Diabetes And Climate: How Do Hot And Cold Weather Affect Diabetes?

Not many people know that climate can impact diabetes management, but it's true. Both extremely hot and cold weather can affect your testing equipment — such as blood glucose meter — and your medications. Additionally, extreme temperatures can have a negative impact on the ability of your body to create and use insulin.

When it’s hot out, studies have shown, more people with diabetes are taken to the emergency department than people without diabetes. Diabetics are also more likely to die from heat-related causes. Low temperatures can cause different problems for people with diabetes, meanwhile.

Diabetes in the summer: Drink lots of water

In the summer, it’s extremely important to stay hydrated. Dehydration is a risk for everyone during hot temperatures, but when diabetics become dehydrated, that leads to an increased concentration of sugar in their blood. Dehydration causes less blood to flow to the kidneys, which means that your kidneys can’t work optimally to remove the extra sugar from your blood. Make sure to drink lots of water or zero-calorie drinks, even if you are not thirsty!

Storing your medications and equipment in summer

Make sure to store your medications and other diabetes-related equipment in a cool place, as high summer temperatures can negatively affect your medications (including insulin), glucose meters, and diabetes test strips. Never leave your diabetes meds and equipment in a hot car. If you do accidently leave insulin or any other drugs in a hot car, dispose of them.

Making appropriate accommodations when you travel

If you plan on traveling, don’t forget to take your medications with you. Make sure to put your medication in a cooler or a sealed cold bag, but don't put them directly on ice or an ice pack.

Stay out of the heat

Try to stay out of the heat as much as you can. While exercise plays an important in the management of diabetes, you need to make sure to not do it outdoors in the summer. If you do want to exercise outside, avoid the outdoors during the day, when it's hottest, and try to work out early in the morning or later in the evening.

Understand your body and watch out for hypoglycemia

Many of the symptoms of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) and heat stroke are similar — feeling lightheaded, sweating, being shaky, and confusion. Diabetics are at risk of attributing such symptoms to hot weather, but they could actually be caused by low blood sugar levels. Failing to recognize the signs of hypoglycemia can be extremely dangerous. Make sure to keep glucose-heavy snacks with to raise your blood sugars.

Keep an eye on your feet

People with diabetes are more likely to have issues with their feet, such as wounds and sores on their foot. Unfortunately, diabetics also have impaired wound healing. While you may be tempted to go outside barefoot or in sandals, that could be detrimental to your health. If you do go out with open feet, make sure to thoroughly check them for any wounds.

Store your medications in winter

While hot temperatures can damage medications and equipment, these things should also be stored out of the cold during winter. Additionally, make sure to not leave your supplies in a car when it's freezing.

Try not to get sick: Avoiding winter viruses

Diabetes have a harder time recovering from illnesses, which can also raise their blood sugar levels. Sick people are further unlikely to eat properly, which can affect your blood sugar levels. To avoid getting sick, wash your hands often and properly, not just after you use the restroom and before preparing meals, but also after contact with germ-ridden public surfaces (like doorknobs, elevator buttons, and the like). Stay away from sick people, and definitely get your annual flu shot.

Examine your feet

In the winter, people often wear tight shoes. While this reduces the risk of foot injuries, closed and tight shoes can cause blisters. Because diabetes patients often have numb feet, they may not notice any injuries they may sustain unless they actively look for them. Therefore, make sure to examine your feet every day.

Monitoring your blood sugar levels in cold weather

You won’t get a proper reading from your blood glucose meter if your hands are cold, so warm your hands up before testing your blood glucose levels. Use your glucose monitor in a room with temperatures between 50 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit as that is when it works best.

Keep exercising

You may be tempted to skip the gym in the winter but you should still keep exercising to maintain good health. If you don’t want to work out outside, you can join a gym or build up a home gym.

Conclusion