High blood sugar levels contribute to diabetes if left unchecked. Blood sugar levels are naturally managed by our bodies using a hormone called insulin. This hormone helps our cells absorb the sugar from our blood for bodily functions. Low insulin levels lead to the cells not absorbing the sugar, leading to high blood sugar levels or hyperglycemia. 

Doctors often recommend patients to get insulin injections as a part of diabetes treatment. However, there are other home remedies and lifestyle changes that can help you as well in the process of blood sugar control. Managing diabetes is not an easy task and requires active efforts in glucose monitoring of your body, and these 10 tips and tricks can help you manage your blood sugar levels.

10 of The Best Blood Sugar Levels Management Tips & Tricks

1.Focus on Your Hydration

Drinking enough water is crucial for your health. It helps your body manage blood sugar levels and reduce your risk of diabetes. When you hydrate yourself adequately throughout the day. Your kidneys work properly and flush out any excess sugar in your blood with urine. Studies have shown drinking water regularly can help reduce your risk of getting abnormal blood sugar levels. It is important to note that this can be achieved only by drinking water and other unsweetened zero-calorie drinks. Drinking sweetened drinks to hydrate yourself will not aid the same benefits and can in fact, increase your blood sugar levels further.

2. Exercise Regularly

Exercising regularly is good for your general health, however, for patients with high blood sugar levels, it can help manage your sugar levels. Exercising regularly helps increase your body’s insulin sensitivity. This helps the cells in your body use the insulin in your blood more efficiently. While exercise is known to help manage your blood sugar levels, it is important to monitor and understand which exercises help your body balance your blood sugar levels the most. This can be achieved by monitoring your blood sugar levels before and after exercising. This will help you monitor which exercise type helps you maintain a balance in your blood sugar levels that’s neither too high or too low.

3. Increase Fiber Intake

Adequate fiber intake slows carb digestion and sugar absorption, which allows your body to manage blood sugar spikes. It helps create a more gradual rise in blood sugar levels. Fiber intake is generally good for your health too as it helps maintain a healthy digestive system. However, you should know that there are two types of fiber namely, soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber is the one that you should eat more when you are trying to manage your blood sugar levels. It gives you the benefits of slower carb digestion and sugar absorption, not insoluble fibers. Good sources of soluble fibers include fruits and vegetables.

4. Limit Carbs Reasonably

Managing your carb levels or limiting them, doesn’t equate to eliminating carbs from your diet entirely. What you need to do is, have carbs in moderation. This is mainly because carbs break down into sugar and that sugar is transported throughout your body where insulin helps your body store and use it as per needs. If you have diabetes, your insulin function will not work accordingly and it will lead to higher blood sugar levels in the body. Doctors suggest diabetes patients to count their carbs and consume accordingly only. This helps your body reduce blood sugar levels overall and prevent blood sugar spikes.

5. Monitor Blood Sugar Levels Regularly

There is no set process to manage your blood sugar levels that work for everyone. The key is to monitor your blood sugar levels regularly to understand the effect of exercise, food, and medication on your body. You can use a portable blood sugar monitor like a glucometer to monitor your blood sugar levels regularly. Just make sure you note down your levels on a log as it is crucial for doctors to diagnose and treat your underlying condition further. Also, it is a good practice to monitor your blood level both before and after exercise and meals. This will help you monitor the change in your blood sugar levels after any new activity.

6. De-Stress Yourself

Stress can cause your efforts to lower your blood sugar levels to fail. Stress releases hormones in your body called cortisol and glucagon. These hormones have the potential to increase your blood sugar levels despite your active efforts. Keeping yourself free from stress is of utmost importance when you are trying to manage your blood sugar levels. The best way to de-stress yourself is to practice meditation, yoga, or other relaxation activities. These activities allow your body to remain calm and help your efforts in managing your blood sugar levels.

7. Eat Smaller Portions

Portion control is one of the best ways to manage your blood sugar levels. If you eat smaller portions of nutritious meals you will not be overdosing on any nutrient that has a negative impact on your efforts. You will be able to manage your calorie intake and make sure you are on a calorie deficit as and when necessary. A calorie deficit forces your body to burn the fat stored in your body to function normally. This will help you lose excess weight and manage your blood sugar levels. It should be noted that the key is not to remain hungry. The key is to eat smaller portions and consume healthy snacks throughout the day so that your stomach is full and you are still in a calorie deficit.

8. Consume More Probiotics

Probiotics are good for your gut health. They also help with managing your blood sugar levels. Probiotics are good bacteria that have numerous health benefits for everyone. For people with type 2 diabetes, consuming probiotics regularly has been shown to benefit insulin resistance and improve fasting blood sugar levels. The most common source of probiotics is curd, which can be added to your diet very easily.

9. Sleep Well Everyday

A good night's sleep is essential for your health. Poor sleep can contribute to stress and stress can cause an increase in your blood sugar levels. Apart from that, good sleep helps other parts of your body function normally. Poor sleeping habits can cause malabsorption of nutrients from dietary sources, which can lead to failure in managing blood sugar levels from eating healthier. Additionally, poor sleep can also increase your appetite and lead to unwanted weight gain.

10. Maintain Moderate Body Weight

If you have diabetes and need to manage your blood sugar levels, reducing your body weight can be a great way to maintain it. Even if you are not obese, losing as little as 5% of your body weight can reduce the need for your body to take diabetes medicines. If you are over the weight of 90 kgs, losing just 4 to 6 kgs of your body weight can have great benefits in helping you manage your blood sugar levels.

Conclusion

Managing blood sugar is not easy, but the most important thing in this regard is to be active in your preventative efforts. The tips and tricks mentioned in this blog are all going to help you manage your blood sugar levels. The best thing for you to do would be to start with the changes that you can easily and successfully implement in your routine quickly. Then you should move on to the other lifestyle changes that require some active efforts from you to be introduced in your routine. This process will help you manage your blood sugar levels without feeling like you are having to change your life entirely for it. To learn more about  diabetes care and treatment , check out MASSH or visit us today.