Patient resources

Manage a Long Term Condition

Practical day to day guidance for the conditions you manage over years rather than days.

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1Find your condition

Common
Hormones and metabolism

Diabetes

Also called sugar, sugar problem, blood sugar, high sugar, madhumeh

What it isSignsWhat to doWhat to avoidFeel betterCall a doctor

What this condition is

Diabetes, most often type 2, is a long term condition in which the level of glucose (sugar) in your blood stays higher than it should. Normally a hormone called insulin helps move sugar from your blood into your cells to be used for energy. In diabetes the body either does not make enough insulin or cannot use it well, so sugar builds up in the blood. It is very common in India and is often simply called sugar. Hearing that you have diabetes can feel worrying, but please be reassured that with the right habits, regular checks and your doctor's guidance, most people live full, active and healthy lives.

Signs to watch for

  • Feeling very thirsty and having a dry mouth
  • Passing urine often, especially at night
  • Feeling hungry more than usual
  • Losing weight without trying
  • Feeling tired and low on energy
  • Blurred vision
  • Cuts and wounds that heal slowly
  • Tingling or numbness in the hands and feet
  • Repeated skin, gum or urine infections

What to do

  • Take your medicines or insulin exactly as prescribed, at the right time
  • Check your blood sugar as advised and get your HbA1c tested, usually every three months
  • Fill half your plate with vegetables and salad, and choose whole grains and dals
  • Walk briskly or stay active for at least 30 minutes on most days
  • Drink plenty of water through the day
  • Look after your feet daily and wear soft, comfortable footwear
  • Get your eyes, kidneys and feet checked at regular intervals

What to avoid

  • Do not skip meals or your medicines, even when you feel well
  • Do not eat sweets, mithai, sugary drinks and packed juices freely
  • Avoid white rice, maida and fried snacks in large amounts
  • Do not stop or change your dose on your own
  • Avoid walking barefoot, even at home
  • Do not ignore a wound, blister or crack on your feet

Ways to feel better day to day

  • Eat your meals at roughly the same times each day to keep sugar steady
  • Swap white rice for a smaller portion mixed with dal, vegetables and curd
  • Keep a simple home record of your sugar readings to share with your doctor
  • Add strength and stretching exercises a couple of times a week
  • Sleep well, as poor sleep can push your sugar up
  • Manage stress with deep breathing, prayer, or time with family

Speak to a doctor if

  • Very high or very low sugar readings
  • Shaking, sweating, confusion or fainting, which can be signs of low sugar
  • A wound or ulcer that is not healing, especially on the feet
  • Sudden blurring or loss of vision
  • Fever, vomiting or an infection that is not settling
  • Chest pain, breathlessness or swelling in the legs

Your next step

Turn this into a plan that is yours

Everything above is general. Your dose, your targets and your test schedule depend on your age, your reports and the other conditions you live with.

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Habits that help every long term condition

These apply whichever condition brought you here. None replace your medicines, and together they change how well those medicines work.

  1. Attach your medicines to something you already do daily, such as a meal or brushing your teeth, so remembering stops being the hard part.
  2. Use one weekly pill box and fill it on the same day each week. A missed dose then becomes something you can see.
  3. Never stop a long term medicine because you feel well. Feeling well is usually the medicine working.
  4. Ask your doctor which vaccinations apply to you. Several are advised for people living with heart, lung, kidney or liver conditions and diabetes.
  5. Aim for about 150 minutes of moderate activity across the week, split however suits your day, plus two sessions that work your muscles.
  6. Keep tobacco out completely and keep alcohol low. Both work directly against every condition on this page.
  7. Treat sleep and stress as part of the treatment. Both change your blood pressure, your sugar and how much pain you feel.
  8. Tell one person close to you your diagnosis, your medicines and your warning signs, so someone can act if you cannot.

How to get the most from your next review

A follow up is only as good as what you bring to it. Have these ready and the same appointment does far more.

  1. Your home readings since the last visit, such as blood pressure, sugar, weight or peak flow, with the dates.
  2. Which medicines you actually take, and honestly which ones you skip or have stopped. A doctor cannot fix a plan they think is working.
  3. Any side effect you have noticed, even if it seems small or unconnected, and when it began.
  4. Your latest reports, and a note of which test is due next and when it was last done.
  5. The part of the plan that has been hardest to follow, so it can be made realistic instead of quietly abandoned.
  6. Any new symptom, and any new medicine or supplement started by another doctor or bought over the counter.
  7. What you want from the next few months in your own words, whether that is walking further or fewer tablets.

How to use this page. It explains conditions in plain language so that you can take part in your own care and know when to call. It is not a diagnosis and it does not know your age, your pregnancy, your kidney or liver function, or the other medicines you take. Please do not start, stop or change any medicine on your own.

Not what you needed? Try one of these

Check a symptomSomething feels wrong and you want to know what it could be and who to seeHealth calculatorsYou have a number, such as weight, waist or blood pressure, and want to know what it meansFirst aidSomething has just happened to someone and you need to know what to do right now

Emergency numbers in India

Save these in your phone now, not when you need them. Tap any number to call it.

112Any emergencyOne number for police, fire and ambulance across India108AmbulanceFree emergency ambulance in most states and union territories102Pregnancy and newbornAmbulance for mothers and babies in most states14416Mental health supportTele MANAS, free counselling every hour of the day, many languages1800 116 117Poisoning or overdoseNational Poisons Information Centre, AIIMS New Delhi1098Child in distressChildline India, free and confidential

Where to read more

Public health sources written for patients rather than for doctors, and kept up to date.

Ministry of Health and Family WelfareOfficial Indian health programmes, advisories and public guidanceWorld Health Organization health topicsGlobal fact sheets written for the public, on hundreds of topicsNHS health A to ZPlain language pages on symptoms, conditions, tests and treatmentsMedlinePlusPatient information from the United States National Library of MedicineTele MANASIndia's national mental health support service, free and available all day

Important: Everything in Teleprac patient resources is general health education. It does not give you a diagnosis and it cannot replace examination by a qualified doctor, because it does not know your age, your reports, your pregnancy or the other medicines you take. Please do not start, stop or change any medicine on your own. Teleprac Healthcare is not liable for decisions made on the basis of this information. In an emergency, call your local emergency number or go to the nearest hospital immediately.