Diabetes and prediabetes are linked to high blood sugar, often known as hyperglycemia. Prediabetes is defined as having high blood sugar levels but not being diabetic. Normally, your body maintains blood sugar levels by making insulin, a hormone that assists your cells to use the sugar in your blood. As a result, insulin is the most significant blood sugar regulator. However, a variety of circumstances can compromise blood sugar control and result in hyperglycemia. Blood sugar control is especially crucial for diabetics since chronically high blood sugar levels can cause limb and life-threatening consequences. Here are 10 natural way to lower blood sugar.
1.Regular physical exercise
Regular physical activity can assist you achieve and maintain a healthy weight while also increasing insulin sensitivity. Increased insulin sensitivity means that your cells can utilize the available sugar in your bloodstream more efficiently. Exercise also aids in the utilisation of blood sugar for energy and muscular contraction. If you struggle with blood sugar control, consider testing your levels both before and after workout on a regular basis.
This will assist you in learning how you respond to various activities and will maintain your blood sugar levels from becoming too high or low. Furthermore, researchers advise doing “exercise snacks” to reduce blood sugar and avoid the consequences that sitting all day might do. Simply break up your sitting time every 30 minutes for a few minutes during the day with exercise snacks. Light walking or modest resistance workouts like squats or leg raises are among the exercises recommended.
Weightlifting, brisk walking, running, biking, dancing, hiking, swimming, and other activities are also beneficial. The term “responsibility” refers to the act of determining whether or not a person is responsible for his or her own actions. Plus, know that if you have problems spending lengthy durations to workout during the week, you can still obtain many effects by doing shorter exercises. Try aiming for 10-minute workout routine three times a day for five days, with a weekly goal of 150 minutes.
2. Control your carb consumption
Your carbohydrate intake has a significant impact on your blood sugar levels. Your body converts carbohydrates down into sugars, mostly glucose. Then, insulin assists your body to use and store it for energy. When you eat too many carbs or have insulin-function difficulties, this mechanism fails, and blood glucose levels can rise. As a result, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) suggests that patients with diabetes regulate their carb consumption by counting carbs and understanding how many they require.
According to some research, this can assist you in planning your meals more effectively, boosting blood sugar management even more. Many studies have also found that following a low carb diet helps to lower blood sugar levels and avoid blood sugar rises. It’s vital to understand that a low-carbohydrate diet and also no carbohydrate diets are not the same thing. When controlling your blood sugar, you can still eat certain carbohydrates. However, choosing whole grains over processed grains and refined carbohydrates delivers more nutritional value while also helping to lower blood sugar levels.
3. Consume more fibre.
Fiber slows food digestion and sugar absorption, so facilitating a more steady rise in blood sugar levels. Fiber is classified into two types: insoluble and soluble. While both are beneficial, soluble fibre has been clearly proved to benefit blood sugar regulation, but insoluble fibre has not.
A high fibre diet can help your body balance blood sugar and prevent blood sugar lows. This might assist you control type 1 diabetes better.
Fiber-rich foods include:
- vegetables
- fruits
- legumes
- complete grains
Fiber consumption should be around 25 grammes for women and 35 grammes for males per day. That’s around 14 grammes for every 1,000 calories.
4. Drink more water and remain hydrated
Drinking adequate water may assist you in maintaining appropriate blood sugar levels. In addition to reducing dehydration, it aids your kidneys flush out any excess glucose through urine. According to one assessment of observational studies, people who drank more water had a lower risk of acquiring high blood sugar levels.
Drinking water on a daily basis may help to rehydrate the blood, lower blood sugar levels, and minimise the risk of diabetes. Always keep in mind that water and other zero-calorie beverages are the healthiest options. Avoid sugar-sweetened alternatives, which can elevate blood glucose levels, cause weight gain, and increase the risk of diabetes.
5. Apply portion control
Portion control can assist you in regulating your calorie consumption and maintaining a healthy weight. Consequently, weight management maintains healthy blood sugar levels and has been demonstrated to minimise the chance of acquiring type 2 diabetes. Monitoring your portion sizes also helps reduce blood sugar increases.
Listed below are some helpful hints for portion control:
- Portion sizes should be measured and weighed.
The answer is yes. - Avoid all-you-can-eat establishments.
- Check the serving sizes on food labels.
- Keep a dietary diary.
- Eat gently.
6. Attempt to control your stress levels
Blood sugar levels can be affected by stress. When you are stressed, your body produces hormones called glucagon and cortisol, which raise blood sugar levels. One research of students found that exercise, relaxation, and meditation dramatically reduced stress and blood sugar levels. Yoga and mindfulness-based stress reduction may also aid in the correction of insulin secretion abnormalities in persons with chronic diabetes.
7. Maintain a balanced weight
Maintaining a healthy weight promotes good blood sugar levels and lowers your risk of diabetes. Research reveals that even a 5% reduction in body weight can enhance your blood sugar management and lessen the requirement for diabetes medication.
For instance, if an individual weighs 200 pounds (91 kg) and loses merely 10-14 pounds (4.5-6 kg), their blood sugar levels may improve significantly. Furthermore, decreasing more than 5% of your starting weight may improve your glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels. These are used to track your blood sugar levels throughout the last three months.
8. Consume probiotic-rich foods
Probiotics are beneficial microorganisms that provide a variety of health benefits, including better blood sugar management. Probiotic use has been shown in studies to reduce fasting blood sugar, glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), and insulin resistance in persons with type 2 diabetes.
Interestingly, studies have showed that those who drink different species of probiotics for at least 8 weeks have greater blood sugar improvements.
Probiotic-rich diets include fermented foods, including such:
- yogurt, as long as the label states that it contains live active cultures
- kefir
- tempeh
- sauerkraut
- kimchi
9. Pick foods that have a low glycemic index
The glycemic index (GI) assesses how quickly carbohydrates are broken down throughout digestion and absorbed by your body. This impacts how rapidly your blood sugar levels increase. The GI classifies foods as low, medium, or high GI and grades them from 0 to 100. Low GI foods have a GI score of 55 or lower.
The type and amount of carbs you consume both influence how a food impacts your blood sugar levels. Eating low GI foods, in particular, has been demonstrated to lower blood sugar levels in diabetics. Some foods with a low to moderate GI are as follows:
- bulgur
- barley
- unsweetened Greek yogurt
- oats
- beans
- lentils
- legumes
- whole wheat pasta
- non-starchy vegetables
10. Receive sufficient decent sleep
Getting adequate sleep feels fantastic and is crucial for healthy health. In fact, poor sleeping patterns and a lack of rest can have an impact on blood sugar levels and insulin levels, raising the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. They can also stimulate hunger and cause weight gain.
Additionally, sleep deprivation elevates levels of the hormone cortisol, which, as indicated, plays a vital role in blood sugar regulation. Adequate sleep is concerned with both amount and quality. The National Sleep Foundation suggests that individuals receive at least 7-8 hours of excellent quality sleep per night.
Try the following to increase the quality of your sleep:
- Maintain a sleep schedule.
- The term “electronic commerce” refers to the sale of electronic goods.
- Exercise on a regular basis.
- Reduce screen time before bed.
- Maintain a cool bedroom temperature.
- Restriction your naps.
- Start creating a bedtime routine.
- Use relaxing and soothing smells such as lavender.
- Avoid doing work in your bedroom.
- Before going to bed, take a warm bath or shower.
- Try guided visualisation or meditation.
