Type I insulin-dependent diabetics must learn how to check their blood sugar; their lives depend on it! Many Type IIs, though, never learn. That’s a mistake because monitoring blood sugar provides valuable information that can be used to adjust food or drug intake for all diabetics. And this monitoring is especially important in any strategy to lose weight.
Some doctors lower their patients’ insulin or oral insulin-stimulating drugs the day they start on a weight-loss diet. This prevents a frightening episode of low blood sugar four or five days into the diet which happens if blood sugar drops and insulin or oral drug dosage is still high. Most successful at losing weight, with fewest hypoglycemic episodes, are diabetics who carefully monitor their blood sugar and consult with their doctor as often as every week about having their drug dosage lowered as their blood sugar drops. Diabetics whose fasting blood sugar is over 240 may need to lower their blood sugar first, then reduce their drug dosage. And for thin diabetics, the best treatment is drugs. Losing weight won’t help.
Archives for the day Sunday, October 4th, 2009
