Healthy Living with Diabetes
jlagraceThe secret to diabetes management is in the trinity of exercise, medication, and healthy diet. By
expanding these three pillars, people with diabetes will stand on a firm foundation in their fight against
their affliction.
Each of these approaches to treatment is important by itself, but they are most powerful when used
together. By dedicating themselves to improving each of these areas, people living with diabetes will
improve their health, as well as their quality of life.
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Exercise
No one has to be a bodybuilder to benefit from the blood-sugar-reducing effects of physical activity. Just
30 minutes a day of exercise can affect diabetes symptoms. This exercise doesn't have to be running or
jumping jacks either. Working in the garden or doing chores around the house counts too.
Eighty-five percent of people who have type 2 diabetes are overweight, and people with type 2 make
up 95 percent of all diabetes cases. The importance of exercise can't be understated in the diabetes
community. There's a reason why it's one of the first things a doctor will prescribe to minimize
symptoms.
Medication
Selecting the safest type of medication is also an important pillar. No one likes homework, but it's
essential to go online to research diabetes medications. Before accepting a prescription from your
doctor, search online for any safety alerts from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
If you have been prescribed the type 2 diabetes drug Actos, you may be surprised by what you find.
Actos carries a black-box warning on its label because it increases the risk of heart failure. The FDA only
gives black-box warnings to drugs that can cause serious injury or death. Actos also makes users up to 83
percent more likely to get bladder cancer.
It isn't enough to choose the most powerful medication when it comes to treating diabetes. In order
to live a long and healthy life, patients should also choose the safest. Many Actos side effects, such as
congestive heart failure only kick in when they are used for more than a year. Researching long-term
side effects is the only way to catch these.
Diet
Counting carbs and eating foods that are high in fiber and low in saturated fat is the name of the game
when it comes to eating. The American Diabetes Association posts diabetes-friendly recipes, which can
help you get started. Some ideas are Molasses Drumsticks with Soy Sauce, Gluten-Free Blueberry Corn
Muffins and Asparagus Frittata. You can also find links to diabetes cookbooks.
When you're living with diabetes, it's important to remember the three pillars of healthy living: exercise,
medication and diet.
William Richards researches and writes about prescription drugs and medical devices for
Drugwatch.com.
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