Cholesterol and Diabetes

By Robbie Bainer

As a diabetic, you begin to learn that all of the things you do in your life will impact your health in some way - for better or for worse. While you already know you need to watch your blood sugar, what you might not realize is that diabetics are at a greater risk of heart issues as well. To ensure your heart stays healthy, you may want to learn how to reduce your cholesterol levels naturally. Not only will these steps help you protect your heart, but they will also help decrease your risk of adding a cholesterol reducing medication to your daily life.

* Develop an exercise routine - A daily exercise routine of even 30 minutes will get your body moving, your blood flowing and help you reduce your cholesterol levels.

* Include more fiber in your meals - As a person with diabetes you are probably aware that you can achieve better control over your bloods sugar levels by eating more fiber. However, did you know that it also helps decrease your bad cholesterol number? The recommended daily amount of fiber is approximately 25 grams for women and 30 grams for men.

* Add essential fatty acids - Fish and fish oils can also help your body process cholesterol more effectively, while also strengthening your overall health. You can take supplements or add salmon and tuna to your diet several times a week.

* Cut out saturated fats - It's always a good idea to cut out as many saturated fats as you can when you are trying to regulate your cholesterol. Take time to read the labels of the foods you eat to make sure that you are reducing this number of fat grams to no more than 10 a day. It can also help to choose fat-free and low-fat dairy and meat products to instantly lower your saturated fat intake.

* Vegetarian - A natural way to lower your cholesterol and lower your blood sugar levels may be to become a vegetarian. Vegetables are low in carbs which is great for a person with diabetes. And of course, they do not contain any saturated fats, which will decrease your bad cholesterol. Try eating a vegetarian diet for 3 to 6 months and see how you feel.

* Quit smoking - A person with diabetes and high cholesterol should do their best to eliminate other things in their life that contribute to an unhealthy body. One of the first things they should work on is to quit smoking. Speak to your doctor about all of the options out there to help you quit smoking.

Yes, it is easy to take multiple medications on a daily basis to lower your blood sugar and lower your cholesterol, but the long term affects on your health should make you think twice. Why not work on naturally lowering your cholesterol by trying to make the changes shown above? As with any significant change, monitor your progress over several months to see if your cholesterol levels drop. Also, you may find that once you are able to stabilize your blood sugar numbers your cholesterol numbers will naturally return to normal levels as well.

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Learn About 7 Natural Ways To Lower Your Blood Sugar

By Robbie Bainer

If you are a diabetic you know that it is important to manage your blood sugar levels. But did you know that there are many things that you can do to help balance out your blood sugar levels aside from taking the medication recommended by your physician? Of course you should always follow the prescribed medication, but you may find that you can make some natural adjustments to your lifestyle and still achieve optimal blood sugar levels by incorporating several natural steps into your daily routine.

* Get lots of sleep - Many people are not aware of how important a regular good night's sleep is to their health. By getting 7 or more hours of sleep per night a person with diabetes should see their blood sugar numbers start to stabilize.

* Sweets should be skipped - Although a person with diabetes may indulge in the occasional sweet treat, it isn't a good idea to eat white sugar and sweet treats on a regular basis. Skip the fruit juices, soda pops, as well as white pasta, breads and donuts. The more you can eliminate sugar from your daily meals, the better your blood sugar test results will be.

* Boost your fiber intake - When your body takes in more fiber, it will slow down the rate of digestion in your body, which will help to lower your blood sugar naturally. You can find out how much fiber is in a food by reading the food label and looking at the dietary fiber grams count. Ideally, a person should have about 20 grams each day for the most health benefit.

* Reduce your caffeine intake - The more caffeine you have, the harder it can be to regulate your caffeine intake, so try to reduce your caffeine intake to make sure you're doing all you can.

* Regulate your blood sugar with regular exercise - The key here is to choose exercise that you enjoy, such as walking, running, playing basketball or baseball and then trying to do these different types of exercise as often as you can. The more physical you are the easier it will be to naturally maintain your blood sugar numbers.

* Switch to low carb - It is easier then ever to live a low carb lifestyle and still enjoy lots of great meals and even some desserts. A person with diabetes will find that their blood sugar numbers naturally decline when they switch to a low carb diet. Again, check labels when you are grocery shopping and also look for new cookbooks that will help you make delicious new meals while still limiting the number of carbs you eat each day.

* Relax and relieve stress - Some people find this very difficult but it is so important for everyone, diabetic or not, to learn how to relax and relieve stress. People under a lot of stress will eventually develop health problems. They may become diabetic, they may have high blood pressure or they may just completely burn out. Too much stress can also lead to significant weight gain. There are many things that a person can do to naturally relieve stress in their life and to naturally support their blood sugar. To ease your mind of worry and relieve stress, try going for a nice walk or run, meditate, do yoga, or even take a beautiful vacation - minus the laptop and cell phone. The more you are able to relax your mind and your body, the better your blood sugar levels will be.

You do not need to do everything shown above all at once to naturally control your blood sugar. Choose a few of these suggestions and begin working on them to see how your body responds. Keep track of your progress and as you start to feel better and your blood sugar numbers begin to decline you can add in the other ideas to your daily routine.

About the Author:

Want to learn even more helpful ways to lower blood sugar and control diabetes naturally? Get our news and updates at www.diabetescontrolinformation.blogspot.com and claim your free download of the "Defying Diabetes Insider Report Kit" -- Click Here

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