Exercise

Yoga for healthy living

Diabetics may have an important new tool for treating their illness, one that's thousands of years old: YOGA

Diabetes is a condition when the body is unable to produce the hormone insulin, which is helps to move glucose (an energy source) from the bloodstream into the cells. Yoga along with a carefully monitored diet, are proven ways to keep blood sugar levels stable.

Yoga as a stress buster

Yoga is a time-tested stress buster. Researchers suspect that glucose levels may be affected when adrenalin --a byproduct of stress-- is released into the bloodstream. Keeping this excess adrenaline in check may keep things steadier in the blood sugar department.

Reduces Insulin intake

Some diabetics who have incorporated yoga into their routine five times a week report that they have been able to significantly reduce their insulin intake. Experts caution however that yoga should be considered an adjunct to medical treatment and not a cure in itself.

Facilitates weight loss

If you need to lose weight, Yoga can help build your concentration and willpower so that it’s easier to stay on a weight-loss program. Yoga breathing techniques are particularly helpful because they teach you to focus on one thing -in this case, your smooth, rhythmic breathing - to the exclusion of everything else.

In addition to strengthening will power, this practice also reduces harmful stress reactions and conserves energy so that more of it is available for living your life the way you want to. Learning how to cope with stress is important to anyone dealing with a chronic physical condition.

Reduces high blood pressure

Yoga exercises help keep the blood vessels elastic, and Yoga exercise combined with relaxation training has even been shown to reduce high blood pressure in some cases. After you’ve practiced for a while, you can add more vigorous exercises to your Yoga routine to give you the added benefits of some aerobic conditioning and increased muscle strength. Yoga exercises gently press on the body’s glands and organs, resulting in positive effects for the digestive, endocrine, and reproductive systems.

Daily practice of meditation shows a quiet, restful, stable part of yourself that supports everything you do, and teaches you how to draw on these inner resources for the strength and health that can be your choice.

Coping with diabetes does not mean giving in to an “illness” mentality; by following your physician’s instructions and changing lifestyle, one can create a life that is full, happy, energetic, healthy, and balanced.