How To Live Well With Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 Diabetes: If you have just received a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, there is no need to let the news throw you into a tailspin. Having diabetes need not change your lifestyle, and integrating some easy-to-follow practices into your daily routine will even improve the quality of it.

Type 2 results from the body developing a resistance to insulin - through heredity, obesity, or a history of eating an overabundance of carbohydrate-heavy foods. Being insulin resistant, diabetics are unable to properly metabolize the glucose produced both by the liver and by food and drink. This causes the glucose in the blood to reach unhealthy levels, and in time the overall amount of insulin the body produces decreases. Type 2 diabetes is more common in adults over 40, but because of diets high in sugar and lack of exercise, it is now becoming more prevalent among adolescents.

The type 2 diabetic may still produce enough insulin to make injections unnecessary and can be sufficiently treated with a combination of oral medications; metformin and glipizide are two of the most common. Many diabetics can slow the progression of diabetes, and in some cases, reduce or eliminate the need for oral medication by eating a low carbohydrate diet and exercising more. Though it is important to know that there is no such thing as physiologically reversing diabetes, you can control its effects, which is the ultimate goal.

One way to do that is by exercise. In addition to its obvious benefits, exercise helps lower blood sugar by increasing insulin sensitivity. Diabetics should always aim for blood glucose control as close to non-diabetic levels as possible: 90-130 mg/dl before meals, and 140 mg/dl two hours after meals. If you are a type 2 on oral medication, do not expect it to compensate for bad eating habits. Your medicine should be taken at the same time of day every day, according to your physician's instructions. Wild swings in blood glucose levels are unhealthy, and the best way to determine how your body responds to different foods is to test your blood sugar on a regular schedule; two hours after every meal, at least.