Does smoking raise blood sugar?

Smoking has been associated with multiple diseases such as lung problems, stroke, cancers etc. In fact as per some data, the people who smoke cigarettes on regular basis are 30%–40% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than people who don't smoke. But, what effect does it makes on people who already have diabetes?

It is even worse to smoke if you have diabetes or does it have more or less same effect as a non-diabetic. Lets find out in detail today...

How is smoking related to diabetes?

Diabetes is a health problem in which the body fails to efficiently control blood glucose, due to which the blood sugar content goes up than normal levels. Smoking in Diabetes can actually worsen the scenario and can perhaps put you at a much high degree of serious health complications.

Now, You might wonder how come something that we're inhaling through lungs can cause any effect of the blood sugar levels. We'll happens because of a primary content of smoking, Nicotine.

Nicotine and diabetes

Nicotine is an extremely addictive substance that can be easily found in tobacco products. Once the brain and body adapts to regular nicotine intake, regular smokers find giving up smoking as extremely difficult.

In addition to that, very few smokers actually know about added sugar in cigarettes. Many Cigarettes contain natural and added sugars to reduce the harshness of smoke, thereby making it easier to inhale. This also increases the amount of harmful chemicals in smoke.

Nicotine effect on blood sugar

Your body cells need insulin so they can take glucose out of your blood and use it for energy.

Nicotine affects the chemical processes in your cells, so they stop responding to insulin properly.

When this glucose stays in your blood, the blood sugar level goes up. Not just that, nicotine might also raise levels of hormones that fight insulin and can also push your body to make more triglycerides, a type of fat that is linked to insulin resistance.

In addition to that, Smoking in Diabetes can come with some other health problems as well, including poor blood flow in the legs and feet that can lead to infections, ulcers, and possible amputation. This can result in removal of a body part by surgery, if the situation gets out of control. If you want to learn more about the topic, have a look around the blog which discusses the impact of nicotine on blood sugar levels. Now let's take the topic ahead!

Does smoking affect blood sugar test?

While the bad effects of smoking cannot be overlooked at all, this is to be noted as well that the increase or effect of smoking on blood sugar levels are maybe not too frequent. They may take some time to show up.

Therefore, smoking before or during oral glucose tolerance test is perhaps unlikely to influence the diagnostic value of the test.

Can diabetics use nicotine patches?

Nicotine patch is a patch soaked with nicotine, which are used by people trying to give up smoking. In this, the Nicotine is gradually absorbed into the bloodstream, helping reduce the craving for cigarettes. In addition to that, Nicotine replacement products such as gum and lozenges are some of the best ways to help you stop smoking.

Diabetics are very prone to health complications and especially products with nicotine can raise your blood sugar, so it's best to consult a doctor about using nicotine patch or any other method if you have diabetes.

Conclusion

Both diabetes and smoking can damage the cells and organs of the body, and smoking can worsen many of the health effects of diabetes. Primary element of cigarette, nicotine can perhaps raise blood sugar levels and can put you at high risk of serious health complications. Nicotine patches are one of the ways to quit smoking, but should only be used after consultation with a qualified professional doctor if you have diabetes.

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