Type 2 diabetes is defined by chronic hyperglycemia, or high blood sugar levels and this is the greatest single danger for people with type 2 diabetes. Over time too much sugar in your blood is linked with long term health complications such as kidney failure, heart disease and even blindness.

Listen to Your Body Talk:

Usually before hyperglycemia becomes an acute emergency, you will find yourself feeling really thirsty and urinating more than usual for weeks beforehand. This is your kidney’s way of unloading excess sugar into your urine. Your blood sugar would be around 180 mg/dL (10mmol/L) at this time. If your levels remain high, your body’s cells are likely to become dehydrated.

This is exceedingly rare and the way to avoid this is by regular self-monitoring. Self-management teaches you to control your blood sugar levels… and this control benefits your body and your health.

A Quick Test:

A quick test will tell you if you are hyperglycemic… levels above 150 mg/dL (8.33 mmol/L) indicates a need for better control. You may experience:

• skin problems
• feelings of fatigue
• tingling in various parts of your body, your tongue or fingers
• trembling hands
• a tight feeling in your throat
• headaches and blurred vision, visual spots or double vision
• buzzing in your ears
• irritability
• slowly healing cuts, or sores, or infections
• unusual hunger
• insomnia or nightmares

These may appear in clusters or singly.

What to do:

If your levels are high look at:

• reducing your stress
• becoming more physically active
• adjusting your eating pattern to bring your levels back under control
• drinking extra water to help flush the sugar through your system

If you find your blood sugars remain high and you are not feeling well, call you health care provider or have a family member drive you to the Emergency Room.

Pay attention to what your body is telling you. Don’t ignore your high blood sugar levels. All the long term complications of type 2 diabetes are believed to come about from prolonged periods of high blood sugar or poor blood sugar control.

Recently you were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and you are overweight with fat around the middle of your body. You are probably unhappy with your appearance anyway and now you have high blood sugar levels to be concerned with also. What did you have for a snack just now A bowl of white rice with sweet and sour pork. If you had just exercised maybe this type of meal would have replaced the blood sugars used, if not, you have just added to your high insulin and weight loss problems.

Perhaps you have not heard of the low-glycemic index (low-GI) carbohydrate diet that keeps you energized and manages your blood sugar levels. That bowl of white rice is packed with high-GI carbohydrates and there is fat and sugar in the sweet and sour pork topping. This innocent looking meal has something to hide … it is not good for those carefully watching their blood sugar levels, or those struggling to shed extra pounds or kilograms.

There is more to a low-GI food plan than helping to form a great body shape. This food plan lowers the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes as it lowers your insulin levels.

By following this type of food plan you will find only small fluctuations in your insulin and blood sugar levels. This is the secret to long term health: it reduces your risk of heart disease, your type 2 diabetes, lowers your blood pressure and is also the key to sustainable weight loss.

There are two varieties of carbohydrates and the glycemic index of a food reflects how fast it hits your bloodstream:

• complex, and
• simple

Glucose is our body’s preferred energy source and is present in many foods … there are just different types of sugars broken down and absorbed at different rates.

Complex carbohydrates are sugars bonded together. It also contains fiber which helps to slow down it’s digestion and absorption providing you with a steady supply of energy.

Simple carbohydrates are absorbed almost immediately thus increasing the chance of being converted to fat due to the excess amount released into your bloodstream. Carbohydrates that breakdown quickly include white bread, rice crackers, white potatoes and wheat based breakfast foods … they have a high-GI value. The response is really fast.

Low glycemic index carbohydrate food plans have numerous benefits aside from helping your weight loss and keeping your energy levels balanced. Switching to a low-GI diet will help:

• increase your body’s insulin-sensitivity
• reduce your risk of heart disease
• enhance your type 2 diabetes control
• reduce your cholesterol levels
• reduce hunger pangs by keeping you feeling full for longer

For a low GI carbohydrate diet, you eat more:

• oats, bran, and barley for breakfast cereals,
• whole grain bread,
• sweet potato
• multi-grain bread
• pasta
• most fruit
• legumes and many above ground dark green leafy vegetables

Aim to make changes gradually but don’t fall into the trap and eat excessive amounts of low-GI foods. Over consumption will lead to weight gain not weight loss, and will not help you conquer your type 2 diabetes and your blood sugar levels.

Diabetes is a disease of metabolic disorder. The body of the diabetics becomes unable to process sugar in blood. This inability of body leads to high-level of blood sugar. High levels of blood glucose further leads to many short and long-term health related problems. Diabetics sometimes can spend many years without knowing of their health condition as there are not any obvious symptoms. Some classic diabetic symptoms are covered in the following passages.

Frequent Urination or Polyuria:? If the level of blood sugar is high then sugar has to be excreted from the bloodstream. This extraction makes a saturated solution that has to be diluted by extracting some water from the surrounding tissues. This extraction of extra water causes excessive urination.

Excessive Thirst or Polydipsia:? This diabetic symptom is related to polyuria, the diabetic’s body needs to replace the water he is flushing away. High-level of blood sugar gives a signal to brain that more fluid is required.

Excessive Hunger or Polyphagia:? The energy to the body is provided by the sugar in the bloodstream. If the body is unable to properly use the sugar in the bloodstream, the body has a lack of energy. The enery deficient cells then give a signal to brain that the body requires more food and the person feels hungry.

Other Signs Of Diabetes

Fatigue and Tiredness:? As the body is not using the blood sugar properly to convert it into energy the person feels that he is fatigued or tired.

Blurred Vision:? Constant level of high blood sugar leads to some osmotic changes in the eye’s lens which leads to blurriness in vision.

Numbness in Hands and Feet:? Numbness in feet and hands is the result of poor circulation of blood. Sometimes it is because of nerve breakage because of consistent level of high blood glucose over a period of time. Diabetic feels like someone is pricking needles and pins in the tips of feet and hands.

Some of these diabetic signs are obvious others are less obvious. Normally people learn to live with these diabetic symptoms till the time come when serious health complications arises.