Oral surgery can be complicated by poorly controlled diabetes. Diabetes slows healing and increases your risk of infection.

Your blood glucose may be more difficult to control after oral surgery. The blood glucose levels may swing widely due to the added stress of the surgery and your inability to eat properly after the surgery due to discomfort.

The key is to keep your blood glucose levels under control before you even consider oral surgery. A trip to your doctor before you for surgery is vital. You dentist or oral surgeon may want to communicate with each other. You may need to take an antibiotic before any procedures.

Unless your doctor orders otherwise - eat before your dental visit and take your usual medications. Check your blood glucose to be sure it is in the normal range. If it is too high your surgery may need to be postponed.

If you expect your oral surgery or dentist visit to leave your mouth sore, then plan ahead and have soft or liquid food available to eat when you get home.

If your blood sugar is poorly controlled and your dental needs are urgent (or an emergency), you may need to receive your dental procedures in the hospital or same day surgery facility. This may allow them to monitor you more closely as you recover from the procedure.

After the dental procedure, take care to prevent further problems.

1. Brush your teeth after every meal and snack with a soft toothbrush.

2. Floss your teeth at least once a day.

3. See your dentist at least twice a year (or as directed by your dentist).

Diabetics are especially at risk from hyperglycemia. Lest this topic be something that you cannot quite get your head around, I will discuss what “blood sugar” actually is before actually elaborating how to lower the levels of blood sugar. It is measured as the level of glucose - a kind of sugar - present in one’s bloodstream.

Although your body regulates your blood sugar by default, there is only so much it can do; watch your own actions, so as not to thwart your body’s sugar regulation. Your blood sugar is influenced greatly by the foods that you eat. There are those foods that lower the levels; while others - which enter the bloodstream more quickly - increase sugar. The higher sugar level in your blood, the harder your pancreas has to work to produce the required insulin.

You will find here listed tips for maintaining to your sugar, which will help to combat the threat of diabetes.

1. Eat the right foods - fruits, vegetables and grains are among the kinds of foods that get digested more slowly, this being good for maintaining the right sugar in your body.

2. Exercise is good for controlling your sugar level in blood. Also, losing weight reduces the likeliness of diabetes.

3. As far as lowering sugar in blood is concerned, four or five small meals a day is better than three large meals.

4. Do not drinking lots of soft drinks because these contain a lot of sugar and carbohydrates, and diabetics are very vulnerable to this.

5. Always read the labels that come with prescription drugs - would these increase your sugar notably?

6. Sometimes stress can be responsible for elevated sugar levels - consider making changes to your lifestyle.