Many people know someone who is diagnosed with either pre-diabetes or diabetes.
Diabetes Canada says, “Diabetes is a chronic condition that develops when your body either doesn't produce or effectively use insulin."
Without effective insulin your blood sugar can go up or down beyond the usual range. Consistently high or low blood sugars are tough on our bodies and that’s why people with diabetes are working to manage their blood sugars.
Diabetes is getting diagnosed earlier and there is good education available for the treatment of diabetes. What was once considered a life-threatening diagnosis is now a manageable disease and there are a variety of tools including food, movement, stress management and medication.
For too long people who have diabetes have faced stigma for their diagnosis. Attaching a value judgment to a diagnosis of diabetes or making an assumption about how people with diabetes live will hopefully soon be a thing of the past.
Diabetes happens and the support and care of friends and family can be a wonderful tool for helping to manage this chronic disease. Let’s let go of the stigma and shame around a diabetes diagnosis.
Nutrition is one of the tools that can make a big difference in the management of your blood sugars. We no longer subscribe to the idea there are forbidden foods for people who live with diabetes. In fact, there is a movement toward enjoying the food you love while also managing blood sugars.
If your diagnosis leaves you wanting to shift your diet to include more “healthy” foods there are a few ways to do it. Although the current food economy is making food access difficult, people are finding ways to connect to a variety of foods.
At this time of year, planning a vegetable garden offers the benefits of increased access to your own fresh food, as well as the movement that comes from working in a garden.
Similarly, this is the time of year when you can sign up for a weekly share of a farmer’s vegetables or a CSA share. Committing to picking up and eating your weekly produce from the CSA or the farmers’ market can be a way to increase your vegetable consumption. You may end up saving money and increasing your nutrition at the same time.
Using some of the food buying apps is another way to find cheaper food items. Too Good To Go is an app that restaurants and some food producers use to sell their extra food at cheaper prices. For instance, recently in Guelph there was the option to get four boxes of fresh salad greens from a local hydroponic garden for under $10.
Lots of things in life affect your blood sugar, not just food. Blood sugar can go up and down with stress, illness, movement and medication, as well as the food you enjoy eating. You can learn to pair an activity like walking with a meal to keep your blood sugars steady. Or perhaps stress reduction will be a goal you work toward to improve your quarterly blood tests.
Your health care providers will work with you to offer medication to help keep your blood sugars where you want them. We are fortunate to have a variety of choices nowadays.
Need more support for your diagnosis? In Guelph, we are fortunate to have access to diabetes education from Diabetes Care Guelph (DCG). DCG states they are “dedicated to helping people who are living with Type 1, Type 2 or gestational diabetes or who are at risk for diabetes, to have a healthy and fulfilling life.”
Your health care provider can refer you to visit the certified diabetes educators (nurses, dietitians, kinesiologist and foot care nurses) or you can refer yourself by calling 519-840-1964. Check them out here.
The diabetes support group at the Evergreen Seniors’ Community Centre, run by the Guelph Wellington Seniors Association, offers peer-to-peer support for diabetes. Sharing your success and your struggles with other folks who have diabetes or care for someone who does is incredibly helpful. While you need to hold membership in this member-based organization, this group may be valuable to some people.
The East Wellington Family Health Team is also offering some virtual education sessions about pre-diabetes and diabetes. Connect with them for
free education sessions coming up this spring.
