Lifestyle Recommendations to Control Blood Sugar

Making lifestyle changes isn't always easy and changing a routine can be uncomfortable. For people who have diabetes or prediabetes and need to control their blood sugar levels, these changes can affect meals, exercise and more.

Here are a few lifestyle recommendations that can help control your blood sugar:

1. Avoid sugary drinks. These will cause blood sugars to rise quickly. This includes regular soda, sweet tea, fruit punch and sports drinks. Instead, choose water or sugar free drinks.

2. Increase fiber intake. Fiber can help better control blood sugars and speeds up feeling of fullness, helping to control portions. Most people should aim for 20-35 grams of fiber per day.

• When reading a label, a product with 5g of dietary fiber or more would be considered a high fiber food source.
• When eating grains and starches, try to choose those that are less processed and more nutrient dense like: whole grain breads, whole wheat pasta, brown rice or wild rice, barley and sweet potatoes. Fruits and dried beans are also a wonderful source of soluble fiber.

3. Make your plate colorful. Vegetables are low in carbohydrate and high in fiber. Try to fill half of your plate with these at meals. The more color on your plate, the better!

4. Eat routinely. Try to eat about every 4-5 hours. Don’t skip meals.

5. Drink plenty of water. High blood sugar levels can cause dehydration. Drinking plenty of water can help your body eliminate extra blood sugars through urine.

6. Increase your activity. The American Diabetes Association recommends aiming for at least 30 minutes of aerobic activity five days per week or a total of 150 minutes per week. Exercise can help lower blood glucose in the short term. And when you are active on a regular basis, it can also lower your A1C.

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SOURCE: www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics, https://www.healthline.com/health/diabetes/drinks-for-diabetics