People suffering from diabetes, in addition to following a pharmacological treatment appropriate to their needs, must often take measures to maintain their blood sugar level within a suitable range.
In addition to daytime strategies to manage blood sugar, your evening routine can also make a difference. So here are some habits to implement at the end of the day, which can help prevent a spike in blood sugar during the night and prepare you for the next day.
What helps blood sugar regulation
- Get enough sleep
- Don’t eat right before going to bed
- Avoid sweets and carbohydrates after dinner
- Do a light workout
- End the day with a relaxing moment
Get enough sleep
Many experts point out that the first step to managing blood sugar levels at night is simply to prioritize sleep , establish a nighttime routine that promotes quality sleep, and get enough hours of sleep, which adults usually do. they fall within a range of seven to nine hours.
These factors affect blood sugar levels because if you don’t sleep enough or your sleep isn’t restful, your body struggles to use insulin well and this can lead to a spike in blood sugar levels even the next day.
From the point of view of blood sugar, in fact, sleep gives the pancreas a break, which is essential after a day of activities that constantly produce sugar.
Having good quality sleep is often easier said than done. If you are having difficulty, a good way to improve the situation is to always go to sleep at the same time, even on weekends, and try to maintain a relaxing evening routine.
Don’t eat right before going to bed
People who have type 1 or type 2 diabetes and monitor their blood glucose levels know to expect higher values ​​after a meal. Consequently, to avoid levels that are too high at night, you should avoid having dinner too late.
Otherwise, the pancreas is forced to work overtime and over time this can lead to an aggravation of the situation. Additionally, if blood sugar levels are high in the evening, they are more likely to be high the following morning as well.
This applies to anyone, but people who suffer from diabetes should obviously be particularly careful.
According to many experts, therefore, it is important not to eat immediately before going to sleep, but to leave at least a few hours between the last meal and bedtime.
Furthermore, it is also recommended to allow about 12 hours to pass between dinner and breakfast the next morning to prevent the blood sugar level from increasing immediately before going to bed or from dropping too much before the morning meal.
Avoid sweets and carbohydrates after dinner
In addition to spacing out meals and sleep, it’s also important to be mindful of what you eat at the end of the day.
To keep blood sugar levels under control at night, it would be better to avoid eating sweets and carbohydrates before going to bed because the inactivity of rest makes it difficult to lower glucose peaks.
Do a light workout
Many people prefer to exercise in the morning, but just a few minutes of aerobic activity such as walking, running, or doing basic cardio movements such as skipping can be helpful to keep nighttime blood sugar under control. Movement, in fact, helps lower blood sugar levels.
This was also confirmed by an August 2022 meta-analysis published in ‌ Sports Medicine ‌which found that even light walking can significantly reduce blood sugar levels after eating.
However, not all exercise is created equal when it comes to lowering blood sugar levels.
Exercises like weight lifting actually have the opposite effect, so it’s best not to do them before bed or follow them with aerobic activity to lower blood sugar levels.
End the day with a relaxing moment
There is a direct connection between stress and blood sugar levels. In fact, when you are stressed the body increases the production of cortisol, a hormone that pushes the liver and muscles to release extra sugar into the bloodstream, which in turn causes a spike in blood sugar.
So, just as it is important to manage stress in the morning, i.e. wake up early enough to avoid rushing into any action, the same advice also applies in the evening.
To do this, it is important to have an evening routine that leads to falling asleep made up of relaxing actions such as reading a good book, listening to music, or practicing yoga.
Instead, it is better to stay away from electronic devices.
