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Of course the most important member of the team is you. If you don't or won't do what you are supposed to do the rest of the team really doesn't make much difference. If you will use your doctor and make him/her a member of your team, they can be invaluable. Your spouse or significant other can make a big difference too. They know what you should and shouldn't have and they can help a lot by not bringing home that big Key Lime pie that they know you love but shouldn't have. Go to Marie Callendar's and have a piece with a friend or co-worker but don't bring a whole pie home. There are so many little things like that that really help a diabetic control their disease.

Equally as important as what you eat is how much exercise you get. The experts say that you should walk at least 10,000 steps a day to maintain and 12,000 plus if you need to lsoe weight and there are very few diabetics that couldn't stand to lose a few pounds. When I was first diagnosed I was up to around 340 and my blood sugar was over 700 and my A1c was almost 10. Now through diet and exercise my sugars normally run between 85 and 125, I weigh about 250 and my last A1c was 5.3. My goal is to get down to 200 by Christmas and I am working on it. One thing that has really helped me in exercising more is getting my two dogs that love to go for walks. It is a lot more fun to go with them than it is to go by yourself. They expect there walks in the morning and evening and it has really helped me to be more consistent in my walking.

Diabetes can cause problems with your vision and with teeth and gums so controlling your diabetes is important for those problems too. Keep a good close watch on your feet and proper circulation. There are many diabetics that end up losing feet and legs due to bad circulation. Make sure that your doctor looks at your feet every time you go for a check up.

Diabetes is called the silent killer because if you don't take care of yourself it can and will kill you but if you do what you should you can live a relatively normal life for a long time.

Learn more about this author, Bill Whitney.
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