Navigating the complexities of college life is a challenge in itself, but for students managing diabetes, the journey comes with an added layer of responsibility. Balancing classes, social activities, and personal care can seem overwhelming, yet it is entirely possible to thrive with the right strategies in place.
Here are some tips our endocrinology experts share for managing diabetes on campus and away from home:
Ten Tips for Managing Diabetes at College
1. Touch base with your regular endocrinologist before leaving and make sure your recommended protocol and prescriptions are all current.
2. Locate your campus health center as soon as you arrive so you know where to head for minor complications or emergencies.
3. Bring along a mini fridge for your dorm room to store medications/insulin, juices, and several healthy snacks to have on hand.
4. Share your condition with your roommate(s) so they’re aware of your diabetes and let them know who to contact in case of an emergency.
5. Find a local pharmacy that can fill your prescriptions as needed or set up automatic refills to be shipped directly to you.
6. Put a medical alert message or symbol on your phone’s screensaver.
7. Add family or friend’s contact numbers to your phone under ICE (In Case of Emergency).
8. Grant remote access to your parents via digital glucose monitors and sensors so that they can help keep you on track from home (and it may help ease their anxieties of knowing how you’re doing).
9. Do your best to get some movement and exercise each day to keep blood flowing and blood sugars balanced.
10. Be cautious with alcohol use (and know your limitations), which can cause serious blood sugar spikes and impair your cognitive abilities.
Finding Diabetes Support on Campus
Once away at school, be sure to know what health resources (both mental and physical) are available to help you on campus. Being in a healthy state with your mind and body will help you to better succeed as a student and make the most of your college experience.
Check out the College Diabetes Network to see if your school has a support group on campus, or visit The Diabetes Link that serves as an excellent resource for college students and young adults as they embark out on their own.
Contact Us to Help Manage your Diabetes, Osteoporosis and Thyroid Conditions
If you’d like to schedule an appointment with one of our specialists at Texas Diabetes & Endocrinology and discover how our diabetes services,heart disease prevention, and other endocrinology therapies can help you lead a full and active life, please contact us at (512) 458-8400 or request an appointment online.
Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Instagram and check back with us each month as we provide you helpful wellness and health information.
The CDC estimates that more than 29 million American adults are currently living with diabetes.
Diabetes is a chronic disease that affects how your body makes and processes glucose, or blood sugar. While it is possible to lead a very full and active life with diabetes if your diet and medications/insulin are carefully managed, there is still the potential for serious complications to occur.
What are some common diabetes complications?
Diabetes complications usually develop gradually over time with the disease. It is important to monitor your blood glucose levels vigilantly and stay on track regarding regular check-ups with your endocrinologist.
Some of the most common diabetes complications that our endocrinology experts see include:
Kidney disease: elevated blood sugar levels over time can lead to chronic kidney disease, the need for dialysis, and even kidney failure
Blindness and eye issues: diabetes can also damage blood vessels in the eye/retina (diabetic retinopathy)
Neuropathy: diabetic neuropathy, or nerve damage, is pain or numbness that stems from blood vessels and nerves (typically in the legs and feet) lacking sufficient oxygen or nutrients hijacked by high blood sugar
Non-healing foot and leg ulcers: sores and infections that appear on the legs or feet due to poor circulation and elevated glucose levels can be hard to treat and may lead to amputation in extreme cases
If you notice signs or symptoms of any of these diabetes complications, speak with your endocrinologist right away about solutions to treat and manage them effectively.
Decreasing Your Risk for Diabetes Complications
Along with keeping regularly scheduled appointments with your physician, and taking medications/insulin as instructed, here are five other ways to help prevent from developing severe diabetes complications:
1. Follow a healthy diet of lean proteins, brightly colored fruits and vegetables, and whole grains.
2. Exercise regularly and aim for at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week.
3. Maintain a healthy weight and BMI (Body Mass Index) and speak to your doctor about what that optimal weight should be.
