Injecting Insulin? Here's How to Balance Your Life

What is Insulin? Insulin is a hormone produced by beta cells in the pancreas. Among its many roles, it regulates blood sugar levels throughout the day and after meals, and facilitates the entry of sugar into muscles. Every cell in our body needs oxygen and sugar to continue to survive. When a person consumes food, their blood sugar level rises immediately, prompting insulin to start working and transfer the sugar from the bloodstream into the body's various cells, thereby regulating blood sugar levels. Diabetes, in its various types, results from a disruption in the ability to balance blood sugar levels due to insufficient insulin production, if any, or the body's "resistance" response to insulin action.

Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes

Type 1 Diabetes is characterized by an inability to produce insulin at all, or effectively by the destruction of the beta cells that produce insulin in the pancreas. In type 1 diabetes, the primary causes are immune system failure: the body conducts an autoimmune operation, attacking the insulin-producing cells with antibodies and producing the opposite reaction, as if defending against them, attacking the healthy cells. This process lasts a long time until these cells are completely destroyed. Type 1 diabetics cannot produce insulin and must receive insulin externally to survive. A healthy pancreas produces insulin all the time — both day and night — and it "knows" when the body needs insulin secretion.

In Type 2 Diabetes, the issue isn't insulin production but the transfer of sugar from the blood to cells. Sugar moves from the blood to cells through receptors, but in type 2 diabetics, these receptors do not function properly, causing high blood sugar. In type 2 diabetics, insulin production still occurs in the body. The problem, as noted, is with the receptors that insulin is supposed to affect; they do not respond well to it and do not allow sugar to enter the cells. Type 2 diabetics often respond excellently to treatment that combines a healthy lifestyle, a low-carbohydrate diet, and physical activity. Today, there are oral medications that can also improve blood sugar levels, and in combination with weight reduction, they may prevent future diabetes complications, particularly in the heart and kidneys. Therefore, the recommendation is not to delay medicinal treatment. After about 10 years of diabetes, the effectiveness of the treatment decreases, and in addition to medications, some patients will require insulin as an adjunct to regular treatment.

The reasons for insulin deficiency are primarily rooted in an unhealthy lifestyle, such as the consumption of junk food, obesity, stress, and lack of physical activity, which is why diabetes is also defined as the epidemic of the 21st century due to changes in the modern world, lack of movement, and the culture of fast food consumption.

Tips for Managing Diabetes

Maintain Proper Sleep - Sleep is a vital component of quality of life and functional capacity, especially for diabetics. Continuous and extended sleep helps. Many studies have shown that sleep disturbances increase the risk of developing diabetes. It is crucial to maintain sufficient and consistent sleep hours — an average of 7.5 hours of sleep per night for adults. It's important to stay within the range of 5 to 10 hours of sleep per night.

Monitor Your Sugar Levels - Diabetics treated with insulin must regularly monitor their sugar levels to know at any given moment what their blood sugar levels are. Today's drug basket allows diabetics to monitor their sugar levels without the need for a finger prick.

Don't Skip Breakfast - A large study conducted at Wolfson Hospital proved that a large and protein-rich breakfast can reduce the spike in blood sugar levels. The study emphasized the need not only to watch what we eat but also to time our meals, in order to maintain balanced blood sugar levels.

Engage in Physical Activity - Take outdoor walks, participate in hiking, extreme sports, strength training, or aerobic exercises, any activity you choose and enjoy. Physical activity is one of the most effective ways to prevent diabetes or improve the health of diabetics. Performing physical activity leads to an increase in insulin sensitivity. Even a single workout can achieve this, and it significantly impacts blood sugar levels. During physical activity, muscles use glycogen stored in muscles as an energy source. During the recovery period from the activity, glucose is used to rebuild glycogen stores in the muscles and liver during this time, and thus, muscles serve as a sugar pump that helps balance blood sugar levels.

Maintain a Balanced Diet - One of the triggers for diabetes onset is an unhealthy lifestyle, including improper nutrition loaded with calories and trans fats without control. Education for a healthy lifestyle should begin at a young age, incorporating fruits and vegetables into the diet and avoiding junk food. Eliminating dependence on fast food requires self-preparation of a menu that incorporates nutritional values, without sugars, fats, and high amounts of sodium and processed ingredients that have negative health effects. A dietitian can help you determine a personal menu that suits you.

Avoid Stressful Situations - Stress, tension, and stress are causes of cortisol release — a hormone that helps the body cope with complex situations. When cortisol is secreted into the bloodstream, heart rate and breathing accelerate, and glucose and protein reserves are released from the liver into the blood to become available and immediate energy for muscles. Essentially, this means that the body releases sugar into the blood to make energy available, so blood sugar levels rise. Additionally, cortisol complicates the pancreas's ability to secrete insulin, potentially worsening the condition. Perform breathing exercises, maintain an optimistic approach, and avoid stressful situations by planning your activities and responses.

Drink Plenty of Water – Diabetics have a higher tendency towards dehydration. When you don't drink enough, you don't maintain the body's fluid balance, and thus blood sugar levels rise. Elevated sugar levels lead to frequent urination, which results in further fluid loss. It's important to drink a lot, even if you are not thirsty.

Professor Julio Weinstein is the head of the Diabetes Unit at Wolfson Medical Center and a senior diabetes physician at DMC Diabetes Center