Stress Management in Type 2 Diabetes – easy tips

Read on to know more about an Ayurvedic Doctor’s view on Stress Management in Type 2 Diabetes.

Stress is the biggest of all evils. It is like a giant wrecking ball that hits the mind but puts a crack through every cell of the body. It demolishes the wall of immunity, inflates obesity, impairs sleep, fastens aging, raises the risk of diseases, and aggravates pre-existing conditions, including diabetes.

Diabetes is a common chronic condition that needs lifelong management. And most people think it’s just about avoiding sugar and sugary things, but diabetes management takes much more than that! From slouching on the couch to stressing over, many things can worsen the blood sugar levels.

And it is the increased incidences of type 2 diabetes in proportion to the increasing burden of stress. This has stirred many studies and researches on their association. Today, diabetes is an epidemic in India and so is stress!

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Did you Know?

One in six people with diabetes in the world is from India. 89% of India’s urban population suffers from stress!

An Ayurvedic Doctor’s quote on diabetes

Take it from an Ayurvedic doctor, these statistics are real. The number of patients visiting the clinic with a stress-related disorder or complication due to diabetes is increasing by the day.

What’s interesting to note here is that ‘Diabetes and stress is a two-way street‘. The stress hormone cortisone raises blood sugar levels. And diabetes makes you more vulnerable to stress.

Ayurveda has always emphasized addressing and correcting any disorder of the mind or the body before it starts impacting other parts. That’s why I have drafted this blog for shedding some light on this association and the better ways for management.

Let’s start with some modern-day research that highlights the association between diabetes and stress.

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Quoting Research: Stress and diabetes

There is enough evidence to suggest that stress affects diabetes, both the onset and exacerbation. 

A review on How Stress Contributes to the Development of Type 2 Diabetes discusses the consistent evidence on the link between stress and Type 2 diabetes.

It supports the hypothesis that stress-related factors are a cause of type 2 diabetes. The review further suggested that considering stress management and accessing psychosocial factors may help in preventing type 2 diabetes. 

Another article in Pubmed says that stress is a potential contributor to chronic hyperglycemia in diabetes. Stress has major effects on metabolic activity, it releases various hormones that elevate blood glucose levels. Stress-induced elevation of glucose cannot be metabolized properly, thus causing more damage!

Stress is a proven parameter in increasing obesity and obesity is linked to raised risk of type 2 diabetes. It not only increases the risk of diabetes but also worsens the pre-existing condition. That’s why exercise, particularly walking is recommended for patients suffering from diabetes. 

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Research: Stress Management in Type 2 diabetes.

A 2018 study published in the NCBI quoted that stress management training could improve blood sugar control in people with diabetes. Stress management techniques proved helpful in managing glycated hemoglobin levels.

Another research established that stress management training was associated with a small but significant reduction in blood sugar levels. 

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How stress impacts blood sugar levels?

• Firstly, the stress hormone cortisol spikes the blood sugar levels.
• Secondly, stress activates the fat cells, and obesity is a known cause of diabetes.
• Thirdly, cortisol makes it difficult for the pancreas to secrete insulin which regularizes the sugar in the blood.
• Also. stress impacts sleep which has a direct effect on glucose tolerance.
• Above all, cortisol narrows the arteries throughout the body and when this happens on a constant basis it can worsen many complications of diabetes, including diabetic eye disease and kidney disease.

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Ayurveda on diabetes and stress

Ayurveda lays special emphasis on the management of stress. It says stress prisons the mind and paralyzes the body. It first affects the body by causing oja kshaya (weakened immunity).

A weakened immunity makes one vulnerable to infections and chronic diseases. Prolonged stress in the body can cause long-lasting damage like diabetes or cancer. People who are at high risk should be particularly cautious about the stressors and take appropriate measures to manage stress. 

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10 pro-Ayurvedic tips to manage stress

Since most of you might already know the best Ayurvedic tips to manage stress, I will just point them out once again:

• Approach the disease with positivity
• Try meditation and mindfulness
• Practice Yoga and pranayama.
• Go for a 30-minute walk every day
• Take frequent breaks in work
• Focus on your diet and sleep
• Add adaptogens to your diet.
• Smile often and try the laughter therapy
• Talk to a counsellor to gain control of your emotions.
• Try herbal medicines like Ashwagandha to control stress.

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Conclusion: Stress and diabetes

It can be said with certainty that stress has a big role in the onset of Type 2 diabetes. And incorporating stress-related factors as a priority in the area of diabetes research could open up better ways of reducing the prevalence and occurrence of type 2 diabetes.

For all the diabetic patients and their caregivers, take it from a doctor, you need to manage the stress right. And that will assure better management of the disease.