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Diagnosed & Determined
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How to take charge of diabetes
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By Phyllis McIntosh
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MediZine's Healthy Living Spring 2009
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If you or a loved one is diagnosed with diabetes, it is normal to occasionally feel angry, depressed or overwhelmed. Diabetes is a complicated disease that demands daily attention and significant lifestyle changes. But you can take simple steps that will make it much more manageable—and improve your health in the long run.
• Get a team behind you.
Because diabetes affects the entire body, managing it is a team effort. Essential team members include your primary-care physician and a certified diabetes educator (C.D.E.). Your doctor will coordinate your overall health care, make sure you get routine screenings and help you assemble the rest of your team. A diabetes educator, usually a nurse, pharmacist or dietitian, can teach you how to monitor your blood sugar and what the numbers mean, instruct you on the symptoms of highs and lows, show you how to store, prepare and inject insulin if needed and help you devise meal and exercise plans.
“Our most important role is to translate the information into practical language,” says Nadine Uplinger, M.S., R.D., C.D.E., director of the Gutman Diabetes Institute in Philadelphia.
In addition to the physician and diabetes educator, “it is great if you have someone on the team with a background in psychology or behavioral therapy to help you cope with feelings of grief or depression,” Uplinger says.
And because diabetes can damage the eyes and cause foot infections and gum disease, you should also see an ophthalmologist for eye exams at least yearly, have a podiatrist check your feet and trim your toenails, and see your dentist for regular checkups.
Whatever specialists you consult, the most important member of your team is you—the person with diabetes—who knows best what you can and will do to manage your disease.
• See your doctor regularly.
You should visit your primary-care physician every three months. When first diagnosed, you might see a diabetes educator three or four times or attend a class for five or six sessions to learn the basics, then follow up as needed.
Finally, discuss your health-care plan with your team and take all medications as prescribed.
“It is important to understand how insulin or oral medications are going to act,” Uplinger explains. “Many medications need to be taken with a meal or just before it.”
“Physical activity and healthy nutrition are the keys to diabetes
management for people with type 2 [the most common form of the
disease],” Gutman Institute’s Uplinger says. “Exercise lowers blood
sugar, helps the body use whatever insulin it’s still producing and
reduces the risk of heart disease.”
Eating wisely is crucial for maintaining healthy glucose levels, an
essential part of avoiding diabetes-related complications. Uplinger
recommends eating meals at regular intervals. “We also emphasize eating
more vegetables, more fresh fruit, less fat and more whole grains,” she
adds.
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