Do you really know how to brush your teeth? Actually many people go about brushing and flossing their teeth the wrong way. Don’t be insulted because many people just don’t know their brushing technique isn’t as effective as they think. Brushing, flossing, and regularly seeing your dentist are the best three ways to prevent oral problems. But there are ways to maximize each of these three preventive measures.
Maximize Your Brushing Power: Prevent Oral and Gum Disease
May 11th, 2012Snoring While You Snooze: Diabetes and Sleep Apnea
May 6th, 2012
Louder zzzz’s seem to be the punch line of more jokes than clinical conversations. Looked at as more of an inconvenience than anything serious, snoring is overlooked frequently as a sign for clinical problems or conditions.
Actually, snoring is a sign of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Obstructive sleep apnea is caused by frequent stops in breathing while you sleep. Normally, the breathing is stopped because there is an obstruction of the upper airway.
This occurs most often in overweight, middle-aged and elderly individuals. Obstructive sleep apnea results in low levels of oxygen in your blood (because you are not breathing in enough air), waking up often during the night, and being very sleepy during the day.
Wednesday Wellness Tip: Stick with Whatever Exercise You Like
April 20th, 2012
Sticking with exercise is the key in long term health for people that don’t spend a lot of time working out.
A recent study compiling data and information about exercise and mortality showed that a sedentary person’s risk for dying prematurely decreased almost 20% if that person started and sustained a walking program, 30 minutes of walking 5 times a week for several years.
Those results are not noted if the individual only continues the walking program for a short period of time. So, it is very important to pick an exercise that you can continue for the rest of your life. And having different types of exercise that you like to do is beneficial too.
Eating Out with Diabetes: Healthy Choices with Ethnic Cuisines
April 7th, 2012
How have you handled eating out since your diagnosis of diabetes?
Do you still eat out weekly, not caring about the consequences of your food choices? Or have you reverted to eating at home, scared to face a large menu with confusing choices? (Is it healthy? How will it affect my blood sugar? How many calories are in that?)
Of course it is important to make the best food choices under any circumstance, but dining out can be very difficult. Being tempted by foods and desserts that you know are not in your meal plan for the day can be a big challenge. Or navigating a menu from an ethnic restaurant where you’re not sure how the menu items are prepared can thwart your good intentions.
Even though it might be difficult, diabetes does not need to prevent you from dining out occasionally or with friends for special occasions. Planning and preparing will equip you to make the best choices possible. Here are a few ideas and red flags to watch out for.
How to Help Your Wound Heal Faster
April 1st, 2012Some parts of the US are starting to warm up and feel the beautiful affects of spring! Once the snow melts and that beautiful blue sky calls you outdoors, there are more chances of getting cuts, scrapes, blisters and any type of wound.
Take a look at this post and this post about preventing foot sores and keep reading here to learn about taking care of wounds that you do get.
10 Small Steps to Reducing Diabetes Complications
March 25th, 2012
Diabetes is a disease that affects your whole body, from your eyes to your blood vessels, to your toes. But many people with diabetes live wonderful, healthy lives and are not held back by complications like nerve damage or heart problems.
They put extra effort into each day than the average person and come out with more satisfaction knowing they are conquering more than the average person.
You probably know that managing diabetes can be complicated, but there are a few changes you can make with major impact.
Controlling your blood sugar is the biggest improvement you can make but a lot goes into controlling your blood sugar:
- controlling carbohydrate intake;
- possibly taking medication or insulin;
- exercising;
- checking your blood sugar regularly;
- reducing stress;
- and the list goes on.
The following simple changes will help lead to better blood sugar control along with your other treatments, but making all these changes together will give you the biggest impact on preventing complications.
How to Get the Most Accurate Results from Your Finger Prick
March 11th, 2012
You know the protocol, but do you actually follow it? Testing your blood sugar becomes second nature when you do it everyday, several times a day, and it is easy to get a little lax on following all the right steps.
A new Dutch study published in Diabetes Care might give you a sigh of relief to know that you can still get fairly accurate results when you are not able to be the most vigilant with your finger pricking cleanliness.
The study watched people with diabetes test their blood sugar under different circumstances: washing and drying hands; no hand washing; after touching fruit and not washing hands; after touching fruit and then washing hands.
Transform Your Everyday Lunch Into a Tasty, Healthified Meal
March 9th, 2012March is National Nutrition Month and today, March 9, is Registered Dietitian Day! It’s all about food and healthy eating this month! Be sure to send a smile to your dietitian today because dietitians are key players in your diabetes health care team.
So make your dietitian proud today and choose one of these healthy lunch options to stay on target with your blood sugar and healthy weight.
Atherosclerosis: What is it and what does it have to do with Diabetes?
February 25th, 2012Athero-what?!? Atherosclerosis: “an arteriosclerosis characterized by atheromatous deposits in and fibrosis of the inner layer of the arteries.”
Well that didn’t help at all did it?! This is a disease that causes your arteries to become hard and narrowed (that process is called arteriosclerosis) with fatty deposit (atheromatous deposits) and extra tough tissue (fibrosis) in the artery walls.
Arteries can even become completely blocked in atherosclerosis. Your arteries are blood vessels that carry blood from your heart to the rest of your body, so atherosclerosis, blocking arteries, can lead to heart disease.