It’s now officially the start of “cuddle weather,” which also means the start of the monsoon season. And that also means cold, cold weather… and of course, floods.
It feels like a reprieve from the oppressive heat at first, but then as a diabetic, there’s no rest for the weary. There are still a number of things that you have to keep in mind to keep your blood sugar grounded and not soaring to kingdom come. To save you the trouble of researching for them yourself, we’ve listed the things that you need to keep in mind during the rainy season below.
1. Continue Being Active
The cuddle weather might make it harder to be productive, much less get up from your bed, but it is very much necessary for you to continue being active during this season. Being constantly active or on the move will have a large impact on your body’s blood sugar level. Even inside the warm comfort of your home, you can still do some basic exercises, or you can invest in a new rain wear for your wardrobe and go out for a jog in the morning even if it is pouring.
Commit to, at the very least, a 30-minute exercise regiment every day to keep your blood sugar grounded. There are a couple of basic exercises that you can do at home with or without exercise tools such as a treadmill or even weights.
2. Keep your feet dry
A no-brainer, this is necessary at all times. However, keeping your feet dry is extra difficult now that the rainy season is in full swing. A tropical country like the Philippines will be inundated with as much as 30 typhoons during this time of the year and if you happen to live in a low-lying area, there will always be floods. Other than the potential gangrene of your extremities, you also have to be wary of other complications that you’ll get from floods such as leptospirosis, fungal infections, cholera, typhoid fever, and dengue fever – all of which can be fatal.
If you cannot help getting wet from the flood water, just be sure to wipe it dry every time you dip your feet. Also, wash your feet before drying them or at the very least, use alcohol or antibacterial wipes. Be wary of floating or submerged hazards too, you wouldn’t want to be wounded and get infected at the same time.
3. Keep Your Diabetic Supplies Out of the Cold
Just like the intense heat of the summer, the shivering cold of the rainy season can seriously affect your insulin supplies and might even cause your blood sugar monitor to stop working. Make sure that your supplies are stored in a location that’s both not freezing and not boiling as well.
4. Keep a healthy diet
Same with exercising, this one will be a constant necessity if you’re diabetic, whether it’s summer time or the rainy season. Or just about any other season there is. A healthy diet usually consists of what your nutritionist or doctor recommended for your meal plan or just plain staying away from carbohydrates and other food full of sugar. While it may be really tempting to eat (or just smell!) freshly-baked bread especially during cold mornings, moderation is key when it comes to food filled to the brim with carbohydrates.
5. Check for Eye Infections
Generally unknown to most is that the rainy season is also the season where a number of eye diseases such as conjunctivitis, corneal ulcer, and eye sties are more common. These complications happen due to direct contact between the eyes and rainwater which usually contains a slew of bacteria and viruses. Always wash your hands before touching any place on your face near your eyes, much less your actual eyes. Immediately consult your doctor or a pharmacist if your eyes start itching or become irritated.
Same Precautions, Different Risks
As you can see from the list above, most of the things here are also stuff that you need to keep in mind during the summer season. However, this time, it is about the cold and/or the rain, what those two elements of the monsoon season might negatively affect you.
Sure, the rainy season feels like a welcome reprieve to the intense heat of the summer, however, with the rains also come new complications that diabetics such as yourself should be ready for. Also, it goes without saying that you still need to regularly go to your doctor for a check-up and then continue taking your diabetes medication or herbal supplements for blood sugar support.
