Many patients discover that their blood sugar is high during their annual physical examinations at work, as they do not usually have the habit of monitoring their blood sugar levels. This approach is completely wrong because some patients with high blood sugar worsen their condition due to not checking their blood sugar levels regularly, ultimately leading to deterioration of their condition. Furthermore, everyone should be aware of the symptoms of high blood sugar in order to detect it early.
First: Symptoms of high blood sugar include fatigue and weakness, as cells lack energy due to the inability of glucose to enter cells. Diabetes also affects immune function, leading to reduced resistance, skin infections, inflammation of the respiratory, urinary, and biliary systems, and difficult treatment.
Second: Symptoms of diabetes with high blood sugar vary, but they usually present the “three more and one less” symptoms: excessive thirst, hunger, urination, and weight loss. These are typical manifestations of diabetes in the later stages. Using these symptoms for diagnosing diabetes does not help with early diagnosis and is detrimental to the early prevention and treatment of chronic complications.
Third: Extreme thirst is one of the symptoms of high blood sugar. When the body loses water after increased urination, a reduction of 1-2% in the total body water can stimulate the thirst center in the brain, resulting in extreme thirst.
Long-term high blood sugar has a “toxic effect” on pancreatic islet cells, leading to pancreatic insufficiency, decreased insulin secretion, and progressive deterioration of the condition. Under high blood sugar conditions, glucose is not effectively absorbed and utilized by the body but rather lost in large amounts through urine. This leads to overall emaciation, fatigue, and decreased immunity.
Diabetes patients with long-term high blood sugar can damage blood vessels and nerves, leading to the occurrence and progression of chronic complications such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, diabetic nephropathy, retinopathy, peripheral neuropathy, and diabetic foot ulceration.
Onions are a common food, but many people find the pungent odor of onions intolerable. However, they can be beneficial for high blood sugar diseases.
Recipe: Onion Ham Fried Egg
1. Peel and chop the onion.
2. Dice the ham, wash and chop the spring onion; set aside.
3. Beat the eggs in a bowl, add ham, chopped onion, spring onion, and seasonings, mix well.
4. Heat oil in a pan, pour in the egg mixture, and fry over low heat until both sides turn golden brown.
Historical records mention that bitter gourd can treat “polydipsia” (equivalent to modern diabetes). Clinical reports indicate that bitter gourd extract has a significant effect on lowering blood sugar, with a 79.3% effective rate in treating diabetes.
Recipe: Colorful Bitter Melon Casserole
1. Cut the bitter melon into sections and remove the seeds.
2. Finely chop soaked black fungus, carrots, lean meat, kohlrabi, coriander, and spring onion.
3. Mix all the ingredients together, add salt for seasoning, fill the mixture into the melon sections, and steam for 10 minutes over medium heat.
Black fungus contains nutrients such as tremella polysaccharides, vitamins, proteins, carotene, and potassium. Tremella polysaccharides, especially, have good effects on lowering blood sugar and lipids. Consuming black fungus long-term can reduce blood viscosity, inhibit platelet aggregation, and help with blood sugar control.
Cucumber Fuzhu Black Fungus
1. Wash and slice the cucumber, soak and cut the dried beancurd sticks, soak and slice the black fungus.
2. Heat oil in a pan, stir-fry the ingredients, add a spoonful of water, stir-fry until the cucumber changes color.
3. Season with salt and chicken essence.
Dietary Taboos:
Alcohol, being pungent and hot, can directly disrupt the body’s energy metabolism and worsen the condition. Drinking alcohol while taking hypoglycemic drugs can cause a sudden drop in blood sugar levels, inducing hypoglycemia and affecting treatment. Additionally, ethanol can accelerate the metabolism of hypoglycemic drugs, significantly reducing their half-life and affecting their efficacy. Therefore, diabetic patients must avoid alcohol consumption. Diabetes patients often experience excessive hunger, thirst, and need to urinate, which are associated with yin deficiency and heat. Spicy foods like chili peppers, ginger, mustard, and pepper are warm in nature and can deplete yin fluids, exacerbating heat, so diabetic patients should avoid consuming these types of condiments.
