10 Tips to Staying Healthy With Diabetes

1. Monitor blood sugars as directed.  This will help with good food choices and see what effect exercise has on your blood sugar. Contact your provider if sugars are not where you want them.

2. Keep Moving. Being active and staying fit helps mood, blood sugar, heart health and overall well being.

3. Complete your lab work. It is easy to forget to go for your labs after the doctor orders it, but lab work shows us how our body is working and is important to create a baseline in order to track changes. HBA1c, Cholesterol, Kidney test should be monitored

4. Take medications as prescribed. Do not skip any doses and do not take extra medication unless

5. Visit the Eye Doctor. An annual eye exam helps to detect any eye vessel changes that can occur with diabetes. Always report any changes in your vision to your health care provider.

6. Keep your blood pressure under control. Have your blood pressure checked during every office visit with your health care provider. Talk to them about whether you should be checking it in between visits.

7. Visit the Dentist. Have your teeth cleaned every 6 months.  High sugars can lead to gum disease

8. Look at your feet every day. Some people with diabetes have little feeling in their feet, so visually examining them every is important. Report any open areas to your doctor immediately.

9. Quit Smoking.

10. Stay Well. Stress and illness can elevate blood sugars.  Discuss Pneumonia and Flu vaccine with your doctor.  Try not to miss scheduled doctor visits!