Diabetes: One of the Many Stress Induced Disorders That Can Wreak Havoc on You
Approximately a million people have diabetes. This health condition, characterized by elevated glucose levels or sugar in the body, can prove life-threatening if not dealt with properly. Most people view people with All You Need To Know About The stress induced disorders as overweight individuals following a sedentary lifestyle and eating junk food all the time. But there is more than meets the eye.
A person with a normal weight, healthy eating habits can also have type 2 diabetes. It is because diabetes is not associated with hereditary factors alone. It is one of the major stress induced disorders that not many sufferers know.
What Is the Link between Stress and Diabetes?
Woman stressed with her blood sugar levels, Credit: Pixabay
Diabetes is one of the most critical types of stress related disorders. In simple words, stress is physical and mental tension. Unfortunately, in today’s world, stress has become very common. Work, health concerns, parenting, relationships, etc. are a few of the many causes of stress and anxiety that can worsen diabetes in an individual.
Two types of hormones regulate the blood sugar of a person. The first type, i.e., insulin, reduces blood sugar. The second type includes several hormones like cortisol, adrenalin, glucagon, and growth hormone, which increases the level of sugar in the blood.
High levels of stress increase the number of second type of hormones. Over time, they may result in diabetes in an individual already at risk of it or deteriorate this existing condition.
How To Know If Stress Is Affecting Your Blood Sugar Levels
Person measuring blood sugar levels, Credit: Pixabay
Stress induced disorders like diabetes can be controlled considerably by managing stress levels through a healthy lifestyle. You need to detect your stress levels to manage diabetes effectively.
One of the major red flags that stress is behind your diabetes is finding yourself consuming all your medicines on time, eating a healthy diet, yet noticing no improvement in your glucose levels. Thus, if you’re stressed, no matter what you do, your blood sugar levels will not budge or come down.
Another method is to rate your stress levels on a scale of 1-10. Do this whenever you’re testing your blood glucose levels. It will easily help you find out the connection between stress and diabetes. You will find that whenever your blood sugar is on the higher side, so is your stress. On the other hand, when you’re calm and peaceful without any undue tension or stress, your blood glucose levels will automatically come down.
But it does not mean that consuming a healthy diet has no impact on your blood sugar levels. When combined with a healthy diet, stress management can work wonders for managing diseases caused by stress like diabetes.
How to Combat Diabetes by Managing Stress
Woman relaxing with music, Credit: Pixabay
You cannot eliminate stress from your life. In fact, small amounts of stress is essential for being alive. What you can do is prevent your stress from getting out of control. It is especially important for people dealing with diabetes. Many people have successfully controlled their diabetes by just managing their stress levels. You can also do it. Just follow the above-mentioned tips.
Follow a healthy lifestyle with plenty of exercise daily.
Consume a well-balanced diet rich in all the major micro and macro nutrients.
Practice time management skills. Start organizing your time for various tasks and chores in a better manner.
Practice relaxation techniques like yoga, meditation, and breathing exercises.
Maintain a proper sleeping schedule so that you get adequate rest.
Hence, we see that managing stress ultimately is all about changing your lifestyle for the better. People with diabetes can effectively manage their stress by inculcating healthy living habits. Reach out for help if you feel unable to control something in your life.