Simple Habits to Keep Your Blood Sugar in Check

Reviewed By: Rebecca Anderson, FNP-BC

Maintaining healthy blood sugar levels is a vital part of maintaining your health, whether you have diabetes or not. Keeping your blood sugar in check can prevent many dangerous symptoms and life-threatening conditions, as well as ensure that your body has enough energy to complete day-to-day responsibilities [1]. Even the smallest lifestyle changes, when practiced consistently, can make all the difference in managing your blood sugar and overall health. In this blog post, we’ll highlight some of the most important lifestyle changes you can make to control your blood sugar and ensure a healthy lifestyle!

Why Blood Sugar Spikes Matter

Blood sugar energizes your body throughout the day, which is why your body works hard to keep it at a healthy level [2]. If blood sugar spikes due to too much sugar intake, your heart has to work extra hard to pump blood throughout your body. This can lead to short-term issues, like fatigue, blurred vision, frequent urination, increased thirst, and more [3]. It can also increase long-term risk for prediabetes [4], type 2 diabetes [5], and heart disease [6].

These risks can be mitigated by consulting your healthcare provider right away and practicing healthy habits to manage high blood sugar.

Simple Daily Habits to Keep Blood Sugar Stable

Start the Day with a Protein-Rich Breakfast

Many people think that eating less will reduce the effects of high blood sugar and diabetes. This may make them reduce what they eat for breakfast or skip it altogether. Although reducing your intake of certain foods can improve blood sugar, skipping breakfast completely can actually spike blood sugar [7]. Likewise, starting your day with too many carbohydrates, like bagels and cereal, can also lead to spikes [8]. Incorporating protein-rich foods into your breakfast is the best way to reduce the risk of blood sugar spikes and keep you full until lunchtime [8]. Some protein-packed breakfast ingredients include eggs, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, nuts, and nut butter.

Drink Water First (and Often)

Water has many positive effects on health, and blood sugar management is just one of them. When you have high blood sugar or diabetes, your kidneys need to work extra hard to filter out excess glucose from your body, which leads to more frequent urination [9]. This, in turn, makes you dehydrated. Dehydration can cause spikes in blood sugar [10], which is why it is especially important for people with diabetes to drink enough water. While you can look for warning signs of dehydration—such as dark yellow or orange urine, feeling dizzy or lightheaded, dry mouth or lips, headaches, and nausea—it’s important to remember these are often late indicators. Staying ahead of dehydration by drinking water regularly is key, rather than waiting until symptoms appear.[11]. To improve on your hydration, make a habit of drinking water as soon as you wake up, before each meal, and throughout the day (especially if you are feeling thirsty or exhibiting warning signs).

Move Your Body Regularly – Even in Small Bursts

Exercise is also essential for individuals with elevated blood sugar levels. Moving your body makes your cells more reactive to insulin, which helps lower your blood sugar faster [12]. Whether you create an in-depth exercise routine or simply take a walk after meals, staying active can help control blood sugar. Ask your healthcare provider about what exercises you should partake in to manage your condition and stay healthy.

Stick to Consistent Meal Times

As a basic guideline, people with diabetes should stick to a consistent meal time for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack [13]. Erratic eating habits, like skipping meals, can worsen the effects of high blood sugar [14]. The type of diet best for you depends on your healthcare provider’s advice, but many people with diabetes adhere to a Mediterranean, low-fat, low-carb, or Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet [15].

Manage Stress with Mini-Mindfulness

Many may be surprised that stress has a large effect on diabetes and blood sugar. When you are stressed, your body releases a hormone called cortisol, which triggers the release of stored glucose into your blood [16]. This heightens blood sugar and makes it harder to regulate. Based on personal circumstances, it may be difficult or unreasonable to eliminate stressors completely. However, there are small steps you can take to help manage and eventually decrease your stress levels, like mindfulness, deep breathing, and meditation [17]. Try some stress-reducing activities out and see what works best for you!

Prioritize Sleep (and a Consistent Sleep Schedule)

Not getting enough quality sleep each night can have drastic effects on your blood sugar levels, as it raises the risk for insulin resistance [18]. Unfortunately, many people with high blood sugar struggle with sleep for a handful of reasons [18]. For example, some of the symptoms of diabetes, like frequent urination and headaches, interfere with falling asleep and staying asleep. To improve your sleep quality, consider avoiding bright lights and screens before bed, switching to a comfier mattress, using fans to help circulate the air, or using other sleep aids [19].

Common Mistakes that Sabotage Blood Sugar Control

There are a lot of misconceptions and false beliefs when it comes to managing blood sugar levels and reducing the risk of diabetes complications. Some common mistakes that end up worsening blood sugar control include:

Skipping meals: As we touched on earlier, skipping meals can spike your blood sugar levels instead of keeping them stable.
Ignoring “hidden sugars”: Some foods appear to be low in sugar, but actually contain quite a lot of sugar. These foods can spike blood sugar without you realizing. Foods with “hidden sugars” include ketchup, pasta sauce, milk, salad dressing, granola, fruit preserves/jam, and protein bars [20]. Always check the nutrition information on the label before consuming.
Failing to plan and prepare meals: If you don’t plan and prep your meals ahead of time, you are more likely to make poor last-minute decisions based on convenience rather than health.

When to Talk to Your Doctor About Blood Sugar

If you are unsure if you are at risk of high blood sugar or have questions about managing existing blood sugar, speak with your doctor about the next best steps. They can support you by providing screening tests, treatment plans, and advice about healthy habits. Remember to look out for common signs of blood sugar imbalance, like increased thirst, dry mouth, fatigue, blurred vision, and frequent urination [21], and bring them up at your next doctor’s appointment. Your doctor is there to answer all your questions and create a prevention and management plan personalized to your health needs.

A Few Small Changes Can Make a Big Difference

By understanding the warning signs of high blood sugar and the steps you can take to prevent and manage it, you are making a huge difference in your wellness journey. Remember, there may be some bumps in the road along the way, and that’s okay. Consistency is more important than perfection when it comes to managing your high blood sugar. And at Greater Good Health, we are here to support you every step of the way.

References: