Diabetes and Aspirin
PublishedI have had type 2 diabetes for the past 10 years, but my health is good otherwise. Should I be taking daily aspirin? I’ve heard conflicting information about taking aspirin…
Gary Scheiner, MS, CDE
Low Blood Sugar During Sports Practice: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedMy son is a high school athlete who uses a pump and CGM (continuous glucose monitor). We don’t have any blood sugar problems when he works out before school, but he keeps dropping low during his afternoon practices. Do you have any recommendations for preventing low blood sugar during sports?
Should I Worry About Prediabetes?: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedShould I worry about prediabetes? A reader recently diagnosed with the condition after a fasting blood sugar level of 104 mg/dl asks…
Coffee and Blood Sugar: Diabetes Questions and Answers
PublishedA reader experiencing highs after his morning coffee asks about the link between coffee and blood sugar…
Going Back on Metformin: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedIs it possible to not need medication and then suddenly need it again? A reader with type 2 diabetes asks about going back on metformin…
Keto Diet With an Insulin Pump: Diabetes Questions and Answers
PublishedAre you using an insulin pump to manage your diabetes and trying the keto diet? Get expert advice on how to prevent blood glucose highs and lows…
Tips to Support a Loved One With Diabetes
PublishedDoes someone close to you have #diabetes? Get our top tips for supporting a loved one with the condition…
Rebound Morning Glucose and the Pump: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedFind your blood sugar going low overnight and then high each morning? Find out what you can do with your pump to help…
Vitamin to Curb Hunger: Diabetes Questions and Answers
PublishedMost people with diabetes are hungrier than those without, thanks to deficiency of a specific hormone. Learn about vitamins—and lifestyle measures—that have the potential for appetite suppression…
Blood Sugar on Vacation: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedDo you find your blood sugar levels are different while on vacation? Learn about a possible culprit for the change…
Blood Sugar Rising Overnight: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedA reader asks, “My blood sugar rises overnight, even with nothing to eat after dinner.” Learn why this happens and what can be done…
A Bedtime Snack and Blood Sugar: Diabetes Questions & Answers
PublishedDoes a bedtime snack help or hurt the wake-up blood sugar reading? Learn about having a bedtime snack and blood sugar from Certified Diabetes Educator Gary Scheiner…
False Hypo Symptoms: Diabetes Questions & Answers
UpdatedA reader writes, “Recently I’ve been noticing low blood sugar feelings (glazed, unable to concentrate) even when my blood sugar levels are normal or high…”
Alternatives to Medical ID Jewelry: Diabetes Questions & Answers
UpdatedCarrying medical ID now is more important than ever, not only for health reasons, but also for legal reasons…
Tired and Hungry After Eating: Diabetes Questions & Answers
UpdatedFeeling tired and hungry after eating? There may be an explanation and a solution. Learn more from certified diabetes educator Gary Scheiner…
Creating Your Book of Adjustments
Updated“Essential Chapters” for all insulin users: • Sick day diabetes management • Strategies for correcting elevated BGs • Matching mealtime insulin to food intake • … Read More “Creating Your Book of Adjustments”
Example Book of Adjustments Entry for Physical Activity
UpdatedConsume carbs prior to these: Kitchen clean-up: 10 g Vacuuming: 15 g Laundry: 20 g If walking after meal: Reduce mealtime insulin 25%
The Book of Adjustments for Managing Blood Sugar
UpdatedThe Book of Adjustments is an individualized, personalized, customized guide for managing glucose levels through the nuances of day-to-day living…
Making More Effective Use of Your Continuous Glucose Monitor
UpdatedThere’s a big gap between simply using a CGM and truly benefitting from it. Here are the three keys to achieving these desired outcomes…
Treating Hypoglycemia
UpdatedImproper treatment of hypoglycemia can lead to prolonged or severe lows as well as prolonged or severe highs. It’s time to develop a more customized approach to dealing with hypoglycemia…
Beyond Insulin
UpdatedBeing on insulin no longer means that you’ve reached the end of your options for managing your diabetes. A number of other medical treatments can be used safely and effectively along with insulin…
Exorcising the Specter of Overnight Hypoglycemia
UpdatedBy understanding the causes of and being prepared for nighttime hypoglycemia, people with diabetes can minimize its occurrence and reduce its impact…
Top 10 Tips for Better Blood Glucose Control
UpdatedParenting is a never-ending challenge, and so is diabetes care. Parents need to stay involved in their child’s management even when he is old enough and mature enough to perform many of his daily self-management rituals on his own…
Strike the Spike II: How to Manage High Blood Glucose After Meals
UpdatedWe know more than ever about the harmful effects of high blood sugar after meals, but we also have new tools and techniques for preventing them…
Amylin
UpdatedBatman has Robin. The Lone Ranger has Tonto. And insulin has its own tough little partner: a hormone called amylin.
What’s that? You thought insulin worked alone, like Superman or Spiderman? Think again. Those guys only had madmen and criminals to fight. Insulin has the onerous task of keeping blood glucose in check while fending off challenges from food, stress, illness, and a slew of other hormones…
Analyze This!
UpdatedLearning how to interpret your own self-monitoring records can get you closer to the control you’ve always wanted…
Tune In to Your Ratio(s)
UpdatedNo, it’s not a typo. For people who use insulin, determining and using your insulin-to-carbohydrate ratios can give you more flexibility with regard to food choices and better blood glucose control…
The Great Blood Glucose Balancing Act
UpdatedRecently, I saw two very different clients with a very similar problem: difficulty controlling blood glucose levels during physical activity…
Continuous Glucose Monitoring: Making Sense of Your Numbers
UpdatedA1c. HDL. LDL. Fasting blood glucose levels. Postprandial blood glucose levels. Grams of carbohydrate. Insulin-to-carbohydrate ratios. Correction factors.
Ever feel like you”re drowning in numbers? Diabetes care is chock full of numerical data…
Counting Carbohydrates Like a Pro
UpdatedFor keeping blood glucose in control, carbohydrate counting works better than any other system. Here are three recommendations for counting carbohydrates…
Take a Bite Out of Hypoglycemia
UpdatedHypoglycemia has been called the “greatest limiting factor” in diabetes management…
Strike the Spike
UpdatedPostprandial hyperglycemia refers to high blood glucose levels that occur soon after eating meals or snacks. So even though after-meal high blood glucose levels are temporary (often resembling a spike when plotted on a graph), frequent between-meal rises can cause your HbA1c to go up…
Selecting an Insulin Program for Type 1 Diabetes
UpdatedFor people with Type 1 diabetes, is there really anything more personal and significant in your life than your insulin program? In a way, your insulin program defines your lifestyle. It can either dictate your meal, sleep, and activity schedules, or it…
Getting Down to Basals
UpdatedBasal insulin is necessary for maintaining blood glucose control, not to mention survival. So how much is needed? And when should it be taken?
Go Ahead, Pick Your Pump
UpdatedMy plan is to go through life with two things at my side: My wife (‘til death do us part…) and my insulin pump, at least until there’s a cure for diabetes.
Choosing my wife was easy—she was the only woman who was willing…
