No research shows a direct link between alcohol and diabetes. But studies have found that drinking, especially heavy drinking, can increase your risk of having diabetes. If you have diabetes, it may be best to avoid drinking alcohol. If you’d like to have the occasional drink, talk to your doctor first. They can tell you if alcohol might interfere with your medications or cause other health issues. Alcohol stimulates your appetite and may affect your judgment, which may cause you to overeat and disrupt your blood sugar control.
- If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, join DiabetesTeam today.
- Combining the blood-sugar-lowering effects of the medication with alcohol can lead to hypoglycemia or “insulin shock,” which is a medical emergency.
- The most important thing to know is that alcohol consumption can cause a significant blood sugar drop (hypoglycemia).
- If you’re already living with any of these conditions, alcohol may make them worse.
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So if I have diabetes I can drink as usual?
Some sources (including Diabetes UK ) advise strict carbohydrate management, perhaps even chips or pizza, if a large amount of alcohol has been consumed. Talk to your provider about how much alcohol is safe for you. Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Weight Gain
The decision to include alcohol in your life with diabetes is a personal one. Talk with a healthcare provider or diabetes educator about how to safely weigh the risks and benefits. The liver stores glucose from carbohydrates you’ve eaten and then releases the glucose into the bloodstream when needed for energy. Low carbohydrate and low-alcohol drinks may be better than standard alcohol, but the dangers still need to be considered. Often alcohol is mixed with fizzy, sugary drinks that can impact on blood sugars. Seek medical advice if you’re considering drinking alcohol with diabetes.
Should You Avoid Energy Drinks if You’re Living with Diabetes?
The choices you make about drinking with type 2 diabetes are yours and yours alone. Talk to your doctor if you have any questions, which may help you make an informed decision. Living with diabetes doesn’t mean you have to live a life diabetes and alcohol blackouts of deprivation and misery, but you’ll need to play it smart when it comes to drinking.
It is particularly important to be mindful of low blood glucose. Hypoglycemia is a frequent and substantial problem after alcohol consumption, alcoholism in people with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The hazards are greater for people who take medications that are known to cause hypoglycemia, especially insulin and sulfonylureas.
For people with diabetes, drinking alcohol can cause low or high blood sugar, affect diabetes medicines, and cause other possible problems. Some people stop drinking alcohol after being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. They decide that the medical risks they run by choosing to drink outweigh any pleasure they get from drinking. Others find that drinking drastically worsens their diabetes symptoms, so they choose to avoid alcohol. However, some people find drinking a good way to relax and connect with others. They may want to learn how to drink responsibly while also managing their diabetes.
- If you’re counting your carbs to know how much medicine or insulin to take, drinking can complicate your calculations.
- That will prepare them to identify hypoglycemia in case it occurs, even if you can’t.
- Alcohol can be high in “empty calories,” meaning it has calories but no nutritional value.
Food, on the other hand, is digested gradually, so it provides better protection against lows. Too much drinking, on the other hand (more than three drinks daily), can lead to higher blood glucose and A1C. But is the occasional cocktail or glass of wine really so bad? Here’s what you need to know about drinking and how to do it safely.
That’s true for all drinkers — but it’s especially true if you have diabetes. These guidelines are the maximum amount of alcohol to drink. Drinking less—as any healthcare professional will tell you—is better. Drinking alcohol in moderation has also been linked to a number of other health benefits, such as increasing the amount of good cholesterol (HDL) in the blood.
Eat Before You Drink
A coma is a situation where one loses his ability of senses and is seen as unconscious and more like a dead person. Diabetics, when they drink higher amounts of alcohol, can face this situation. For diabetic people, it can become a life-threatening situation. It is generally a situation where one is alive but isn’t able to see, speak, touch, move, smell, hear, respond, etc. It can also be linked with hyperglycemia as this condition is chained with hyperglycemia when drinking alcohol isn’t stopped. One of your liver’s primary functions is to regulate your body’s blood sugar, or glucose.
