Blood sugar and you

by Max Jones | Feb 4, 2015 | Health | 0 comments

The pastry shop down the road has some incredible cakes. That blueberry cheesecake simply melts in your mouth. Right next door, there’s a coffee shop which lets you sit at a table with this cheesecake. There’s free Wi-Fi and so many people to talk to. Cups of coffee just keep sliding down the counter and onto your table. You love the salted caramel late.

Sometimes, when you’re done with the cheesecake and coffee, you think about those amazing brownies they have, with a dash of molten chocolate that’s poured on top. If there is a heaven, it must be this. You’ve made it a regular habit to head over here. Some days, you stop by on your way to work and pick up a cappuccino to go; on warm summer evenings that cold Belgian chocolate shake is just to die for. Then, you wake up, one day and are feeling extremely ill. There is a lethargy that just won’t go over a period of weeks. You go to the doctor and after a battery of tests understand that you have what is known to the world as diabetes. You’ve been fairly active as well, hitting the gym regularly, ensuring you get at least your twenty minutes of cardio every day. How did this happen then? How did your blood sugar levels rise? Why is your body unable to combat the rising sugar levels? Here are some of the things you need to come to terms with when you’re trying to understand how to control diabetes and prevent it from doing further harm.

With better medical technology and a better understanding of medicine, great strides have been made towards curing ailments that previously seemed incurable. Diabetes has been the focus of various research studies across the planet, and huge strides have been made in the management and treatment of the disease. Discussions on how to control diabetes usually range from effective insulin management. However, if recent studies are an indicator, then changes in lifestyle habits of individuals have led to an increase in the number and proportion of diabetics worldwide. This change has been directly attributed to the kind of lifestyle these people lead. The influx of large multinational food companies, reduction in physical activity due to industrialization and the sheer number of hypermarkets in countries across the globe has accelerated the rise of the disease.

Diabetes treatment demands control of your food intake. That doesn’t mean calorie counting, but it does advocate healthier eating habits. Greens, leafy vegetables, etc. are easier to consume and will aid in improving overall health. Exercise for diabetics is extremely important as well. Adult onset diabetes is usually caused due to poor lifestyle habits. Doctors might recommend insulin with other drugs to help battle it, or might just suggest other drugs without the insulin. Whatever the recommendation, they will encourage an active healthier lifestyle to reduce the load that excessive weight has played in the functioning of the body. The term ‘homeostasis’ is used quite commonly when people refer to diabetes treatment, it is an expression used to describe body balance. Homeostasis is only possible once you’ve dealt with your lifestyle related problems. Doctors recommend regular walks, for some they might suggest light running activity as well. The onus to carry these tasks out diligently lies with the person who has the disease.

When the body’s insulin production slows down or stops completely in adults, the effects can be catastrophic if left undiagnosed and untreated. As the body slows down on consumption and storage of sugar, it then falls into other systems in the body. With the muscles and liver unable to store the needed sugars, protein synthesis becomes very poor. It can also lead to acidosis. If the levels of glucose concentration remain extremely high over a period, the kidneys will start excreting the glucose via urine, which is detrimental to overall health. It can also lead to a condition called polyuria which increases the number of times a person feels the need to urinate. With increased fluid loss, dehydration is a very real threat, and the body tends to compensate with increased thirst.

Conversely, when blood sugar levels are low, hypoglycemia sets in. The symptoms of low blood sugar can range from mild to life threatening. The condition is a life-threatening one. Within a matter of minutes, a person could suffer from something as temporary impairment of function, dysphoria. In more extreme cases – hypoglycemia, seizures, unconsciousness, permanent brain damage and even death. If insulin levels are extremely high in the body, this condition can be triggered off easily. Though extremely serious in nature, the symptoms are easily noticeable in most individuals who will start consuming sugar and other carbohydrates to stall it at the very beginning. In more extreme cases, where a person is unable to consume food, Glucagon may be administered intravenously as well. Hypoglycemia levels cannot be standardized either. This is because blood sugar levels required by different people to function efficiently are different. Therefore, in these individuals, the body decides when sugar or carbohydrate ingestion is required.

The key to overcoming diabetes as a disease is determination and dedication. If one can be disciplined enough to regulate sleep, water intake, and food intake; if the person can exercise enough and fight to get fitter, then the chances of beating the illness are higher. A positive mindset is essential when trying to overcome the obstacles that diabetes poses. This does not mean that one cannot consume sugar at all though. So if a person is fond of cake, once in a blue moon it can be allowed. However, blood sugar levels need to be checked on a regular basis. The world of medicine has begun working towards finding a permanent cure for the disease. Tests being carried out in labs and on mice are yielding promising results though a cure still seems to be some time away. Hopefully in the near future, the disease can be eradicated like so many debilitating ones before it. Till then, discipline is the only way forward.