4. Manage your blood pressure and cholesterol levels and make sure they are within healthy and normal ranges.
5. Stop smoking to avoid additional damage to your heart and lungs beyond what high blood sugar levels may already contribute.
With proper management, and prompt attention to any symptoms you are experiencing, you can keep your diabetes complications to a minimum.
Contact Us to Help Manage your Diabetes, Osteoporosis and Thyroid Conditions
If you’d like to schedule an appointment with one of our endocrinology specialists in Austin or Round Rock please contact us at (512) 458-8400 or request an appointment online.
Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Instagram and check back with us each month as we provide you helpful wellness and health information.
Adopting the philosophy of ‘mind over matter’ can have a powerful impact on many aspects of life. In many instances of illness or injury, people can often conjure up herculean efforts to boost their physical and mental well-being, alongside therapeutic intervention, to overcome a medical or health challenge.
This is something that our 52-year-old patient Bhushan Karle was able to accomplish when he transitioned from living with type 2 diabetes (T2D) heavily reliant on medication and insulin to taking charge of his health and becoming a marathoner who now needs minimal medications.
Bhushan’s Story
Bhushan was diagnosed with T2D in his early thirties. His parents also had diabetes, and he remembers them needing heavy doses of insulin while growing up in India.
His initial reaction to the diagnosis was one of disappointment in himself for not taking better care of his health after seeing how his parents suffered from this condition. Bhushan’s first treatment involved a combination of insulin and many pills until he met Texas Diabetes endocrinologist and diabetes specialist Dr. Keta Pandit.
She re-evaluated him and explored a variety of medications before eventually weaning him off of an insulin pump due to complications.
Taking Control of his Health
Once he got off his pump, Bhushan made a conscious decision to radically shift his mindset and take better control of his health. This started with making small efforts at first, like getting back into sports that he always loved as a child. Regular exercise is highly beneficial for those with diabetes to help regulate blood sugars levels and maintain a healthy weight and blood pressure.
Although his initial goal to exercise more was a step in the right direction, it wasn’t resulting in the changes he wanted to see. He was able to lower his A1C, but it still was not decreasing as much as he had hoped to make a significant difference.
Adopting a Running Regimen
Deciding that he wanted to be more aggressive with his physical activity, Bhushan started running with a group of friends in his community.
With this group, he was inspired to run a marathon, like the many others who were a part of it. He enlisted the help of a coach, Dr. Mohan Achwal, who armed Bhushan with a spreadsheet to track his training and food intake. As a data analyst, this method really spoke to him and motivated Bhushan to chart and follow through with his progress.
One big hurdle that Bhushan encountered while training for the marathon was not knowing what to eat. Runners need plenty of carbohydrates to fuel their training, but carbs can be dangerous for people living with diabetes and maintaining healthy AIC levels.
Dr. Pandit, a runner herself, reminded Bhushan that his first intention to become a runner was to find a sustainable exercise plan that could support his lifestyle and help him control his diabetes. She encouraged him to avoid over training and fuel his body while keeping in mind that his pancreas will not respond to high carb meals the way his fellow runner friends’ do.
“While insulin resistance improves with weight loss and exercise, beta cell function from pancreas doesn’t recover to a point where high carb meals can be consumed without close attention to glucose levels,” explains Dr. Pandit. “I encouraged him to candidly share with his friends that his plans will vary given his health condition and limitations.”
Bhushan took that advice to heart and found his own journey empowering rather than a limitation to his goals. His mindset shifted and his physical and mental endurance improved.
He eventually ran his first half-marathon in 2023 and completed his first full marathon in 2024.
Bhushan shares that having Dr. Pandit and the staff at Texas Diabetes support helped encourage him along the way.
“A doctor who empathizes with patients and an office that is collaborative is very important to have as part of your team,” he says.
