Adjusting your diet
Eating is a key part of diabetes care, but what kind of diet will help?
A recent study found that eating a low-carb, low-calorie diet of about 1400 calories a day helped control blood sugar more effectively than a low-fat diet of the same calories. Eating less than 50 grams a day of a low-carb diet also helps raise the amount of “good” cholesterol while lowering the amount of “bad” cholesterol and the risk of heart disease, for example.
After 6 months, patients on a low-carbohydrate diet used fewer therapeutic drugs compared to a low-fat diet.
Ask a friend for help
Diabetes can be better managed with the help of a friend.
In a study involving more than 75,000 people with diabetes, patients who had received group diabetes help rather than individual counseling were less likely to end up in the hospital or have severe hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia during an acute episode, and were also less likely to develop diabetes-related conditions such as foot ulcers and skin infections. Instead, they are more likely to get up-to-date information about screening tests and how to take appropriate medications.
Three in 10
Three out of ten Americans don’t know they have diabetes.