Learn How to Lower Blood Sugar Naturally: Diabetes Life & Health Read more at Suite101: Learn How to Lower Blood Sugar Naturally: Diabetes Life & Hea

Troubled by abnormally high blood sugar levels? Diabetic or pre-diabetic? Learn how to lower blood sugar naturally, and live a healthy diabetes life.

In the human body, blood sugar rises and falls for various reasons, including diet, exercise, medication and supplements. After eating foods high in refined carbohydrates, blood sugar goes quickly upwards. In a healthy body, the pancreas releases insulin in response to the increasing levels of blood sugar, which lowers blood sugar to normal levels. In a diabetic, or pre-diabetic, insulin does not regulate blood sugar well, but diet, exercise and supplements can lower help maintain normal blood sugar levels.
What is Diabetes?

There are three types of diabetes: type 1, or juvenile diabetes,type 2, which is also known as adult-onset diabetes, and gestational diabetes, or pregnancy diabetes. These types of diabetes all have different causes, but the resulting high blood sugar is the same for each.

* Gestational diabetes affects pregnant women, and often goes away once the baby is born.
* Type 1 diabetics produce very little or no insulin, and are usually diagnosed in childhood.
* People with type 2 diabetes don't produce enough insulin to bring blood sugar down. Type 2 diabetes usually develops later in life, as the result of a poor insulin response.

In addition to the three main types of diabetes, there are also people with a condition known as pre-diabetes. A pre-diabetic has borderline blood sugar levels that are higher than normal, but not yet high enough to qualify as diabetic.
Diabetes Lifestyle Changes to Lower Blood Sugar Naturally

Simple lifestyle changes can make a difference in blood sugar levels. These general changes can help to lower blood sugar naturally:

* Avoid foods that are high in refined carbohydrates, such as sugary desserts or white bread.
* Eat foods high in fiber, to slow blood sugar rise after eating.
* Start a moderate exercise program, to help keep blood sugar levels normal.

Foods and Supplements that Lower Blood Sugar

There are some foods and supplements that can reduce blood glucose levels.

* stevia, a natural sweetener, lowers blood sugar levels. For more information about Stevia, read: Natural Sugar Substitutes: Stevia and Erythritol.
* Green tea also lowers blood sugar levels, according to a 2004 Japanese study.
* A 2003 study, published in Diabetes Care, shows that cinnamon also reduces blood glucose levels.

Tip: Adding a cinnamon stick to a brewing cup of green tea, sweetened by stevia, improves the flavor, and combines the health benefits.
Read on

* Low Carb Diabetic Diets: Ideas & Explanation
* Diabetics can Lower Blood Sugar Naturally
* Prevent Diabetic Hypoglycemia - Insulin Overdose

Diabetic Testing and Treatment

Diabetic testing and treatment should be supervised by a physician. Before making changes to diet or exercise level, or adding new supplements, diabetics should consult with their treating physician for optimum health and safety.

United Health Care opens first 'health care city'

UnitedHealthcare launched Health Care Lane, the first “Health Care City,” in Maryland and Virginia in September. Health Care Lane is a giant replica exhibit of a small town that enabled UnitedHealthcare customers and brokers to better understand health benefits at events in Bethesda and Hunt Valley, Md. and Reston, Va. The town is a real-life adaptation of www.healthcarelane.com , a virtual city that UnitedHealthcare launched last year.

As hundreds of guests traveled through the city, they visited the pharmacy, fitness center, wifi café, biometric screening kiosk and much more. Townspeople represented various parts of the health care system and demonstrated how customers can use their benefits more effectively to fit their families’ needs. The event timing was particularly useful as millions of area residents are making important decisions about their health insurance plans this fall. After starting in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. metro regions, Health Care Lane will be featured in various cities throughout the U.S.

Above (left to right): Seung Baick, Regional Marketing Director; Jim Cronin, Chief Executive Officer; and Steve Reidy, Vice President of Small Business Sales & Account Management; UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic.  From left to right: Ryan Gregoire Cope, Account Executive; Ernest Jenkins, Account Executive; and Ray Murphy, General Agent Sales Manager; UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic.  Irene Myers-Thompson, Regional Wellness Director, UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic

 From left to right: Steve Reidy and Tammy O’Hare, Vice Presidents of Small Business Sales & Account Management; UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic

 Kristin Lesniewski, Field Account Manager, UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic