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Diabetes Questions: How Do Blood Sugar Levels Affect Your Feet?

Diabetes Questions: How do blood sugar levels affect your feet?

Diabetes Questions: How do blood sugar levels affect your feet?

When it comes to managing your blood glucose, keep in mind the whole-body effects of high blood glucose levels. For individuals with diabetes, continued exposure to high blood glucose can result in serious complications, including foot problems. When the body is exposed to these high levels, over time the nerves in the body can become damaged.
When the nerves in the body become damaged, this can result in neuropathy or specifically diabetic peripheral neuropathy. In fact, about 60% to 70% of all people with diabetes have some form of neuropathy, but today we’re going to focus on diabetic neuropathy because it is the most common type and it impacts your feet.
What is diabetic peripheral neuropathy?
Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is a type of nerve disorder that impacts a person’s legs, feet, toes, hands, and arms. Over time, a variety of factors can cause nerve damage in the body, resulting in sensations of numbness and pain in parts of the body. You may experience pain, tingling, or total loss of feeling in your extremities.
What parts of the body does peripheral neuropathy affect?
Peripheral neuropathy impacts a person’s toes, feet, legs, hands, and arms. Diabetic neuropathy affects the longest nerves first, that’s why the extremities of the body are affected, usually starting with the toes and feet. Keep in mind, this is a person-specific condition, and everyone will experience symptoms differently.
What are the long term complications of diabetic peripheral neuropathy?
Like all things pertaining to health, nerve damage has different symptoms and complications for Continue reading

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The 2-Day Diabetes Diet: What to Eat to Lose Weight

The 2-Day Diabetes Diet: What to Eat to Lose Weight

For folks with diabetes, weight loss is a natural form of “medication.” Reams of research prove that losing even just a few pounds is an effective way to control blood sugar or reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the first place.
But in an ironic twist, losing weight may be more difficult if you have type 2 diabetes. And the reason isn’t just a lack of willpower. Too often, diet plans don’t work for people with diabetes because the metabolism changes associated with blood sugar problems may increase appetite, slow down fat burning, and encourage fat storage.
Now breakthrough research has revealed a better way for people to lose weight and reduce insulin resistance. The secret is a concept called intermittent fasting.
British researchers created this revolutionary new diet, which strictly limits caloric intake for two days of the week but permits larger portions for the remainder. Women who followed the plan lost almost twice as much fat as those who restricted calories every day. Within three months, participants reduced insulin resistance by 25 percent more on nonfast days and inflammation by 8 percent more than people who dieted continuously.
Why Does this Particular Diabetes Diet Plan Work?
It counteracts the effects of “diabesity,” where blood sugar problems and excess body fat meet. Just a small amount of excess weight and a genetic tendency for metabolism problems can trigger a cascade of health issues, including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, immune system problems, and hormonal imbalances.
This constellation of health problems is cau Continue reading

How Much Walking Is Best for Diabetes Control?

How Much Walking Is Best for Diabetes Control?

Exercise and walking are excellent tools for controlling Type II diabetes and improving health for people with diabetes.
Walk 38 Minutes or 4400 Steps a Day for Diabetes
A study measured how much walking is needed to produce the best effects for people with diabetes. Walking or doing other aerobic exercise for 38 minutes (about 2.2 miles or 4400 steps) showed a significant effect for those with diabetes, even if they didn't lose weight.
They improved their hemoglobin A1C by 0.4 percent, reduced their risk of heart disease, and improved their cholesterol and triglyceride levels. They saved $288 a year in health care costs.
30-Minute Walking Workout for Diabetes
Brisk walking workouts can help you maintain a steady blood sugar level and body weight if you have Type 2 diabetes. A 30-minute walk at least five days per week is recommended by the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Diabetes Association for people with diabetes. Consult your health care team to see if walking is the right exercise for you and any precautions necessary for your individual circumstances and adjustments to your medications or diet.
Walking Goal: To walk for 30 minutes, with at least 20 continuous minutes at a brisk pace of 15 to 20 minutes per mile (3-4 mph.)
What you will need:
Walking shoes and socks: You need to protect your feet and prevent developing blisters or sores. Get fitted for flat and flexible athletic shoes at the best running shoe store in your area. Avoid cotton socks and tube socks and choose athletic socks or diabetic socks made of sweat-wicking polyester fiber.
Wal Continue reading

Foods to avoid for people with diabetes

Foods to avoid for people with diabetes

Taking control of what foods they eat not only helps people manage their diabetes but also influences how well they feel and how much energy they have every day.
We take a look at what foods people with diabetes should avoid and outline what they should eat instead.
Foods to avoid with diabetes
Having diabetes does not have to stop people from eating the foods they enjoy. However, it does mean that they should eat smaller portions, less often.
The Institute of Medicine recommend that carbohydrate intake for most people should be between 45-65 percent of total calories. This higher carbohydrate intake is consistent with plant-based diets, which have shown benefit for diabetes management in well-designed, long-term studies.
However, some research has shown that people can improve their blood sugar levels when their carbohydrate intake is between 5-35 percent of calories. Much of the research comes from short-term studies for higher-fat diets, such as the ketogenic diet and Mediterranean diets.
Experts are just beginning to understand the influence that the gut bacteria have on health. What is known is that high-fiber carbohydrates feed gut bacteria while a high-fat, low-carb diet often results in gut bacteria death. This is far from ideal as people with diabetes already have lower levels of gut bacteria.
Populations around the world that live the longest, known as Blue Zones, all eat a plant-based diet, rich in whole foods and carbohydrates.
The key to eating well with diabetes is to eat a variety of healthful foods from each of the food groups.
Foods to avoid within the majo Continue reading

Diabetes And Cholesterol: What Is The Relationship?

Diabetes And Cholesterol: What Is The Relationship?

What is the relationship between cholesterol and diabetes? How does cholesterol affect my diabetes, and how do I manage it?
Judy contacted TheDiabetesCouncil
When Judy contacted TheDiabetesCouncil, she had questions about her cholesterol. Though her overall number was at 180 mg/dl, and in a normal range, her LDL-C was higher than normal, although mildly elevated, and her HDL-C was low.
Her doctor had explained very little about this to Judy, and she was confused. How can her overall cholesterol number be acceptable, but her other cholesterol numbers were out of range.
What did this mean for Judy’s health? Was she more prone to heart disease and stroke due to these cholesterol numbers? Her triglycerides were a little elevated, too.
We decided to give Judy a guide that would help her to fully understand her cholesterol numbers, and how they affect her cardiovascular health. We also wanted to make sure that Judy and others like her understand how their cholesterol numbers relate to their diabetes. So let’s get started…
What is cholesterol
Cholesterol is mainly comprised of fat and lipoproteins. A lipoprotein is comprised of cholesterol, protein, and fat (triglycerides). Cholesterol comes from two sources. Our body manufactures some cholesterol on its own. In addition, cholesterol comes from animal products, such as milk, eggs, cheese, and meats. Cholesterol has the consistency similar to gum or wax. Small amounts of cholesterol are important for a healthy cell membrane (good cholesterol), and some cholesterol has been deemed, “the bad cholesterol,” due to these chole Continue reading

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