If you’d like to have the occasional drink, talk to your doctor first. They can tell you if alcohol might interfere with your medications or cause other health issues. Alcohol can cause flushing, nausea, increased heart rate, and slurred speech. These symptoms can be confused with or mask the sober house symptoms of low blood sugar. This can make it difficult to tell if you’ve had too much to drink or if your blood sugar is dropping to dangerously low levels.
- Vomiting for any reason leads to dehydration which can lead to DKA.
- Seek medical advice if you’re considering drinking alcohol with diabetes.
- Moderate alcohol consumption, therefore, does not need to result in large carb counts.
- Your healthcare provider will tell you how much alcohol is safe for you to drink.
Manage Your Diabetes Effectively
For many people, the occasional glass of alcohol does not pose a problem. However, for people with diabetes, alcohol consumption can affect blood sugar levels. The liver is the part of your body that stores glycogen (the stored form of glucose).
Higher Blood Pressure
At this point, alcohol can affect blood sugar in ways that are especially important for people with type 2 diabetes. This is because the liver is where excess glucose is stored in a form called glycogen. Unlike protein, fat, or carbohydrate, alcohol doesn’t require insulin to provide energy to the body. The exception is sweet dessert wines, which pack 14 grams of carb in a tiny three-and-a-half-ounce glass.
This is particularly important for people with diabetes to recognize. In an average person, the liver breaks down roughly one standard alcoholic drink https://yourhealthmagazine.net/article/addiction/sober-houses-rules-that-you-should-follow/ per hour. Any alcohol that the liver does not break down is removed by the lungs, kidneys, and skin through urine and sweat.
‘Stop Eating After 7pm’ Challenge Type 2 Diabetes
Usually, your liver’s job is to steadily convert glycogen to glucose, regulating your blood glucose level (BGL). This means that your liver is no longer as focused on releasing glucose, which in turn affects your blood glucose management. If you’re having frequent trouble managing your blood sugar levels, you should consider if it’s safe for you to drink alcohol. Your liver takes about 1 to 1.5 hours to process each alcoholic drink, and during that time, you may be at risk of low blood sugar. If you’ve had alcohol close to bedtime, you should test your glucose level; if it’s low, consume a carbohydrate-rich snack before bed. When you drink alcohol, the liver has a difficult time doing both of these jobs at the same time.
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Some diabetes medicines may have negative interactions with alcohol. For example, if you’re taking metformin, a drug commonly used for type 2 diabetes, you might experience weakness, fatigue, a slowed heart rate, dark urine, and more. These are all symptoms of a dangerous condition called lactic acidosis. If you have both type 1 or type 2 diabetes and drink alcohol you may be at a heightened risk for diabetes complications. In this context, we are referring to a high blood sugar as any level over 8.9 mmol/L160 mg/dL.
Need help with medications?
Before heading out to a bar or restaurant where you plan to have a drink, put on your medical ID bracelet. This way, if an emergency arises, medical personnel (who are trained to look for IDs) will know you have diabetes. According to the American Heart Association, red wine contains antioxidants, which are compounds in certain foods that help prevent cell damage.
Some people stop drinking alcohol after being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. They decide that the medical risks they run by choosing to drink outweigh any pleasure they get from drinking. Others find that drinking drastically worsens their diabetes symptoms, so they choose to avoid alcohol. However, some people find drinking a good way to relax and connect with others. They may want to learn how to drink responsibly while also managing their diabetes. Alcohol intake significantly increases the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar levels).
Test Your Blood Sugar
Maybe their doctors cautioned them that drinking and diabetes don’t mix. Perhaps some have health conditions that are incompatible with alcohol. Or maybe they’re just concerned about all those calories—and carbs. On taking the same amount of alcohol, both diabetics and non-diabetics get the same results. In case of taking more amounts in, diabetics can face the severity of hypoglycemia and ketoacidosis. Hypoglycemia can further lead to hungriness, low blood sugar levels, anxiety, and shakiness of the body.
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