Hospital readmission rates are HIGHER for diabetics, new study

by: | December 24, 2018
Hospital readmission rates are HIGHER for diabetics, new study
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(NaturalHealth365) Diabetes affects well over 30 million Americans and is a major contributor to many health problems, including heart disease and cancer.  But, a lesser known reality is how blood sugar issues increase the risk of a hospital readmission.

It’s safe to say: nobody wants to go to the hospital.  But, as a new study points out, having high blood sugar can make you a ‘frequent flyer’ of your local hospital.  Yet, we know there are many natural ways to avoid this fate.

Hospital readmission WARNING for people dealing with blood sugar issues

The study in question comes from the University of Minnesota Medical School, and was just published in the December 2018 volume of Journal of General Internal Medicine.  Researchers wanted to answer a question that hasn’t been largely explored in the scientific literature – do people with poorly controlled blood sugar have worse outcomes when they leave the hospital, and are they more likely to have to come back?

Sadly, their data confirms this hypothesis. Patients with abnormal blood sugar had higher rates of hospital readmission – and premature death – within the first 30 days after leaving the hospital compared to people without diabetes.

Worse health outcomes were also shown among people with prediabetes – the stage before full-on clinical diabetes, yet one that is still replete with poor glucose tolerance and high blood sugar levels.

This retrospective study can’t prove that high blood sugar directly caused these worse outcomes, simply because no one study can say that.  But, the researchers combed through data of over 67,000 people – a large sample size that paints an important picture of correlation.

It IS possible to naturally eliminate the threat of diabetes with better lifestyle decisions

The number of Americans living with diabetes is steadily inching toward 10% of the population. When figures include people with diabetes and prediabetes, that percentage rises to nearly a third.

Are more medications the answer to this growing public health crisis?  I doubt it.

And, even the World Health Organization points out an important and often overlooked fact:

‘At least 60% of a person’s health can be attributed to lifestyle’ – or in other words, preventable factors within an individual’s control!  And, that’s a very conservative estimate.

People living with diabetes would be wise to make healthy behaviors a part of their every day life.

These smart lifestyle changes include: quitting smoking; reducing or eliminating unhealthy foods from the diet (e.g., sugar, processed grains and alcohol); and getting daily exercise.

But, just a friendly reminder, if you have a chronic health condition like diabetes, you should always talk to your doctor before making any changes to your medications or lifestyle habits.

And, finally, remember that of the millions of people around the world living with diabetes, many are undiagnosed and completely unaware of the potential dangers to their health.

So if you have a family history or certain risk factors for diabetes, educate yourself about the early warning signs of diabetes, which include:

  • Frequent urination
  • Unusual thirst
  • Extreme hunger
  • Unusual weight loss
  • Tingling or numbness in the hands or feet
  • Blurry vision
  • Cuts or bruises that are slow to heal
  • Extreme fatigue
  • Irritability
  • Recurring infections in the skin, gum or bladder

And, never give up on your health concerns.  If your blood sugar is out-of-whack, fix your diet, get the support you deserve and stabilize your blood sugar – before it’s too late.

Sources for this article include:

Diabetes.org
Springer.com
Eurekalert.org
PAMF.org
NIH.gov
CDC.gov

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