Managing Your Type 2 Diabetes and PCOS to Help Support Healthy Hemoglobin A1C Levels

Welcome to Lisanne Wellness Center Education Series, today we are talking about the Manage Your Type II Diabetes and PCOS to Help Support Healthy Hemoglobin A1C Levels

If your blood glucose levels are higher than normal, you should consult a medical practitioner and complete your testing together. The glycosylated hemoglobin test, or A1C test for short, is one of those tests. Using this blood test, you can determine your average blood sugar levels over the last three months. 

Although every test you get done is crucial for your health, this one gives your doctor the clearest picture of how you are doing overall in terms of managing your diabetes. It assists in directing your care and identifying the interventions and medications you may require to better maintain your health. You should take this test seriously, and you can take actions to ensure that your levels are as close to normal as possible. 

This article will cover the various techniques you can utilize to help lower your A1C test results, in addition to a number of tips and tricks to try out.

The Importance of Your A1C Levels

The test to measure your A1C levels is used to establish how consistently healthy your blood sugar levels are. A three-month average is generated by the test itself. This is then used by doctors to assess how well your diabetes is being managed. 

This is helpful because, although abnormal values can contribute to your A1C level, they normally do not have a dramatic effect on your average. Your A1C is centered more around your overall average even if you have a terrible week due to stress or indulging in a few cheat days of your diet.

If your A1C levels are abnormally high, it is necessary to make some changes because your diabetes is not being adequately managed. If you aren’t currently using insulin, you might have to follow a stricter diet or obtain a prescription for it. Your doctors might also think about using alternative interventions. 

That said, there are certain things you can do to help move your A1C levels into a healthier range before you reach this stage. 

Techniques to Help Lower Your A1C Levels

Controlling your blood sugar levels on a daily basis is necessary to lower your A1C levels. Your A1C test will reveal this if your levels are routinely high. The A1C test will also detect instances where your levels are typically higher, such as immediately following meals or early in the day. 

The at-home A1C tests can hide specific issues that you need to address, therefore it is typically not a good idea to rely on them frequently. Instead, concentrate on maintaining a healthy lifestyle and recognizing the issues that cause your blood sugar levels to rise. 

You can perform a variety of things listed below to help lower your A1C levels. 

Maintain a Healthy, Balanced Diet

A healthy, balanced diet is the first line of defense, as anyone with diabetes is likely to be aware of. This entails techniques like portion control and eating foods with a low glycemic index. 

This is often seen as one of the most difficult aspects of having diabetes if you have just received a diagnosis. In reality, there are very few people who want to be told they can’t continue to eat whatever they want. It’s important to watch your intake and perform actual math for each meal in addition to eliminating unhealthy food items. 

While this may be undoubtedly intimidating, the trick is to come up with ways to make it simpler for yourself. Consider substituting honey with sugar if you often drink your tea with added sugar or sweeteners. Honey not only satisfies your sweet craving while being nutritious, but it also contains anti-inflammatory properties that can even help you better manage healthy A1C levels. Modifying your diet to be healthier doesn’t necessarily mean giving up your favorite foods. 

If you’re struggling to maintain healthy levels, you can try cutting back on your daily carbohydrate intake to help solve the problem. Although there may be more substitutes requires, the overall health benefits are a wonderful trade-off. 

Meal prepping can help you create healthy meals to grab on the fly if you struggle to maintain a healthy diet while leading a hectic lifestyle. Although it might require some planning, many people find success with this approach. 

Maintain a Regular Exercise Routine

Exercise is crucial for the health of diabetics because it encourages the production of several hormones that support healthy blood sugar levels. As a matter of fact, exercising is such a powerful tool in lowering blood sugar levels that you may need to take necessary precautions to make sure your levels don’t drop too quickly while you’re working out. This includes adhering to the 15-15 rule before, during, and after exercise.If your A1C readings are elevated, you might want to change up your workout routine. Diabetics are advised to engage in quality exercise for about 30 minutes each day. Not only does maintaining a regular exercise regimen help maintain healthy blood sugar levels in the short-term, but it also helps to maintain them over the long run.

Keep Track of Your Glucose Levels

It’s important to monitor your blood sugar levels in order to better manage them. Throughout the day, you should regularly check your numbers at the following times:

• Before ALL Meals 
• At Bedtime
• Before AND After Exercise 
• If You Feel Faint or Dizzy 

If monitoring your blood sugar during these periods frequently reveals that your blood sugar levels are too high, you might want to think about using a continuous glucose monitor. This device is designed to monitor your blood sugar levels continuously and alerts you when they rise or fall abruptly. A blood glucose monitor can also help you to identify triggers more easily. 

Manage a Healthy Weight

Although discussing weight is never enjoyable, it is a crucial aspect of managing your diabetes. Generally speaking, your average blood sugar levels will run higher if you are overweight or obese compared to a lower BMI (body mass index). Also, there are added risks associated with obesity, including systemic (whole body) inflammation and inefficient bodily processes.

Fortunately, if you need to lose weight, the diabetic diet may take care of the majority of the work for you. Half the battle is won by eating well. You can try different techniques to manage a healthy weight and blood sugar levels as long as you are maintaining a nutritious diet. 

A few of these methods include:

• Exercising, Regularly and Effectively

• Making Minor Adjustment to Daily Habits; this can look like parking a little father from your destination or using the stairs instead of the elevator. 

• Discuss Prescriptions that Help to Support a Healthy Weight with your Primary Care Provider.

