High blood sugar levels are harmful. For people living with diabetes, high blood sugar is especially dangerous and damaging to nerves and blood vessels, which can limit the body’s ability to heal.
The first signs of high blood sugar include a headache, sleepiness or difficulty concentrating. For most people, these symptoms go away as our bodies naturally regulate the amount of sugar in our blood. For people living with diabetes, their body isn’t able to regulate blood sugars, so medications may need to be added to help control the amount of sugar in the blood. In both cases, wound healing stops while blood sugar levels are at 200 or higher. This is because high blood sugar reduces the amount of oxygen and nutrients in our blood and prevents your immune system from functioning properly, reducing our ability to heal wounds.
Your A1C score is a measure of your average blood glucose level. Most people living with diabetes work to maintain a 7.0% A1C level because the risks of nerve and tissue damage and other complications increases as your A1C levels increase.
It’s important to eat a well-balanced diet that is low in sugar to help your body heal. People living with a chronic wound need extra calories, protein and Vitamins A and C. Your doctor may have prescribed a special diet for you. If so, follow their recommendations to ensure you are getting the proper nutrition.
Many websites offer free low-sugar and sugar-free recipes. One of our favorites is DiabetesFoodHub.org, from the American Diabetes Association. That’s where we found this diabetes-safe recipe for healthy and tasty brownies.
Servings: 12
Serving Size: 1 brownie
Calories: 110
Total Fat: 6g
Saturated Fat: 1.5g
Cholesterol: 15mg
Sodium: 75mg
Total Carbohydrate: 12g
Dietary Fiber: 2g
Total Sugars: 5g
Protein: 3g
Choices/exchanges are equal to one carbohydrate and one fat.