Intensive glycaemic control to achieve sustained, target blood sugar levels is important to help people with diabetes from developing later complications such as cardiovascular diseases or nephropathy. But why is proper and sustained glycaemic control such an elusive goal for most diabetics?
Ignorance of how diabetes affects your body’s normal blood sugar control mechanisms, non-compliance with medications and recommended lifestyle changes, and importantly, failure to follow up with your physician regularly are the primary reasons why achieving and maintaining reasonable blood sugar levels becomes such an obscure goal, physicians say.
“Blood sugar management is not a very complex or impossible task, but the key is to keep a positive attitude and stay motivated. Most new diabetes patients sink into depression as soon as they are diagnosed and are asked to make lifestyle modifications. Regular physical activity and healthy dietary habits help everyone stay healthy, not just diabetics,” says Sreejith N. Kumar, physician.
Detecting diabetes early and managing it aggressively, especially in the initial years, is extremely important as it helps people have better control over their blood sugar levels in the later years, he says.
The first few years after diagnosis of diabetes are crucial, as the condition can be managed very well with some lifestyle modifications and may be an additional first-line medication. But these initial years are also the time when most people tend to ignore their condition.
Compliance with prescription and recommended lifestyle changes is indeed the biggest challenge to achieving sustained glycaemic levels.
Lose weight Weight loss is an excellent strategy to bring down blood sugar levels, and even a small reduction in body weight can bring about significant improvement in the way the body manages blood sugar levels. “It would be so wrong to think that it is okay to overeat or relax the exercise regimen because you are already on diabetes medication,” says Dr. Kumar
Regular follow-up with one’s doctor is also a crucial component in managing diabetes successfully. There are many patients who do not go back to their doctor, and continue with the same prescription for a year or more, without even periodic blood sugar monitoring.
Young adults with early established diabetes would do well to invest in a glucometer – because regular self-monitoring of blood sugar values is the best way to understand and manage your body’s glycaemic behaviour.
