American Diabetes Month: Beating Diabetes

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a metabolic disease where the body is unable to produce or use insulin. Insulin is a regulatory hormone that stores sugar (energy) from food in muscle, fat and liver cells for later use. Without insulin, the body is unable to control the blood sugar levels and your cells can’t get the sugar it needs. This causes people with diabetes to have high blood sugar levels.

There are two types of diabetes:

• Type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes, is the body’s inability to produce insulin.
• Type 2 diabetes is when the body does not use insulin properly. Type 2 is the most common form of diabetes.

High blood sugar caused by diabetes can have serious effects on your body. Over time it can cause kidney damage, eye problems, susceptibility to heart attacks, and nerve damage. This is why it is important to have awareness of the effects of diabetes and work to prevent it.

Preventing Diabetes

Maintaining a healthy body weight is a key factor to diabetes prevention. Those that have type 2 diabetes are commonly overweight. The extra weight hinders the body’s ability to use insulin correctly. To lower your risk of getting diabetes, we suggest having a balanced diet.

A balanced diet is full of fruits and vegetables, without saturated fats and without soft drinks. A healthy diet helps keep your body weight more constant. The amount of fruits and vegetables you eat is directly related to your risk of getting type 2 diabetes.

What do the doctors always tell us? That we need to exercise more. If you have health concerns, this advice is even more important. Exercise for 30 minutes every day. Go for a swim, play with your grandkids at the park, or take a walk. Exercise will help you to maintain your healthy weight.

Managing Your Diabetes

Managing your diabetes includes more than maintaining a healthy body weight.

• Don’t Skip Your Medication. If you are taking prescribed medicine from your doctor, keep a regular schedule. It is common for people to say they feel fine and don’t take their medicine. This isn’t a good idea - when you skip your medicine it takes 2-3 days for your body to get accustomed again. In order to feel the full effects of your medication you have to be consistent. So, the next time you feel fine, remember that’s because you’ve been doing a good job staying on track with your pills!
• Reduce Stress. Stress makes us feel anxious, nervous, and overwhelmed. The more continuous your stress is, the harder it will be to manage your diabetes and your weight. You and your body need breaks. Go for a walk, breath, or talk to someone about your stress. 
• Notice Your Feet. Our feet are an essential part of our life. They support us, and we need to look out for them in return. Because diabetes disrupts blood circulation, it is important to recognize any change of feeling your feet may have. Notice if in the last days or months if your feet have had any loss of feeling, swelling, sores, or cuts. If these symptoms start appearing, make sure to notify your doctor.
  Don’t Smoke. We know smoking isn’t good for our lungs, but it can also harm your circulation system. Reach out and make a commitment to stop to have a long, healthy life.
• Keep Teeth Healthy. With high blood sugar, your teeth can be a victim to decay and gum disease. Eat less sugary foods and brush your teeth 3 times a day!
• Maintain Blood Glucose. With diabetes, your blood sugar will fluctuate. Check your sugar levels throughout the day. If your blood sugar is high, think back to what could be the cause. It could be lack of exercise, missing your medicine, having too large of a meal, or stress. Too-low blood sugar could be from lack of food or too much exercise. To bring your sugar levels back up, drink fruit juice, gummy candy, sugar tablets, or a tablespoon of sugar.

Diabetes can have serious effects on your body. Alert1 wants to be your support system during this challenging time. We offer a variety of medical ID bracelets and medical alert pendants for you to choose from.

Medical alert bracelets are a simple yet valuable tool when you have a lasting medical condition like diabetes. Emergency personnel use medical identification jewelry during an emergency if their patient is unresponsive. They can respond quicker if they know that you have diabetes. You lessen the chances of misdiagnosis and get the help you need fast.

The bracelets come with 16 medical condition stickers to put on the back of your medical ID tag. These accessories are for both men and women. The different styles offered are feminine or unisex.

With a medical ID bracelet you’ll get the help you need fast. With a medical alert system you’ll get that help even faster. If you were to fall, feel faint, notice symptoms of a heart attack Alert1 will be there. You will have emergency care a button push away. It is important when dealing with medical conditions that someone will be there to help 24/7.