taming high blood sugar

Taming High Blood Sugar

What is a high blood sugar?
In general, high blood glucose is defined as a blood glucose over 180 mg/dl. Be sure to ask your doctor what he thinks a safe target is for you. If your blood sugars run high for long periods of time, this can pose significant problems for you long-term -- increased risk of complications such as eye disease, kidney disease, heart attacks and strokes and more. High blood sugars can pose health problems in the short-term as well.

What are the symptoms of high blood sugars?
• Increased thirst
• Increased urination
• Dry mouth or skin
• Tiredness or fatigue
• Blurred vision
• More frequent infections
• Slow healing cuts and sores
• Unexplained weight loss

What should you do for high blood sugars?
• Be sure to drink plenty of water. It is recommended to drink a minimum of 8 glasses each day.
• If your blood sugar is 250 or greater and you are on insulin, check your urine for ketones. If you have ketones follow your sick day rules or call your health care team if you are not sure what to do.

Ask yourself what may have caused the high blood sugar, and follow the suggestions outlined below. If the answers to the questions below are NO, try to determine if there is a pattern to your blood sugars.

Check your blood sugars before meals 3 days in a row. If greater than your target level for 3 days, a change in medication may be needed. Call your health care team or adjust your insulin dose following well day rules. Call your health care team if you are currently using diabetes pills. Determine why your blood sugars are high.

Ask yourself the questions outlined below. The answers will give you the information you need to determine what to do about the high blood sugars.

Above information from the Joslin Diabetes Center www.joslin.org

Cause	Ask These Questions	Take Action
Food	Have you increased your portion sizes? Have you changed your eating habits or more accurately to check food choices?	You may need to measure food more accurately. If you think your eating pattern is changing, your medication or exercise plan may need to change.
Activity	Have you decreased your usual activity? Are you doing too little activity?	Resume your exercise program or start one soon! Ask your healthcare team about starting program.
Medication	Have you been taking the prescribed doses? Have you been taking the medication at the right time? Are you injecting into the same area over and over? Do you have "spoiled" insulin? Does your insulin look different? Was your insulin exposed to very the hot or cold temperatures? Has your insulin expired?	Take the right dose at the right time. If any questions ask your pharmacist. Use new injection sites. Throw away the bottle and open a new bottle. Check the expiration date.
Monitoring	Is the drop of blood too small? Are you using the correct technique? Could your meter be dirty? Have your strips expired? Have your strips been exposed to very hot or cold temperatures or not been kept in an airtight, dry, container? Is your meter calibrated to the current bottle of strips?	See a nurse educator to be sure your technique is correct and meter is functioning the right way. Learn how to clean the meter. Throw away the strips and get a new bottle. Check the code on the strip bottle.

Next / Home