3 holiday tips for those living with diabetes

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — November is National Diabetes Awareness Month which leads into the holiday season. As Thanksgiving and Christmas near, so does the possibility of overindulging in sugary foods and drinks.

Nadia Al-Samarrie, the founder of Diabetes Health magazine, recommends the following tips for maintaining healthy blood sugar levels.

Eat Before the Party

Eat protein before attending holiday gatherings. This keeps you from drinking on an empty stomach. 

Nadia suggests eating non-starchy raw vegetables like bell peppers, zucchini, celery, radishes, cauliflower, green beans, and cucumbers. Eating fresh vegetables makes you less likely to eat foods that an increase in blood sugars. 

She says that if you have a sweet tooth, eat low-carb fruit like strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries.

Choose Low Carb Drinks

Avoid sugary alcoholic drinks as the carbs tend to raise blood sugar levels. Nadia says if you must drink, adhere to the following: 

• Five ounces of red wine is a lower carb option with four carbs per drink
• Hard alcohol, 1.5 ounces of vodka, whiskey, or gin with a diet drink
• Drink lots of water following alcoholic drinks
• Limit your intake of alcohol as much as possible

Know how alcohol affects your medication

Ask your doctor about how alcohol impacts your medication. You don’t want to fall ill on the holiday.

Nadia says everyone’s body chemistry is different. Always check with your doctor before making any changes to your diet and medication.

According to the Center for Disease and Control, doctors diagnosed over 23 million Americans with diabetes. A disease caused the nation around $327 billion a year. 

The CDC also reports that diabetes is the 7th leading cause of death in the US.