Supporting Your Goals
Bhushan believes that anyone can make lifestyle changes with the right mindset. Tips that he offers for anyone with diabetes who wants to make an impactful change on their condition, which could mean the difference between taking insulin or not, are to:
Make eating bad/unhealthy food difficult or out of reach
Enlist a partner in your health and fitness goals to keep you accountable
Find a coach to help guide you through your health/fitness journey
Replace regular bread with better options such as those that are low-glycemic, or made with whole or sprouted grains
Start gradually, even if it is only walking, and add more intensity from there
Dr. Pandit recommends finding a diet and exercise plan that is sustainable and enjoyable so that it does not feel like a chore.
“To commit to a full lifestyle change, I encourage my patients to take an inward journey to find what truly brings them joy when it comes to an exercise plan – biking, hiking, running, yoga, pilates, gym memberships, group training and fitness plan, swimming, or joining a sport team,” she says.
“The goal is to find something for fitness that is enjoyable, not to win a race or a medal,” shares Dr. Pandit. “Living with diabetes and achieving that level of lifestyle change is a medal.”
Today, Bhushan has made such huge strides in staying active and eating well that his diabetes maintenance is minimal, and he has in effect, reversed many of the most serious side effects of his condition. He currently works closely with Dr. Pandit and uses a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) to watch his blood sugar levels and maintain his life goals.
Contact Us to Help Manage Your Diabetes and Thyroid Conditions
If you’d like to schedule an appointment with one of our specialists at Texas Diabetes & Endocrinology and discover how our diabetes services and other endocrinology therapies can help you lead a full and active life, please contact us at (512) 458-8400 or request an appointment online.
Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Instagram and check back with us each month as we provide you helpful wellness and health information.
This is good news not only for those with diabetes, but also for those who want to support a healthier lifestyle and make smart food choices by monitoring their blood sugar (glucose) levels.
At Texas Diabetes & Endocrinology, our team of endocrinology experts often include CGMs as part of the treatment plan for our patients with diabetes.
What is a CGM?
A CGM is a small device that adheres directly onto the skin and uses sensors to track real-time glucose readings. Having this important information at your fingertips can help you better plan food intake goals and medication or insulin doses throughout the day. The CGM affords patients the opportunity to live more independently without stopping for multiple tests (finger pricks) every few hours. Additionally, the sensor can send an alarm to the patient or their caretaker if their blood sugar is dangerously low or high to alert them to take action.
Under the direction of your endocrinologist, a CGM can be an effective glucose monitoring tool for patients with either Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes.
Our endocrinologists can also access these real-time readings so that guidance on adjusting medications can be made swiftly and with as little interruption to your daily routine as possible.
The introduction of CGMs has changed the way endocrinologist determine how well controlled a person’s diabetes is by looking at the amount of time the blood sugars stay in a target range. “We now understand that keeping blood sugars controlled all day long, instead of just parts of the day, are better for patient outcomes,” explains endocrinologist Dr. Tira Chaicha-Brom. “We still routinely check hemoglobin A1c but this is a three month average of one’s blood sugars.”
CGMs for Non-Diabetics
There is a growing number of people who are not diabetic opting to use CGMs in order to monitor their blood sugar levels. Without a confirmed diabetes diagnosis, it has previously been challenging to obtain a CGM.
“As more and more people are wanting to take control of their health and make smart choices, using a CGM can be a proactive way to use data that supports these goals”, says Dr. Tira Chaicha-Brom.
The benefits of maintaining healthy blood sugar levels include:
Boosting energy and circulation
Preventing heart and kidney disease
Protecting against vision loss and the development of diabetes
The Dexcom Stelo device is a wearable CGM system that provides glucose readings every 15 minutes and delivers them to an app on your phone. It will be available for widespread purchase this summer.
Contact Us to Help Manage your Diabetes and Thyroid Conditions
If you’d like to schedule an appointment with one of our specialists at Texas Diabetes & Endocrinology and discover how our diabetes services and other endocrinology therapies can help you lead a full and active life, please contact us at (512) 458-8400 or request an appointment online.
Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Instagram and check back with us each month as we provide you helpful wellness and health information.
