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Self-Managing Your Diabetes

When managing your diabetes, the American Diabetes Association recommends you work with your health care team to keep track of the "ABCs."

A is for A1C. Your A1C check shows your average blood glucose for the past two-to-three months.

B is for blood pressure. When your blood pressure is high, your heart has to work harder.

C is for cholesterol. Your cholesterol figure tells you the approximate amount of fat in your blood. HDL cholesterol protects your heart, while LDL cholesterol can clog blood vessels and lead to heart disease. Triglycerides also raise your risk for a heart attack or stroke.

Top tips to keeping diabetes under control

• Monitor your blood sugar
• Eat healthy
• Get regular physical activity
• Have an annual general physical
• Have an annual eye exam
• Visit your dentist twice a year
• Keep up-to-date with your vaccinations
• Take care of your feet
• Stop smoking
• Monitor your blood pressure
• Manage your stress

Eating Healthy

Knowing which foods are good for you seems to change every time you turn on the news. There are some basic food-decision principles that have outlasted all the different types of fad diets. Here are a few tips from the American Diabetes Association on making healthful food choices for you and your family:

• Eat lots of vegetables and fruits. Try picking from the rainbow of colors available to maximize variety. Eat non-starchy vegetables such as spinach, carrots, broccoli or green beans with meals.
• Choose whole grain foods over processed grain products. Try brown rice with your stir fry or whole wheat spaghetti with your favorite pasta sauce.
• Include dried beans (like kidney or pinto beans) and lentils into your meals.
• Include fish in your meals 2-3 times a week.
• Choose lean meats like cuts of beef and pork that end in "loin," such as pork loin and sirloin, and remove the skin from chicken and turkey.
• Choose non-fat dairy such as skim milk, non-fat yogurt and non-fat cheese.
• Choose water and calorie-free "diet" drinks instead of regular soda, fruit punch, sweet tea and other sugar-sweetened drinks.
• Choose liquid oils for cooking instead of solid fats (fats are high in calories) that can be high in both saturated and trans fats.
• Cut back on high-calorie snack foods and desserts like chips, cookies, cakes, and full-fat ice cream.
• Watch your portion sizes—eating too much of even healthful foods can lead to weight gain.