• Utilizing Supplements to Support a Healthy and Efficient Metabolism

You might also think about consulting an expert, such as a dietitian or bariatric specialists, if these approaches are not helping you lose weight. More often than not, they will have access to resources that you would not otherwise have access to. 

Attaining a healthy weight will ultimately have a significant impact on your blood sugar levels as well as your general health. The work is definitely well worthwhile.

Lisanne Wellness Center offers a Triple Burn Program, which is a program developed to help support a healthy weight and blood glucose levels through the use of special Vitagenis products, including Fat Burning Drops, MCT Oil, and Ketone Strips. Get in touch with one of our specialists today to learn more about this program and how it can help you to reach and manage a healthy weight to better support diabetes. 

Additionally, we offer a Omega 3 testing kit to help you determine specific nutritional supplementation requirements to help restore EFA (essential fatty acid) balance and attain the recommended 1:1-1:5 omega-3-to-6 ratios and support a healthy response to inflammation. To better support a healthy EFA balance, Vitagenis Omega Pure is also available, which is an ultra-pure fish oil supplement that supports optimal health and alleviate inflammation.  

Make Use of Your Healthcare Team

If you are having trouble managing your diabetes, you do not have to fight this battle by yourself. Your healthcare team is there to support you through these difficulties and to provide strategies and solutions to help you reach optimal health. 

There are a variety of specialists to choose from for those who have diabetes. These specialists may include, among others:

• General Practitioner
• Dietitian
• Endocrinologist
• Diabetes Specialist Nurse
• Podiatrist
• Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (CDCES)

You can ask your general practitioner or endocrinologist for a referral if you don’t have access to any of these specialists. Each one is equipped with useful knowledge and resources that can aid in improving your diabetes management and overall health. 

You have every right to seek a second opinion if you feel that none of your specialists are providing you with the attention, care, or options you deserve. 

Lisanne Wellness Center has a team of specialists available to you to support you on your journey to optimal health. Contact us today to talk with one of our team members who are more than happy to assist you on your journey to better diabetes management

Reach Out for Community Support

Although your healthcare team may be available to assist you in managing your diabetes, it’s important to understand that they do not have the time or resources to spend hours on end with you discussing the finer points of different recipes or seeing you every time you may require emotional support. 

For this reason, it’s essential to have a support system in place that’s made up of loved ones, friends, and individuals who have diabetes. You can explore several places to discover an excellent diabetic support network. These consist of: 

• Support Groups
• Social Media Groups
• Community Events
• Word of Mouth / Referrals 

The correct support network can provide you with a wealth of knowledge that will enable to manage healthy blood sugar levels. You can obtain useful advice that has benefited others or discover fresh, healthful recipes to try. 

Join LWC Community to receive the support you need to better manage healthy blood sugar levels and diabetes.

Identify Your Symptoms and Manage Them 

Diabetes is no different from other symptoms in that our bodies respond to them all differently. Every diabetes has unique triggers and problem areas. Identifying yours may have a significant impact on your management strategies by helping you to support healthy hemoglobin A1C levels while enhancing your ability to better control your diabetes. 

It’s highly recommended for diabetes to maintain a diary to keep track of every time they check their blood sugar levels. Additionally, a solid blood sugar diary will include any significant event that occurred close to the time of each measurement in the notes section. Significant events may include:

• High-Stress Days
• Incorrect Insulin Dose
• Skipping Exercise
• Feeling Ill 
• Drug/Medication Interactions 
• Major Life Event (e.g., surgery or injury)
• Irregular or Inadequate Sleep
• Drinking or Smoking

As time passes, you should start to notice trends when your blood glucose level measurements are elevated. This is especially true if you are taking quality, detailed notes. As you become more and more aware of your specific triggers, do your best to work to lessen or eliminate them altogether. As a result, you may see a drop in your A1C levels the next time your blood sugar levels are elevated. 

Effectively Manage Your Stress Levels

Stress leads to poor blood sugar control because the primary stress hormones, cortisol and adrenaline, stimulate your liver to pump more glucose into your bloodstream to deal with stressors. This is a product of evolution as most of the stressors we faced centuries ago, such as hunting for food or fighting off a wild animal, were swiftly dealt with using energy surges.

These days, you can’t just challenge a problematic boss to a duel to get rid of stress. As a result, stress hormones accumulate over time, which increases the risk of future health complications. Lowering chronic stress may better support healthy blood sugar levels, which may also reduce hemoglobin A1C levels. 

It is true that overcoming stress is difficult, especially if you have a lot of responsibility. One common and quite useful trick to begin with is identifying stressors that can be easily eliminated. Then, divide them into manageable steps and begin crossing them off. Yes, there will still be certain stressors, but they will be simpler to manage without the added pressure of everything else going on. 

Maintain Healthy Sleeping Habits

One of the most rejuvenating things you can do for your body is getting enough sleep, which has a direct effect on your blood sugar levels. Our bodies go through processes when we sleep that reset our systems, clean out our short-term memory, and perform other beneficial functions. Additionally, because our bodily systems are not working as hard when we sleep, our blood sugar levels naturally drop. 

Your body cannot go through these processes to get ready for the next day if you are not receiving adequate sleep. You won’t get a chance to normalize your hormone levels, your blood sugar levels won’t stabilize, and your body won’t restore normal functions for the following day. 

Respecting your body’s natural circadian rhythm by getting at least seven hours of sleep at night is one of the greatest approaches to acquire healthy sleep. When you go to bed and get up at the same time every day, including the weekends, it is easier to accomplish this. Even while it can be challenging for night owls, the advantages are endless.

If you still have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, think about taking melatonin at night or discussing prescription sleep aids with your primary care practitioner.