blood sugar by improving insulin sensitivity and secretion.

How Are Low Blood Sugar Levels Treated

Your diabetes health care team will give you guidelines for treating low blood sugar levels, depending on your symptoms. If you can, try to test your blood sugar levels to make sure that your symptoms are because of hypoglycemia. If you can’t test blood sugar immediately, don’t delay in treating your symptoms you can always check your blood sugar after you’ve taken steps to get your blood sugar back up into the normal range.

When blood sugar levels are low, the goal is to get them back up quickly. To do that, you should take in sugar or sugary foods, which raise the blood sugar level quickly. Your health care team might suggest that you:

• Eat, drink, or take something that contains sugar that can get into the blood quickly. Your doctor may tell you to have really sugary foods or drinks or might give you glucose tablets or gel to take all of these can help to raise your blood sugar level fast, which is what you need to do when it’s low.
• Wait about 10 minutes to let the sugar work.
• Recheck your blood sugar level with a glucose meter to see if blood sugar levels are back to normal.
• Get a glucagon shot , if your symptoms are severe or get worse after you eat, drink, or take glucose.

Sometimes, blood sugar levels can get so low that you may not be awake enough to eat or drink something to get them backup. When this happens, you may need a glucagon shot.

Simple Tips To Prevent Blood Sugar Spikes

Alexandra Rowles, RD

Blood sugar spikes occur when your blood sugar rises and then falls sharply after you eat.

In the short term, they can cause lethargy and hunger. Over time, your body may not be able to lower blood sugar effectively, which can lead to type 2 diabetes.

Diabetes is a rising health problem. In fact, 29 million Americans have diabetes, and 25% of them dont even know they have it .

Blood sugar spikes can also cause your blood vessels to harden and narrow, which can lead to a heart attack or stroke.

This article looks at 12 simple things you can do to prevent blood sugar spikes.

Three Steps That Will Help

Step 1: drink water, not any other beverages that are made with water, like coffee, tea, or diet soda. Im speaking of water, plain or iced. This will help with rehydration because when your blood sugar is running on the high side, it can be from being dehydrated and can dehydrate you. We also eliminate excess blood sugar through urine.lots of water, of course, speed that process along.

Be Sure To Check Out Can Drinking Water Help My Blood Sugar?

Step 2: Stick to a very low-carb diet if your reading is running on the higher side. Choose foods that are protein like cheese, chicken, beef, pork, or eggs. These are straight protein foods that do not contain any carbohydrates. Once your blood sugar starts coming back to the target range, you can include carb-containing foods. This will just be a short period of time that you will need to go very low carb.

Be Sure To Check Out Sneaky Exercise For Your Diabetes Health

Faqs Alcohol Consumption And Blood Sugar Levels

Does alcohol lower blood sugar in non diabetics?

Possibly. Alcohol may lower blood sugar levels in non-diabetics if they are in the fasting state . However, as each person is unique, the effects of alcohol on blood sugar levels will vary.

How long does alcohol affect blood sugar?

The amount of time that alcohol affects blood sugar levels will vary according to the amount of alcohol consumed, as

What is the best alcohol to drink for a diabetic?

Due to the potential effects of alcohol on blood sugar levels, individuals with diabetes face a higher risk of health problems. Alcohol may interact with diabetes medications, and even worsen side effects associated with such drugs.Individuals living with diabetes who would like to drink alcohol should therefore speak with their doctors first. Healthcare professionals can best determine the options available.

Can diabetics drink whiskey?

A standard drink of whiskey may not have any serious effect on blood sugar levels. However, it is best to consult a healthcare professional before consuming alcohol.

How Can I Pay For Tests And Diabetes Supplies

Medicareexternal icon, Medicaid, and most private insurance plans pay for the A1C test and fasting blood sugar test as well as some diabetes supplies. Check your plan or ask your health care team for help finding low-cost or free supplies, and see How to Save Money on Diabetes Care for more resources.

What Causes High Blood Sugar

Many things can cause high blood sugar like:

• If you have type 1, you may not have given yourself enough insulin.
• If you have type 2, your body may have enough insulin, but it is not as effective as it should be.
• You ate more than planned or exercised less than planned.
• You have stress from an illness, such as a cold or flu.
• You have other stress, such as family conflicts or school or dating problems.
• You may have experienced the dawn phenomenon .

Get More Quality Sleep

Every night regardless of whether you sleep your blood sugar levels increase as a part of the natural human circadian rhythm cycle. Blood sugar levels also increase during sleep. Blood sugar fluctuations that occur overnight and during sleep are normal and not a cause for concern for most healthy people.

Although it sounds contradictory, sleep can both raise and lower glucose levels. Our bodies experience a cycle of changes every day called a circadian rhythm which naturally raises blood sugar levels at night and when a person sleeps. These natural blood sugar elevations are not a cause for concern.

Restorative sleep might also lower unhealthy blood sugar levels by promoting healthy systems. Decreased sleep is a risk factor for increased blood sugar levels. Even partial sleep deprivation over one night increases insulin resistance, which can, in turn, increase blood sugar levels. As a result, a lack of sleep has been associated with diabetes, a blood sugar disorder.

Cut Down On Added Sugar

We know cutting out sugar can be really hard at the beginning, so small practical swaps are a good starting point when youre trying to cut down on excess sugar. Swapping sugary drinks, energy drinks and fruit juices with water, plain milk, or tea and coffee without sugar can be a good start.

You can always try low or zero-calorie to help you cut back. Cutting out these added sugars can help you control your blood glucose levels and help keep your weight down. If your diabetes treatment means you get hypos, and you use sugary drinks to treat them, this is still important for your diabetes management and you shouldnt cut this out. However, if you are having regular hypos it is really important to discuss this with your diabetes team.

Eat Less Red And Processed Meat

If youre cutting down on carbs, you might start to have bigger portions of meat to fill you up. But its not a good idea to do this with red and processed meat, like ham, bacon, sausages, beef and lamb. These all have links with heart problems and cancers.

Try swapping red and processed meat for these:

• pulses such as beans and lentils
• eggs
• poultry like chicken and turkey
• unsalted nuts

Beans, peas and lentils are also very high in and dont affect your blood glucose levels too much making them a great swap for processed and red meat and keeping you feeling full. Most of us know that fish is good for us, but oily fish like salmon and mackerel are even better. These are rich in something called omega-3 oil, which helps protect your heart. Try and aim to eat two portions of oily fish a week.

What Is The A1c Test

The A1C test is a simple blood test that measures your average blood sugar levels over the past 2 or 3 months. The test is done at a lab or your doctors office in addition tonot instead ofregular blood sugar testing you do yourself.

A1C testing is part of the ABCs of diabetesimportant steps you can take to prevent or delay health complications down the road:

• A: Get a regular A1C test.
• B: Try to keep your blood pressurebelow 140/90 mm Hg .
• C: Manage your levels.
• s: Stop or dont start.

The A1C goal for most adults with diabetes is between 7% and 8%, but your goal may be different depending on your age, other health conditions, medicines youre taking, and other factors. Work with your doctor to establish a personal A1C goal for you.

What Should I Do If My Blood Sugar Is Over 300

A reading above 300 mg/Dl is considered severe, and if it remains persistent for two days, you should inform your doctor. Blood sugar above 300 may cause nausea, blurred vision, confusion, and dizziness. To treat this condition, make sure you are taking your medication timely, avoid carbohydrates, or eliminate and exercise regularly.