Holistic Methods of Controlling Diabetes

Holistic medicine aims to treat multiple causes of a disease by making changes in the individual's overall lifestyle including their exercise habits, diet patterns, personal goals and the patient's overall relationship to the disease. A holistic treatment for diabetes encourages gathering as much knowledge as possible about your condition and then being proactive about improving many facets of your life to manage diabetes.

Glucose Levels

• One of the first step to treating diabetes holistically is to check your blood sugar more often than normally prescribed. Become familiar with with your unique blood sugar cycle and note times of the day when your blood sugar is highest and lowest. Knowing how your blood sugar level changes throughout the day allows you to plan snacks or insulin shots more strategically.

  Always have emergency supplies such as glucose tablets, needles and insulin on hand just in case your body's glucose level spikes or drops suddenly. Schedule regular checkups with a health care professional to ensure that you are sufficiently managing the disease. Report any changes or worsening of symptoms to your doctor.

Exercise

• Starting a cardio workout routine helps with weight loss and overall fitness, which make it a good choice for diabetes patients focused on their overall health. Cardiovascular exercise strengthens your heart, increases lung capacity and burns calories.

  Weight training also provides whole-body benefits like better circulation and muscle strength. Diabetics are particularly sensitive to injury and must take extra care to avoid injury. Light strength training and flexibility exercises lower the chances of injury.

  Yoga classes may help lower your blood pressure by helping you to manage your overall level of stress. In addition to this the muscle flexibility may also be conducive to better blood circulation.

Diet

• Maintaining a healthy, balanced diet is also quite important for holistic treatment of diabetes. Identify and eliminate any major sources of sugar in your diet, and carefully police the food going into your body. Eat only complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, and eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Look for cooking classes offered by your community that are specifically dedicated to diabetics.