The goal of diabetes treatment is to keep blood glucose levels as close to normal as possible. Treatment for type 1 diabetes includes eating a healthy diet, exercising, and taking insulin. Treatment for type 2 includes living a healthy lifestyle and monitoring blood glucose levels. Self management is a key component to diabetes treatment and includes meal planning, planned physical activity, and blood glucose monitoring.
Diabetes Treatment: An Overview
Too much glucose (sugar) in the blood for a long time can cause
diabetes. This high blood glucose (also called blood sugar) can damage many parts of the body, such as the:
- Heart
- Blood vessels
- Eyes
- Kidneys.
Heart and blood vessel disease can lead to heart attacks and strokes.
Therefore, the goal of diabetes treatment is to keep blood glucose levels as close to the normal range as safely possible. Studies have shown that keeping blood glucose levels close to normal reduces the risk of developing major complications associated with type 1 and
type 2 diabetes.
Self-Management of Diabetes Treatment
Self-management is a key component of diabetes treatment.
Self-management refers to the ongoing process of
managing diabetes. This includes:
- Planning meals
- Planning physical activity
- Monitoring blood glucose
- Taking diabetes medicines
- Handling episodes of illness and of low and high blood glucose
- Managing diabetes when traveling.
The person with diabetes designs his or her own self-management diabetes treatment plan in consultation with a variety of healthcare professionals, such as:
- Doctors
- Nurses
- Dietitians
- Pharmacists.
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