Managing Blood Sugar from Home: 3 Tips to Know

We are all dealing with Covid- 19 across the globe. While each one of us is at risk of contracting coronavirus, those with high blood sugar or diabetes are more vulnerable than others. On the one hand, high blood sugar is a severity factor for the disease. On the other hand managing blood sugar during the current scenario is more difficult than normal circumstances. This blog will briefly cover what makes patients with high blood sugar more vulnerable to Covid- 19. We will quickly follow this up with few tips and tricks that such patients can adopt. These practices are for when you are at home to lower their vulnerability.

Managing Blood Sugar: The Threat

Research shows that patients with high blood sugar have impaired immune response which increases their vulnerability to influenza and infections. At the same time, high blood sugar tends to lead to obesity which becomes another risk factor for the infection. At the same time, managing blood sugar becomes difficult during these unprecedented times. One of the major reasons is that due to the lockdown, physical activity and exercise has practically come to a standstill. Also, when at home, we tend to over stuff ourselves with food too. This may not be the best move for someone who is diabetic.

What is more worrisome is that even reaching healthcare professional under such circumstances is a difficult task and not very advisable, keeping in mind their exposure to the virus. Therefore, self care and managing blood sugar on your own is your safest bet today.

Managing Blood Sugar: Self Help

Let’s take a quick look at some of the top practices for managing blood sugar that don’t involve you stepping out of the house!

Exercise, but at Home

Let’s begin with the first and very obvious tip that most of us tend to forget is that managing blood sugar with exercise is a wise decision. Now don’t start off on “How do I exercise if I can’t step out“? Well, there are several exercises you can do even in the four walls of your home. For instance, dancing, aerobics, yoga, weight lifting are just a few examples.

The important point here is to understand why exercising makes sense. Diabetes is all about high levels of blood sugar, and exercise helps your muscles use this blood sugar for energy and muscle contraction. Therefore, at home exercises are the first step towards managing blood sugar.

Say No to Carbs

For digestion purposes, your body breaks down carbohydrates into sugar. While in a normal routine, you maybe able to handle a specific amount of carbs. However, when at home your physical activity drops down drastically. Sitting in your home office the whole day or binge watching Netflix on your bed does not really help you in digesting those carbs. Therefore, an easy way towards managing blood sugar is to reduce your carbohydrate intake. It would also be a good idea to replace it with proteins, roughage etc. if you wish to eat healthy

Natural Goodness from your Kitchen

Is there a bottle of Apple Cider Vinegar sitting on your kitchen shelf that you have been meaning to use but didn’t get the time for? Well, guess what, the time is now! By its very nature, apple cider vinegar is potent in augmenting insulin sensitivity and can help you in managing blood sugar levels, by literally reducing it.

Consuming 1-2 spoons of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water before meals ensures best results. Since the impact of insulin is highest at this time, this drink will accentuate it further.

Managing Blood Sugar: Make the Most of Your Time at Home

While most of the patients with high blood sugar will see this period as a challenge for their health condition, there are those who have an optimistic lens on too. Why not see this as an opportunity to get natural practices in place. These can help in managing blood sugar levels organically, without the need of medicines. Get your dietary practices and exercise routine in place. Try to use whatever extra time you have in hand to adopt a healthy lifestyle! Because tomorrow, when we come out of Covid- 19, we don’t want other health ailments to pull us back, do we?