The Importance of Checking Blood Sugar Regularly
Article about: blood sugar, diabetes, testing for diabetes, the importance of checking blood sugar regularly, when to check blood sugar readings
Every diabetic should check their blood sugar regularly. New diabetics should check it after everything they eat, every morning and night, and before and after exercise. Doing this lets the new diabetic know what foods they can eat and how exercise affects their blood sugar readings. Both of which are vital to a diabetics overall health. Even someone who has had diabetes for a while should still periodically check their blood sugar after foods to make sure their body’s reaction hasn’t changed. Here is a good schedule for new diabetics to follow to form a clear picture of their overall health.
1. Check every morning for a fasting level. A blood sugar reading of less than 100 is considered non-diabetic. A reading between 100-125 is considered pre-diabetic. Anything over this is full blown diabetic numbers.
2. Check after every new food until you know what the readings are. Check at these intervals:
30 minutes, 1 hour, 90 minutes and 2 hours. These numbers will help the doctor decide on treatment and determine how the disease is progressing. Blood sugar readings should be back under 140 at 1 hour, and under 120 at two hours. It’s optimal to keep readings under 120 at all times. This will slow the progression of the disease. Don’t eat any foods that make the numbers out of range.
3. Check before bed each night. Blood sugar readings should be below 120 before going to bed. It is sometimes advised to eat a protein snack before retiring for the night. This helps prevent early morning dumping of insulin by the liver that cause higher fasting readings.
4. Check before and after exercise. No one should start exercising with a blood sugar reading below 100. Exercise can sometimes make a person’s blood sugar drop into dangerous levels. Checking before and after will help determine what the diabetic should eat to keep levels consistent when exercising.
Following these simple guidelines will help slow or even stop, the progression of diabetes. A diabetic’s doctor may have additional guidelines. It’s wise to check with them first.
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