Diabetes is a long-term condition in which your body is unable to maintain healthy sugar (glucose) levels in the blood. If you have been recently diagnosed with diabetes, learning more about diabetes may help better equip you to understand your diabetes management plan.
Learn more about how diabetes is defined and how your doctor may help manage this condition.
Diabetes is a long-term condition that impacts your ability to regulate your blood glucose (sugar) levels. The levels of glucose in your blood are normally regulated by a hormone called insulin. Diabetes occurs when the body has problems producing insulin (type 1 diabetes) or responding to insulin (type 2 diabetes).
Type 1 diabetes is generally caused by the autoimmune destruction of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, usually develops in people under 30, and is one of the most common chronic childhood illnesses in developed nations.1 In contrast, type 2 diabetes is caused by the body becoming less sensitive to insulin. It usually affects adults over 40 and is more common among people who don’t do enough exercise, have an unhealthy weight and have high blood pressure.1 Lifestyle risk factors for type 2 diabetes include:1
Having an unhealthy weight
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
Low levels of physical activity
High-fat, high-sugar, high-salt, or low-fibre diets
Smoking
In order to diagnose diabetes your doctor may check your fasting blood glucose to monitor the amount of glucose in your blood following a period without eating.1
If you are diagnosed with diabetes, your doctor may prescribe management options such as:1
Prescribing daily insulin injection or other medications including oral hypoglycaemic agents
Developing an exercise program
Designing a healthy eating plan
Self-monitoring blood sugar levels via finger prick testing or a continuous glucose monitoring device
It can be difficult to figure out what foods to eat to balance your nutritional intake with managing your blood glucose levels. Specially formulated diabetes-specific nutritional supplements are an easy way to ensure you get the vitamins and minerals you need. Glucerna is backed by over 50 clinical studies and over 30 years of scientific evidence that shows that Glucerna helps manage blood sugar levels.2 With a low glycaemic carbohydrate blend plus myo-inositol and 28 essential vitamins and minerals, Glucerna provides complete, balanced nutrition while helping to manage blood glucose levels.*3–7
Glucerna is available as a convenient Ready-to-Drink milkshake style supplement, and as a powder that can be added to water or your favourite recipes for a nutritious boost.†2,7
Speak with your doctor to see how Glucerna can become a part of your diabetes management plan.
Pre-diabetes is when blood glucose levels are higher than usual, but not high enough to be diabetes.8 If you’ve been told you have pre-diabetes, or are worried you might, this page might help you get a better understanding of what that means. Read on to find out more.
While there is no cure for diabetes, many treatments are available to help manage blood glucose levels. A healthy lifestyle plays a big role in managing blood glucose levels and reducing the risk of complications.1 This article will explain briefly how type 2 diabetes is managed.
When you have diabetes, you may wonder what ‘eating right’ means for you.
Here we’re busting some of the myths around food and diabetes. Keep reading to learn more.
Glucerna is Food for Special Medical Purposes. Use under medical supervision.
*Glucerna has been shown to lower postprandial rises in blood glucose3–5 and reduce glucose fluctuations, when used as a breakfast replacement as part of a lifestyle intervention.6
†Please note when cooking with or freezing Glucerna, there may be a minor loss of some nutrients.
References: 1. Better Health Channel. Diabetes. Available at: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/diabetes. Accessed May 2023. 2. Glucerna® Powder Product Label. 3. Devitt A, et al. Journal of Diabetes Research and Clinical Metabolism. 2012;1(1):20. 4. Mottalib A, et al. Nutrients. 2016;8(7):443. 5. Dávila LA, et al. Nutrients. 2019;11(7):1477. 6. Peng J, et al. Br J Nutr. 2019;121(5):560–566. 7. Glucerna® Ready-to-Drink Product Label. 8. Better Health Channel. Pre-diabetes. Available at: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/diabetes-pre-diabetes. Accessed May 2023.
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