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Living well with diabetes Tāu ake whakaora i te mate huka
You can live well with diabetes if you eat well, do regular physical activity and carefully manage your blood glucose levels if you need to. You need to learn to manage stress, and take extra care with driving, alcohol and recreational drugs.
Eating well with diabetes
Eating well is an important part of managing your diabetes. You do not need to buy special food or cook different food from your whānau.
You should follow general advice for everyone for eating well.
You may need to make some changes to make sure you are:
- drinking at least 8 cups of fluid a day (water is best) and avoiding fruit juice and other sugary drinks
- eating breakfast, lunch and dinner every day
- keeping an eye on your carbohydrates at each meal
- choosing low sugar, low saturated fat, low salt, and high fibre food
- basing your meals around the healthy plate model.
Follow the healthy plate model for lunch and dinner. Base your meals on these proportions.
- Protein — one quarter of your plate should be protein-rich foods. Options include eggs, chicken, fish, tofu, meat, lentils and dried beans.
- Carbohydrate — one quarter of your plate should be starchy carbohydrate. Options include potato, kumara, taro, or wholegrain pasta, rice or bread.
- Vegetables — half your plate should be non-starchy colourful vegetables or salad. Options include broccoli, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, courgette, cucumber, eggplant, lettuce, puha, tomato.
Know your carbohydrates
The carbohydrates you eat will directly affect your blood glucose (sugar) levels. You need to know:
- how much carbohydrate is in your food and drink
- what types of carbohydrates are in your food and drink.
If you have type 1 diabetes, you need to count carbohydrates (carbs) in your food and drink so you can have the correct insulin dose. Carb counting involves counting the number of grams of carbohydrate in a meal (through reading nutrition labels) and matching that to your dose of insulin.
Your diabetes care team will help you learn more about managing carbohydrates.
Many weight loss diets (such as the keto, paleo and Atkins diets) focus on reducing how much carbohydrate you eat.
A low carbohydrate diet is not recommended if you have type 1 diabetes.
A low carbohydrate diet can work well for some people with type 2 diabetes in the short term. In the long term, this diet is no better for managing diabetes than a high carbohydrate or other restrictive diet.
If you want to follow a low carbohydrate diet and you are on diabetes medication, talk to your healthcare provider first. They can also refer you to a dietitian.
Physical activity and diabetes
Regular physical activity can:
- help prevent or delay type 2 diabetes
- help manage both type 1 and type 2 diabetes
Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most days of the week.
Being physically activeexternal link
Physical activity can help improve your:
- blood glucose levels
- blood pressure
- body weight
- mood.
If you take insulin, when you are physically active you are more prone to having low blood glucose levels or a hypo. You may feel shaky, sweaty or suddenly unwell.
When exercising or being active you should:
- always carry some glucose tablets or a small snack
- wear your medical alert or something similar so others can know you have diabetes in an emergency.
Managing stress
Stress is a part of all or our lives. For people with diabetes, just having the condition itself can cause stress.
Stress can cause your blood glucose levels to rise. It is important that you learn how to manage stress to help manage both your blood glucose levels and your mental wellbeing.
There are practical things you can do to reduce stress, such as:
- learning relaxation techniques such as deep breathing and mindfulness
- learning different ways to respond to stress and coping techniques
- avoiding situations you know might cause stress
- share what you are going through with friends, family or a support group.
You can read more about stress and how to manage it on the Diabetes New Zealand website.
Diabetes and stress — Diabetes New Zealandexternal link
Online resources to manage stress — Small Stepsexternal link
Alcohol and diabetes
If you are on insulin or some diabetes medications, drinking alcohol can cause low blood glucose. This can happen for up to 10 hours after you stop drinking.
When you drink alcohol:
- you might be less aware when you have low blood glucose (hypo or hypoglycaemia)
- your body will respond more slowly if you need to treat low blood glucose
- insulin stays in your system for longer while your body is trying to deal with the alcohol.
If you choose to drink alcohol:
- have someone with you who knows you have diabetes
- wear your medical alert or something similar so others can know you have diabetes in an emergency wear your medical alert or something similar so others can know you have diabetes in an emergency (a hypo can be mistaken for being drunk)
- monitor your blood glucose before, during and after drinking
- have food with alcohol and never drink on an empty stomach.
If you drink alcohol you should follow the standard advice for low-risk drinking.
Recreational drugs and diabetes
If you have diabetes and take drugs, you face extra health risks.
Recreational drugs change how your body and brain work. They can affect your ability to:
- use glucose (sugar) and insulin
- make good decisions
- recognise low blood glucose levels
- remember to take insulin and eat.
This means you are at a higher risk of:
- high blood glucose levels
- diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)
- hypos (low blood glucose levels).
If you know about the risks, you can make the right choices and avoid dangerous situations.
- Know what you are taking.
- Have someone with you who knows you have diabetes.
- Wear your medical alert or equivalent.
- Keep taking your insulin.
- Drinks lots of water.
Driving with diabetes
If you have diabetes, you will need to take extra precautions to make sure you are safe on the road.
The main concern is drivers with low blood glucose levels (hypoglycaemia or a 'hypo'). If you are taking insulin or some medicines for diabetes (not metformin), it is important to avoid low blood glucose levels as this can impair your driving and cause you to pass out.
Low blood glucose (hypoglycaemia)
Having high blood glucose levels (hyperglycaemia) can also make you feel unwell or tired and may affect your ability to drive safely. You should not drive if you are severely hyperglycaemic.
When you are sick
If you are sick, you may need to change your normal diabetes routine.