1. Check your blood glucose often. Use home blood sugar tests to check your glucose levels. Talk with your diabetes health team to set your glucose goals and try to maintain those levels. Any deviation from the maintained level will alert you to take necessary action tp treat the symptoms.
2. Take the right dose of your diabetes medications. Always make sure you are taking the prescribed dose of insulin or diabetes pill. Always check whether you have got the right prescription filled at your pharmacy. Measure insulin dosage properly. If you have problem reading it correctly, ask for someone to help. Any change in the dose can affect the blood glucose levels leading to complications.
3. Eat at your scheduled time. Eating meals provide carbohydrates to the body. Blood glucose levels increases after having a meal. It is important for people with diabetes to have a diabetes meal plan and follow them regularly to avoid any sort of health complications arising from change in glucose levels.
4. Follow your meal plan and don't skip meals or snacks. Skipping your meals may cause your blood glucose level to drop down. Sticking with your diabetes meal plan is the best way to avoid any fluctuation in glucose level. If your diet plan includes snacks, make sure to take these.
5. Eat a carbohydrate choice (fruit, starch or milk) at your regular meal time if you must delay your meal.
6. Check your blood glucose before and after exercise. Exercise is an important part of life especially for diabetics. It is very useful in controlling and maintaining the blood glucose level along with diet. Eat a carbohydrate snack before you exercise. Always keep a carbohydrate food with you during exercise just in case the blood glucose level drops down.
7. Carry a carbohydrate source with you all times. It is important that you carry some quick carbohydrate food with you all the time and have it whenever you feel the symptoms of low blood glucose. This is to raise the blood sugar into a safe range without causing high blood sugar levels. This way you do not have to search for anything to eat when you feel low blood glucose symptoms and you know what you are having and how much carbohydrate it has in it.
8. Drink alcohol only with a meal or snack.
9. Check blood glucose before driving and on a regular basis if going long distances. Always carry your blood glucose testing kit, diabetes medication, doctors number and your insurance card with you while travelling. It is also advised to have a card in your purse that says that you are diabetic.
10. Avoid stress. Stress has been regarded as a major cause of all major illnesses and is said to highly impact blood glucose levels. try leading a less stressful life.
It is not only important for the diabetic patient to be aware of the low blood glucose (hypoglycemia) symptoms but also the family and care giver so that they know when to call for emergency assistance (911). Call an ambulance if the person with low blood glucose level is in an altered mental state, is not able to swallow or eat, is unconscious, continues to have low blood sugar despite eating adequate amounts of a fast-acting carbohydrate.
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