Diabetic? Tips to keep your blood sugar levels in check amid pandemic

Diabetics should remember to take care of their diet, exercise and mental health.




Physical fitness is a state of health and well-being and, more specifically, the ability to perform various daily tasks efficiently. Which is why it is essential for every individual to stay fit and eat healthy. And when it comes to diabetics, maintaining sugar levels and fitness becomes the most important aspect, suggests Dr Pramod Tripathi, founder, Freedom from Diabetes.

Diabetics should remember to take care of their diet, exercise and mental health.

Here are some tips:

Keep a check on your diet

*Maintain a balanced diet plan and follow it religiously.
*Eat calculated amount of calories to meet the body’s requirement. This will help achieve ideal/desirable body weight.
*As far as possible, try to eat high fibre foods (whole grains, pulses, and all green vegetables) as well as greens and vegetables. During meals, take equal quantity of grain, dal, cooked vegetables and salads.
*Eat less fruits.
*Eat diet which is low in glycemic index to keep blood sugar levels within desired range.
*Filtered mustard oil, groundnut oil, rice bran oil and gingelly oil should be preferred. Olive oil is best used for salads.
*Drink sufficient amount of water. 250 ml per 10 kg body weight.
*Sleep before 11pm.

What type of exercises can diabetics do?

Diabetics should concentrate more on exercise than diet, suggests Dr Tripathi. They should do:

*Full range of motion (ROM) exercises — neck exercises, head tilts, forward and back and side-to-side and head turns, arms and elbow exercise, hip and waist twisting, leg movements
*Chair Surya Namaskar or regular Surya Namaskar at least 6-12 times per day
*Chair-based exercises (yoga and stretching)
*Stair climbing — two hours after meals brings blood sugar under control rapidly (100-300 steps)
*Skipping ropes (if knees are in good shape, and weight under control)
*15-20 minute walking can be done everyday
*Deep breathing exercises (pranayamas)
*Minimum 30 minutes of workout should be included in daily routine.

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What to do to maintain mental health?

*Along with diet and exercise, mental health is equally important. With the current lifestyle, there is also a lot of stress and negativity around, and one should be careful.

*To release the stored stress and continual stress on a day-to-basis, whole brain posture meditation is advisable. In this, one is made to sit in a particular way, concentrate on bad memories, feel them in the body, make strong intention to relieve them. This way they start getting released.

*Besides whole brain posture meditation, there is Breathwork meditation and soul-mind-body healing which are also very useful tools for dealing with stress and negativity.

*All the above will help you in releasing the negativity which in turn helps bring positivity, suggests Dr Tripathi.

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