Diabetes is a disease which occurs due to high blood sugar levels over a prolonged period. However, high blood sugar levels alone don’t automatically mean that you have diabetes – in fact, you should we worried when you experience a combination of certain symptoms.
Of course, high blood sugar levels for a long time aren’t something you should be happy about. This is a sign that there’s something wrong in your body, and that you should act fast before developing diabetes. This is why it’s very important to detect and diagnosed hyperglycemia as early as possible.
Here are the 14 main symptoms of high blood sugar levels:
- Insatiable thirst;
- Feeling hungry often;
- Nerve problems;
- Fatigue;
- Impotence;
- Slow healing of minor cuts and wounds;
- Itchy and dry skin;
- Weight gain;
- A frequent urge to urinate;
- Dry mouth;
- Blurred vision;
- Stomach discomfort;
- Loss of focus.
If you experience high blood sugar levels along with one or more of the symptoms on the list, you should visit your doctor immediately.
The good news is that diabetes is treatable, and we’re not talking about insulin shots. Changing your lifestyle is the best way to treat and prevent the disease, and you can do that by eating foods that have a low GI (glycemic index). The Glycemic Index represents a list of foods which can be divided into high-GI, moderate-GI, and low-GI foods.
If your blood sugar levels are raised, you should stick to the low-GI foods. High-GI foods should be avoided completely, while medium-GI foods can be consumed in certain situations.
The list ranks the foods with numbering that ranges from 0-100. The high-GI foods have an index of over 70. The most common examples are corn flakes, donuts, white bread, popcorn, baked potatoes, etc.
The mid-GI foods range from 55 to 69 and include pita bread, white rice, brown rice, honey, oatmeal and mac, and cheese.
Finally, we have the low-GI foods (0-54). They are best choices of food if you’re planning to keep your blood sugar levels under control.
You can pick from cherries, bananas, grapefruit, green grapes, apples, peas, pineapple juice, hummus, yellow onions, broccoli, eggs, walnuts, cashews, turkey sausage, etc. Stick to these foods no matter if you’re a diabetic or not and you will keep your overall health in check as well.