Keeping an Eye on Your Diabetes Health

Living with diabetes is not an easy task, however, you are not alone. Roughly 415 million people across the world are affected with this disease. If you have diabetes, you should consider several things, such as lifestyle, medication adherence, and check-ups with your healthcare provider. These are important to make sure that your diabetes is controlled and doesn’t lead to a deterioration in your overall health. Keeping blood sugars controlled can prevent serious problems like diabetic cardiomyopathy, stroke, and atherosclerosis⁴. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound a cure.

Tests to Keep Your Diabetes in Check

According to Kaiser Permanente, there are several exams that a person living with Diabetes should consider¹:

Weight and blood pressure: checked at every doctor’s visit.¹

A1C (Glycosylated hemoglobin): This is a test that is meant to be done every three months. Blood test that shows your average blood sugar for the past two to three months. This is done by measuring the amount of glucose attached to your blood cells¹.

The A1c target is usually less than 7% for people with diabetes. However, your provider will decide the ideal A1c target for you³.

Urine check: This annual test is done to look for small proteins which show signs of early kidney damage¹.

Lipid blood test: This test performed once every two years checks the level of your triglycerides, total ( “good” and “bad” cholesterol)¹.

The following tests are recommended to be checked every 2 years if you have Type 2 Diabetes with no symptoms, or had Type 1 Diabetes for more than 5 years¹

Eye Exam: Diabetes can affect your vision. Exams checks for any nerve damage of the eye. If you have nerve damage of the eye then it is recommended to see the doctor yearly¹.

According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines, pregnant women with preexisting type 1 or type 2 diabetes, the exam should be done in the first trimester. Patients should then be monitored at every trimester and for 1 year after giving birth².

Foot Exam: Diabetes can affect your feet. This test performed at least annually is to examine the feet. Tests are done more often if you have any positive findings¹. This checks for any numbness, sores, infections, and calluses^1,3.

Vaccines: According to the ADA, vaccines are recommended for diabetic patients. The flu vaccine is recommended for all people greater than 6 months of age. A 3-dose series of Hepatitis B vaccine should be given to people ages 19-59. People over the age of 60 should be considered for a 3 dose Hepatitis B vaccine. A PPSV23 Vaccine is recommended for people between the ages of 2-64 years of age and after age 65, the PPSV23 vaccine is necessary even if you had a vaccine in the past².

Diabetes management does not end in the doctor’s office. It all starts with the goals that you have set out for yourself. Whether it’s controlling your blood pressure or reducing your weight, this requires small and achievable goals. Set a goal too big and you will become overwhelmed. Talk over your goals with your healthcare provider. Putting in a consistent effort to maintain or achieve your diabetic goals will produce worthy results.

References:

• Cohen, A. (2018). Schedule for Diabetes Lab Tests and Exams. [online] Wa.kaiserpermanente.org. Available at: https://wa.kaiserpermanente.org/healthAndWellness/index.jhtml?item=%2Fcommon%2FhealthAndWellness%2Fconditions%2Fdiabetes%2FexamSchedule.html
• Riddle, M. (2018). Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes—2018. [online] Diabetesed.net. Available at: https://diabetesed.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/2018-ADA-Standards-of-Care.pdf
• Wisse, B. (2018). Diabetes tests and checkups: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. [online] Medlineplus.gov. Available at: https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000082.htm
• Papatheodorou, K., Papanas, N., Banach, M., Papazoglou, D. and Edmonds, M. (2016). Complications of Diabetes 2016. Journal of Diabetes Research, 2016, pp.1-3.

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