February 19, 2002
Daily Care
Question from Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada:
My 82 year old mom, who has had diabetes for a little over two years and takes insulin, is visiting us from Guatemala, Central America. I’m following her diet, but for the past month and a half, I’ve noticed that her sugar levels are high (morning — 9.5-11.8 mmol/L [171-212 mg/dl]; evening — 12.6-16.7 mmol/L [227-301 mg/dl]). I’m concerned and puzzled about it. What can I do to lower them down? Since she is in a wheelchair, so she cannot do too much exercise. Is there a way to check if her diet or the amount of insulin are the right ones?
Answer:
It sounds like her insulin needs to be increased if these high sugars persist. I do not know if they have always been this way or they have become high recently with her visit to see you.
I would suggest you have her see a physician to help adjust her insulin more appropriately. A blood test called a hemoglobin A1c can be done to see what her average blood sugar has been like over the last three months.
JTL
