It’s a common refrain from healthcare providers to diabetic patients, “Get more exercise.” It’s more than just good advice to stay fit, trim, and healthy. You may need to lose some weight, but exercise is a critical element in how well insulin and oral diabetes medications work.
Many people with diabetes take oral medications to control blood glucose levels, combined with a regimen of exercise and diet modifications. Even with medication and changes in diet, without exercise those individuals often find themselves injecting insulin a few years down the road.
Individuals that are taking insulin may find that the type or brand of insulin they take is changed from time to time – along with any oral medications they may be taking. For others, the amount of insulin they inject each time may be increased if it’s not lowering glucose levels enough.
Without sufficient exercise, the body can become resistant to insulin or oral medications. Both types of medications work by taking the glucose circulating in the bloodstream and directing it to cells within the body. When the body becomes resistant, medication doesn’t work effectively and higher doses are required.
All types of exercise are effective for combating insulin resistance. Exercise enhances the body’s sensitivity to diabetes medications and makes them more effective. Even when diabetics don’t lose weight, exercise still enables the body to use diabetic medications more effectively. Even walking two hours a week can lessen the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure – two health risks that increase when people have diabetes.
The best time to exercise is one to three hours after a meal has been consumed when glucose levels are most likely to be higher. For those that take insulin, it’s essential that they test their blood sugar levels before exercising.
Depending on how the body responds to the exercise, it may be helpful to take a piece of fruit or a small snack along to ensure glucose levels don’t fall too low. Exercise is an essential element of a treatment plan to control and manage diabetes.
If you would like to find out about earning cash for your unwanted, unused and boxed test strips, complete our online quote form today.
If you have extra, unopened and unused boxes of diabetic test strips – whether you have switched brands, no longer need to test or test less frequently, or have a loved one who has passed away – don’t let them gather dust until they’ve expired and end up in the trash. We’re the best place to sell diabetic test strips online, and if you want to sell your test strips, we’re here to make the process easy and enjoyable!
Visit us at Sell Your Test Strips and get your free quote today!
Like us on Facebook