When a person suffers from diabetes, it is said that their body does not produce enough insulin or does not use it properly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains what happens: “When there isn’t enough insulin or the cells stop responding to insulin, excess sugar stays in the bloodstream, and over time, it can cause health problems. serious, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease.”
To contribute to the prevention of this disease, the ideal is to eat a healthy diet, to avoid situations of blindness, stroke or amputation of the lower limbs. For those who have been diagnosed with it, it is good to follow the instructions given by the doctor to the letter.
However, work, obligations and daily routine can represent a risk for people suffering from diabetes. According to information from Corner Salud, “one of the main causes of worsening diabetes is usually due to periods of stress. Stress is a normal and adaptive reaction to various situations, a sign that we are in danger. This is our body’s response to a situation that it interprets as threatening or dangerous and prepares to deal with it.”
“This can be a significant obstacle to effective glucose control. Stress hormones in your body directly affect glucose levels. When you experience stress or feel threatened, your body reacts. It’s called fight or flight response. This response increases your hormonal levels and causes your nerve cells to activate,” explained experts at Healthline, a web portal specializing in health.
“These intense feelings, known as diabetes distress, can lead you to neglect yourself and engage in bad habits, stop monitoring your blood sugar, and even miss doctor’s appointments. This happens to many, if not most, people with diabetes, usually after years of managing their diabetes well. In any given 18-month period, between 33% and 50% of people with diabetes develop diabetes,” explains the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
It is important for diabetic patients to consult a doctor if they experience any symptoms of this condition. This will prevent the disease from getting worse.
For its part, a study conducted by scientists from the American Diabetes Association found the effects of stress on glucose levels in animals and people. “Diabetic rats under physical or mental stress have high glucose levels. The effects on people with type 1 diabetes are more variable. While most people’s glucose levels increase with stress in mental, others’ glucose levels may decrease. In people with type 2 diabetes, mental stress often increases blood glucose levels. “Physical stress, such as an illness or injury, causes high blood glucose in people with any type of diabetes.”
According to experts, to avoid stress, relaxation therapies, practicing sport or physical activity, and breathing exercises are very helpful, without leaving new treatments, such as hyperbaric medicine.
