Beyond blood sugar
As important as it is to control
your blood sugar, it’s also essential
to keep your blood pressure and
cholesterol levels in check. Tis extra
efort helps protect you against heart
disease, the No. 1 killer of people
with diabetes in the U.S.
High blood pressure is defned
diferently when you have diabetes.
It starts at 130/80 mm Hg, a lower
threshold than for most people.
As for cholesterol, you
should keep
LDL choles-
terol (the bad
kind) below
100 mg/dL
of blood. Levels of HDL
cholesterol (the good kind) should be
over 40 in men and above 50 mg/dL
in women.
Exercise is absolutely key to man-
aging your blood sugar, blood pres-
sure and cholesterol. Your ultimate
goal should be 30 to 60 minutes of
physical activity on most days of the
week. But if you haven’t been active
lately, start with only a little exercise
and build up gradually. Brisk walk-
ing is generally a great way to move
more. Still, ask your doctor what’s
safe for you.
Chances are you’ll also need a
meal plan, which a registered dieti-
tian can help you create. Like any
healthy way of eating, your plan will
focus on foods that are low in fat
(especially saturated and trans fat),
moderate in salt and sugar, and high
in fber.
Keys to a healthy eating plan are
to have meals and snacks regularly
and to eat about the same amount of
food at each meal or snack.
You can also stay on top of
diabetes by:
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Dropping
pounds.
It’s
likely that
you developed
Type 2 diabetes, at least in part,
because you were overweight. Losing
those extra pounds will make your
blood sugar easier to control.
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Stopping smoking.
If you light up,
ask your doctor for help quitting.
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Taking any medicine your doctor
advises exactly as directed.
Do so
even if you feel fne.
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Speaking up.
Ask your doctor
how else you can help protect your
health, such as by checking your feet
daily for any red spots, cuts or sores.
Sources: American Diabetes Association; National Diabetes Education
Program
A registered dietitian can help you
create a healthy meal plan.
Life with
diabetes
Living well with Type 2 dia-
betes isn’t easy, but it can be
done. In fact, you can have
a long, active life if you’re
vigilant about managing the
disease.
Why bother? Because
good diabetes management
helps protect against serious
complications of the disease,
including:
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heart disease and stroke
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eye problems and nerve
damage
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kidney disease
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gum disease and tooth loss.
Talking to your doctor and
other knowledgeable health-
care professionals is the frst
step toward making diabetes
a manageable part of your
life. You can learn more how
to control diabetes for life by
participating in the diabetes-
related classes ofered by
Halifax Regional Hospital:
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Diabetes Group Class
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Basic Carbohydrate
Counting
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Advanced Insulin Pumping.
Information about each
of these classes is available
online at www.hrhs.org or by
calling 434-517-3094.