The sun has broken out, and summer is upon us. Vacation is probably at the back of your mind at any given moment.
Traveling with diabetes, however, can sometimes be a drag.
You have to make sure that you have all of your gear to monitor, inject, and fuel yourself. You have to be careful not to do anything that might upset your blood glucose. You have to, you have to, you have to…
It sort of sucks the fun out of vacation, doesn’t it?
Well, there are certain ways that you can help keep your blood glucose happy while enjoying your much-deserved vacation. It’s pretty simple and follows the daily advice to maintain stable glucose levels as well.
#1 Sleep
I always begin my lists with this advice because it is really that powerful. Sleep is the easiest and most natural way to give your body exactly what it is craving: time to repair and heal itself. Traveling can do wonky things to your body and sleep schedule, so be sure to rest when you need it, sleep a good amount every night, and give your body the time that it needs to recuperate itself.
#2 Hydrate
Traveling can seriously dehydrate you. Recycled air in planes and buses sort of suck the water right out of you, leaving you shriveled and dry. And let’s all be honest here: the fear of having to pee while traveling or out on the town can make you drink less water than you actually should. So instead of skipping on hydration, just become super savvy at finding available restrooms.
#3 Eat Breakfast
It’s so easy to skip breakfast while you’re traveling. Your schedule changes drastically, and your appetite might be a little off. Don’t do it! As a diabetic, you should know better than this. Instead, plan around breakfast and start your day right. Buy some fruit at the market or scope out a cafe that serves great veggie omelets.
It’s also worth noting, here: choose food that will keep your blood sugar stable throughout the day.
#4 Skip the Meat
Meat is incredibly damaging to the body, believe it or not. It causes a whole lot of oxidative stress and costs the body a lot of extra energy just to digest. It can leave you feeling sluggish for hours after eating. Since you’re traveling and your body is already going through quite a bit, give it a break and lay off the meat as much as you can. You will definitely feel the difference.
#5 Walk Everywhere
Always monitor your glucose levels and get your insulin in order. Then, walk everywhere. By moving your body and getting the blood flowing, you are supporting your body in glucose metabolism, naturally. Plus, walking is really good for your entire body, diabetic or not. So take advantage of this time and get to walking!
[expand title=”References“]
Huffington Post. URL Link. Retrieved April 28, 2017.
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