Summer Health Tips For Diabetics

The temperature that mother earth is generating during hot summer days is too much. We get just drained out with all the sweating throughout the day. The heat is just unbarring, so if you are a diabetic patient you need to be extra cautious. Diabetic patients have a very high metabolic rate; they feel hungry and thirsty very frequently. With the summer heat, hunger and thirst pangs increases automatically. Diabetic patients need to be careful at all times, but during summers they need to take some precautions.

How to care for your skin?

Diabetic patients often suffer from a lot of skin issues during summer like carbuncles, boils, abscesses, furuncles and these infections get quite serious at times if not taken proper care of. Some simple precautions can prevent these infections. i.  As diabetic patients sweat a lot, if not cleaned properly, infections may also rise due to perspiration. Take a proper bath at least twice a day. Bathing using antiseptic lotion will prevent bacterial growth on your body. ii. Wear light-weight, free flowing cotton clothes to ventilate a lot of air. Avoid synthetic clothes altogether. iii. Always use a sunscreen whenever going out. Sunburns result in rising blood sugar level. Buy a sunscreen with high SPF to protect your skin from sunburns. Do not forget to use sunscreen when you are on a long drive with your friends or spouse. You may think that you are inside the car and the sun won’t harm you; but the rays of the sun reach your skin through windows and open sunroofs. So sunscreens are a must even if you are inside a car. iv. However it is most important to maintain glucose level in your diet.

How to care for foot?

Those suffering from chronic diabetes, suffer from foot injury and infection or ulceration as they have poor glycaemic control. i. Take care that you are not developing any infections or cellulite in your foot. ii.  Always keep your feet clean, wash and dry them properly and keep following up with your doctor. iii. During summers your feet has a tendency to sweat with the socks and closed shoes that you wear in office. However in office it is not possible to open your socks and shoes. So you may wear cotton socks during summers. Avoid synthetic material as much as possible. iv.  If you go out for a vacation or picnic, on a beach, avoid walking bare-footed. Although it is fun walking on the sand without shoes and sandals, diabetic patients should never do that. Go for flip-flops that are fashionable and at the same time will protect your feet from any cuts and sores. For those with high blood sugar level, simple cuts can lead to infection and takes a lot of time to heal. Never go around bare-footed.

How to deal with dehydration?

With the rise in blood sugar level, urination is one of the symptoms of diabetic patients. And as the extreme heat and humidity leads to excessive sweating, therefore they get dehydrated very soon. However, if you do not drink water with the fear that you have to urinate again and again, and then it may lead to adverse situations like dry mouth, your sweating will reduce and urination will also decrease considerably which is not very good for health. Doctors say that if diabetic patients do not take enough amount of water to keep them hydrated, then water level in blood decreases resulting in the productions of ketones. This will lead to bad breath. Dehydration in diabetic patients can be so serious that it may also lead to the damage of brain and other organs. i. During summer days, even if you feel a mild dehydration, immediately drink a lot of water to compensate for the water loss from your body through perspiration and urine. Whenever you go out in the sun or workouts or even yoga, carry a bottle of water with you so that you can keep yourself properly hydrated. ii. As we know that summer calls for a lot of yummy and fresh fruit juices, coconut water, soda and aerated cold drinks which are quite tempting; but all of these are very high in glucose. So if you are diabetic, avoid all of these drinks. Even alcohol and coffee or chocolate drinks should be strongly avoided. Having lime water is a much safer option. iii.  During summers, diabetic patients should more often go out for swimming and practice yoga. Avoid working out in the gym as it leads to more sweating and fatigue.

Self-check:

If you are diabetic and working out in the sun, there may be chances that your body temperature may shoot up all of a sudden. The following symptoms should not be avoided:

• Feeling dizzy and nausea
• Excessive sweating
• Muscle cramps
• Sudden coldness of skin
• Increased rate of heart beat
• Headaches

If you experience any of these symptoms, immediately go to an air conditioned room and drink plenty of water. Also consult your physician. If you have to exercise during summers, workout in an air conditioned gym or may be early in the morning and in the evening when the weather stays cool. Keep checking your blood sugar levels around four times a day. During summers, blood sugar level tends to fluctuate a lot. Don’t forget your medications. Diet tips for diabetic patients during summer: Healthy diet means a healthy life. As already discussed, diabetic patients have a fetish for food and they feel hungry and thirsty very frequently, therefore taking proper care of what they should eat is very important. Summer season calls for a lot of evening barbeque parties. Quite tempting though the food and drinks may sound, but control your temptations. i. Whenever you go out to attend such parties, make sure you eat your prescribed diet to keep yourself quite full so that you do not get tempted to try out those unhealthy palates. ii. If you are a non-vegetarian, have some grilled chicken breast and fish instead of those tandoori leg pieces. Fried chicken pieces and red meat may beckon you but avoiding them is quite a smart move. iii. Or you can avoid non-veg altogether and fill your plate with some colorful veggie salad. Don’t use mayo to dress, instead use mustard sauce. iv. Now for the alcohol part, we would say NO. But if you have decided to have alcohol, we will suggest to you to have half a peg or even better, you can go for a cocktail. v. Avoid desserts or opt for some fresh fruits. These are some health tips you should never forget to enjoy a sunny and fun-filled summer Source:-http://www.stylecraze.com/articles/summer-health-tips-for-diabetics/