Nutrition Know-How
If you have diabetes, you know you have to take care of a lot of things every day: watching blood sugar levels, diabetes pills and/or insulin needs, and sticking to the treatment plan from your health care provider.
Are you also paying attention to how and what you eat? Good nutrition is very important in managing existing diabetes, and preventing or slowing diabetes and its complications from getting worse.
A healthy diet is one that is high in nutrients with a moderate number of calories per serving. Many patients eat diets that exceed the recommended number of calories per day and lack the number of nutrients.
A few simple facts can start to increase your Nutrition Know-How — and help create a meal plan that will make a healthier you!
Find the full know-how Guide here
Overcoming Barriers
Eat Healthy
A CDE can teach you how food affects your blood sugar level, help you plan meals, and show you how to make healthy food choices. You’ll learn how to read labels, plan and prepare meals, measure foods for portion control, and count fat and carbohydrates.
Exercise
If you have physical disabilities, don’t like to exercise, or can’t find the time, a CDE can work with you. Your CDE can help you create an exercise plan that balances your diet and medicines with your activity level.
Monitor Your Blood Sugar
A diabetes education class can show you how to use blood sugar monitoring devices and will discuss when and how to do the tests, what goals to aim for, and how to read and use your results.
Take Your Medicines
Your CDE can help you learn about the medicines you are taking—how they work, side effects, your dosage, appropriate timing, what happens if you miss a dose, how to store your drugs, and other vital information.
Reduce Your Risks
You can learn how to quit smoking, take care of your feet, monitor your blood pressure, and keep up-to-date health records.
Cope With Your Fears
Sometimes you just need to talk through your concerns and fears about your diabetes. A CDE can help you learn what you can control and give you ways to cope with those factors that you can’t.
For more information on overcoming barriers, download the full PDF here.