When you and your healthcare specialist find the best way to manage diabetes, you may get many options. Insulin and other diabetes medications, including diabetes pills and shots, can help keep your blood glucose level in a healthy range. So, which one would work best for you? Let’s find out here.
Here are a few things that you and your physician will consider when you are deciding on a treatment for diabetes management. The types of diabetes medications, diet, exercise, and other precautions vary from patient to patient, considering the severity of their health condition.
Type of Diabetes
Are you suffering from type I or type II? Your type decides which drug you should take and the dosage you need to manage it. People with type I require insulin to keep their sugar level under control because their bodies do not make enough of it.
On the other hand, some people with type II diabetes may require insulin. Still, others can get their level down with a better diet, more exercise, and different types of diabetes medications. Very few people need insulin during type II diabetes treatment. An endocrinologist can perfectly decide and prescribe the best medication for diabetes.
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- Your blood glucose levels – If your levels stay too high for too long, you are at risk of complications of diabetes, like ocular symptoms or kidney impairment. Your physician may also add another drug to your treatment plan or may increase your dose to get it to a healthy range.
- For how long you have had diabetes – If you have been suffering from this condition for more than ten years, it is possible that some diabetes or sugar medications may not help you. Your physician may change your treatment plan over time because some diabetes pills get less effective the longer you take them.
- Other health conditions – You might have other health conditions along with diabetes, and this can affect how well your diabetes meds control your blood glucose, including:
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- Kidney impairment
- Obesity
- Sleep apnea or other sleep problems
- High blood pressure
- Heart disease
- Depression
- High cholesterol
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Some diabetes drugs may also help treat other health conditions and lower the chances of having them. These include GLP 1 agonist drugs that help you control your sugar level and make you feel fuller longer after you eat. This helps you lose extra pounds if you are overweight.
4. How active you are-It has been demonstrated that exercise can lower your blood sugar levels. It’s a good thing, but you must be involved in your diabetes treatment plan. Call your physician and inform him/her how much you move daily. You may require dose adjustment if you are more active in your daily life or work.
5. If you drink alcohol – Alcohol can lower your blood glucose levels for hours, so it affects the mode of action of insulin or blood sugar medications. You should inform your physician about your alcohol consumption, how much you drink, how frequently you drink, etc. You may need to take some additional steps to ensure that it does not disturb the working mechanism of your oral diabetes medications.
6. Fear of syringes – Insulin shots are a key for blood sugar control. If you can’t self-inject, you cannot use them when you need them. Talk to your physician if you are afraid of syringes or don’t feel confident about injecting yourself. Ask your physician to demonstrate how insulin is to be injected. If you are not comfortable with insulin shots, you may ask with your physician to increase the strength of your blood sugar pills.
