The most frequent cognitive deficits noted in persons with diabetes are:
Slowing of information processing speed
Slowing of motor speed
Decreases in vocabulary and intelligence
Lessening of attention span
Decreases in motor strength
Loss of memory
The single most important factor that affects cognitive deficits in diabetes is glycemic or blood sugar control. Both too low (hypoglycemia) and too high (hyperglycemia) blood glucose can affect cognitive function. When you keep your blood glucose as close as possible to normal, all of the above items improve.
Complications such as neuropathy (loss of feeling), retinopathy (loss of eye sight), and nephropathy (loss of kidney funtction) may take years to occur with diabetes. Cognitive deficits can occur much earlier (especially when your hemoglobin A1Cis higher than8.4%).
In elderly diabetic persons this is especially true, with more than 10% showing at least some cognitive deficit due at least in part to poor blood glucose control.
Okay, so what can you do to keep your brain sharp? In other words, how do you keep all your marbles?
You can keep your blood glucose levels as close to normal as possible. In keeping a tight control over your blood glucose you will sharpen your brain and prevent any further deterioration.
There are three main ways of doing this.
The first is to control your diet by counting your carbohydrates. Your health care professional can tell you how many carbohydrates that you should eat.
The second method is to exercise. Exercise has been proven over and over again to lower blood glucose (and it makes you feel better). Exercise can lower your blood glucose for hours to days after you are done. Make sure to check your blood glucose both before and after you exercise to make it remains within a normal level. Your health care provider can tell you what normal levels are for you. Never start an exercise routine without checking with your health care provider.
The third method is medications. Not all diabetics take medications but if you do, make sure you take them properly. If you receive a new prescription for a medication make sure you ask questions of both your physician and your pharmacist until you know:
What the name of the medication is
What the medication is for and why you are taking it
When to take the medicine.
If you still do not understand your new medication, continue to ask questions. Do NOT give up until you understand. (As a nurse I have seen numerous patients admitted to the hospital because they took their medications incorrectly. On one occasion, I know one patient died because of his lack of understanding of his new prescription). Do not be afraid to be a pest. Ask and ask again until you understand your medications (and this is true of your current medications as well. You do not have to wait for a new prescription to gain understanding of your medications.)
Lu Young, RN, holds an advanced degree in nursing. She has worked in the nursing field for more than ten years. She has provided patient educational materials for the last six years. These educational materials are on a variety subjects such as diabetes, nutrition, exercise, and medications. Ms. Young feels that knowledge is not only power, but can set you free of many of the worries and fears that come from ignorance. So by learning all you can about a subject, you will gain the power to take action. Ms. Young has written a series of articles on nutrition for several online sites. She is working on a book on carbohydrates to be the first in a series of three. The other two topics are on diabetes and exercise and diabetes and medications. So look for these other topics to be coming soon.
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