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By paying close attention to your diet and regularity of your food intake, you can reduce or eliminate fast changing
blood sugar levels, which can require fast changes in insulin dosages.
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The most important item on this list is to check your blood glucose levels. This is the way to prevent complications from diabetes
and stay healthy. The levels should be below 120 mg/dl before meals, and 180 mg/dl after meals.
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Take your medications as prescribed by your doctor. They should be taken as ordered and at the same time each day. These medications
should be taken close to your regular meal times.
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Drink at least 64 ounces of water each day. Any decaffeinated beverage can be counted as part of your water intake. Be careful of how
much alcohol and caffeine you take in during the day.
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Make sure your diet includes carbohydrates, fats (good fats), and lean protein. Eat plenty of fresh vegetables. A healthy diet will
also reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease and other serious diseases.
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You should include a multivitamin in your healthy living plan. It is important that the vitamin includes antioxidants,
betacarotenoids, zinc, and selenium.
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Take care of your feet if you have diabetes. This doesn’t sound like a big problem, but it can be if you have sores on your feet and
they become infected. Feet are extremely vulnerable in a diabetic. Check your feet carefully after a bath, or before you
go to bed. Use a mirror to check the soles of your feet. Wash and dry them carefully, especially dry between the toes thoroughly. If
you use lotion on your feet, do not use lotion between your toes. You will need to see a doctor if you have a sore that doesn’t begin
healing in a couple of days. Wear shoes and socks that are the right size for protection of your feet. Trim your
toenails once a week, cutting them straight across, be sure not to injure the flesh.
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Brush and floss your teeth to help avoid gum disease. Gum disease is often associated with diabetic patients. High cholesterol and
cardiovascular disease are also linked to gum disease.
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Be sure to sleep the necessary hours for your body. It has been proved that lack of sleep can contribute to Type 2 diabetes. The
recommendation is to sleep between seven to eight hours a night. Keeping regular hours will help as well. Go to bed an nearly the
same time each night, and get up at a regular time each morning.
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EXERCISE. Get your body moving, it will help you deal with stress, reduce your blood glucose levels, it will benefit your heart,
lower your cholesterol and will aid in elevating your mood. Take a walk, play a round of golf, march in place during
commercials. Even walking slow is a benefit. Some exercise is better than no exercise at all. Get up, get moving, and get
healthy! So why is exercise so important in controlling diabetes? Because exercise burns sugar just like insulin
does. If you have Type 1 diabetes, take into consideration that exercise lowers your blood glucose. Eat a snack with
carbohydrate before you start exercising and if you feel the warning signs of a hypoglycemic attack eat or drink again.
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