Managing diabetes care at home

Monitoring that actually informs treatment

Record readings with the time and whether they were before or after a meal. A notebook of bare numbers tells the doctor very little; a pattern showing consistent post-dinner highs tells them exactly what to adjust.

Foot care is not optional

Diabetic neuropathy means a wound on the foot may not be felt at all. Inspect both feet daily, including between the toes and the soles, and never let a diabetic patient walk barefoot even indoors.

Any cut, blister or discolouration on a diabetic foot should be seen by a doctor promptly. Small foot wounds are how amputations begin.

Know the emergency signs

Low blood sugar — sweating, shaking, confusion, sudden irritability — needs fast-acting sugar immediately, then a proper meal. Very high sugar with vomiting, laboured breathing, or fruity-smelling breath is a medical emergency requiring hospital care.

Every family member should know which is which, because the correct response to one is dangerous for the other.