Summer Health Care Tips For Diabetics
How to take care of your skin?
Diabetic patients often are afflicted by a lot of skin issues during summer like carbuncles, boils, abscesses, furuncles which infections get quite serious sometimes if not taken proper care of. Some simple precautions can prevent these infections.
i. As diabetics sweat a lot, if not cleaned properly, infections could also rise due to perspiration. Have a proper bath at least twice each day. Bathing using antiseptic lotion may prevent bacterial growth on your body.
ii. Wear light-weight, free flowing cotton clothes to ventilate lots of air. Avoid synthetic clothes altogether.
iii. Always employ a sunscreen whenever heading out. Sunburns result in rising blood sugar level. Purchase a sunscreen with high SPF to protect the skin from sunburns. Do not forget to use sunscreen when you're on a long drive together with your friends or spouse. It may seem that you are inside the car and also the sun won't harm you; however the rays of the sun reach your skin through windows and open sunroofs. So sunscreens really are a must even if you are inside a car.
iv. Yet it's most important to maintain glucose level in what you eat.
How to care for foot?
Those struggling with chronic diabetes, suffer from foot injury and infection or ulceration because they have poor glycaemic control.
i. Be mindful that you are not developing any infections or cellulite inside your foot.
ii. Always keep your feet clean, wash and dry them properly and following up with your doctor.
iii. During summers the feet has a tendency to sweat with the socks and closed shoes that you simply wear in office. However in office it's not possible to open your socks and shoes. To wear cotton socks during summers. Avoid synthetic material whenever possible.
iv. If you go out for a vacation or picnic, on the beach, avoid walking bare-footed. Even though it is fun walking around the sand without shoes and sandals, diabetics should never do that. Go for flip-flops which are fashionable and at the same time will protect the feet from any cuts and sores. For all those with high blood sugar level, simple cuts can result in infection and takes a great deal of time to heal. Never bypass bare-footed.
How to deal with dehydration?
With the increase in blood sugar level, urination is among the symptoms of diabetic patients. And as the cause problems and humidity leads to sweating, therefore they get dehydrated soon. However, if you do not drink water using the fear that you have to urinate over and over, and then it may lead to adverse situations like xerostomia, your sweating will reduce and urination will even decrease considerably which is not excellent for health.
Doctors state that if diabetic patients do not take enough quantity of water to keep them hydrated, then level in blood decreases inducing the productions of ketones. This can lead to bad breath.
Dehydration in diabetics can be so serious that it may also result in the damage of brain and other organs.
i. During summer days, even though you feel a mild dehydration, immediately drink lots of water to compensate for the water loss out of your body through perspiration and urine. If you go out in the sun or workouts or perhaps yoga, carry a bottle water with you so that you can keep yourself properly hydrated.
ii. As you may know that summer calls for lots of yummy and fresh fruit juices, coconut water, soda and aerated cold drinks that are quite tempting; but many of these are very high in glucose. So if you're diabetic, avoid all of these drinks. Even alcohol and occasional or chocolate drinks ought to be strongly avoided. Having lime water is really a much safer option.
iii. uring summers, diabetics should more often go out for swimming and exercise yoga. Avoid working out during a workout session as it leads to more sweating and fatigue.
Self-check:
If you're diabetic and working out in the sun's rays, there may be chances that your body's temperature may shoot up all of a sudden. The next symptoms should not be avoided:
- Feeling dizzy and nausea
- Sweating
- Muscle cramps
- Sudden coldness of skin
- Increased rate of heartbeat
- Headaches
- If you experience these symptoms, immediately go to an aura conditioned room and stay well hydrated. Also consult your physician.
- If you need to exercise during summers, workout within an air conditioned gym or might be early in the morning as well as in the evening when the weather stays cool.
- Keep checking your glucose levels around four times a day. During summers, blood sugar levels level tends to fluctuate a great deal.
- Don't forget your medications.