Is Shift Work Shifting Your Blood Sugar Levels?

You have to monitor your blood sugar levels when you have diabetes, particularly when you are away from home.

You have to take blood sugar levels few times during your shift to see if you need to raise or lower your blood sugar levels.

If you are switching to a new shift, you have to closely monitor your blood sugar level.

With shift works of day shifts, afternoon shifts, or midnight shifts, you have to space your meals out.

Diabetic patients should space meals out about four or five hours.

There is nothing hard to manage because you get break in eight hour shifts. The difficulty is remembering to eat just before your shift work as well as during break. It is important to have diabetes medication along with you when you have shift work. If your blood sugar gets low, you have to take a snack or some juice.[Diabetes Diet]

You can take permission from your supervisor for extra ten minute break to eat some fruit or snack to raise your blood sugar levels. You have to plan snacks for every shift in order to maintain your blood sugar. You should have extra snack with you in case if your blood sugar drops suddenly.

Shift workers often skip meals, so you have to plan for smaller meals that are balanced in protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats. Smaller meals help in digestion.

Type 1 diabetic has more difficulty with shift work than type 2 diabetic. Both have problem to keep an even blood sugar level because of the circadian rhythm interruption [Circadian Rhythm Disorders]. As your circadian rhythm is disturbed by shift work, you have to be cautious about blood sugar levels.

If yours is a physical job, you should know the effect of the physical activity on your blood sugar. When your work involves physical activity, sugar is absorbed more quickly and if it is not monitored, it can result in hypoglycemia.

You have to change diet and medications for different types of shift work. You have to consult your doctor if you are going for self medication. Know the action time of medications and find out with your doctor to change the timing of the medication.

Shift workers work for long hours of time than the normal workers and generally feel more tired. But, shift workers should not forget about the exercise. Benefit of exercise is that it improves your glucose levels as well as your quality of sleep.

The change in sleep patterns is the most challenging part of shift work and it is true for diabetic patients because when you sleep, you don’t monitor your blood glucose or adjust your food and medication accordingly.

Speak to your doctor and dietician about your shift work and find out how to manage your diet, medication, and exercise and you will be set to go for your work.