Smoking can make controlling diabetes even more difficult. Your blood sugar levels rise when you use nicotine, making them more difficult to control. Smokers with diabetes frequently require higher insulin doses to maintain blood sugar levels that are close to their target ranges.

Diabetes can result in severe health issues like heart disease, renal failure, blindness, and nerve damage that can necessitate surgically amputating a toe, foot, or limb. People with diabetes who smoke are more likely to experience complications than those with diabetes who do not smoke.

Diabetes-related elevated blood sugar over time can harm the nerves in and around your heart as well as the blood vessels. Smoking cigarettes increases plaque, which harms blood vessels as well (a fatty, waxy substance that builds up on your artery walls).

Popular Ways to Quit Smoking

Given below are some strategies to quit smoking:

• Try to quit all at once. Some individuals want to stop smoking gradually, but doing so might make the process more stressful because each step toward cessation may result in additional withdrawal symptoms.
• Never give up. Many people make multiple failed attempts to quit before they succeed. People learn what works for them with each try. An unsuccessful attempt is merely one step in the process of successfully quitting, not a failure.
• Recognize the addiction: Withdrawal sufferers may be concerned that the cravings and discomfort won’t ever go away. Some people could believe that their only source of pleasure is gone. But these unfavorable emotions are a result of the addiction, which can cloud one’s judgment.
• Developing a new, healthier habit – Smoking is a physiological and behavioral addiction. It can be beneficial to dispel the connection between smoking and particular activity. For instance, instead of lighting up before starting the day, a person could take a little stroll around the block.
• Consult a doctor before attempting nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), as it does not work for all smokers and should not be used by individuals who have diabetes.
• Counseling – Counseling and psychotherapy can assist people in comprehending their reasons for smoking and their beliefs that it helps them cope. They also offer assistance with the emotional difficulties of quitting.
• Medication – Some people who desire to kick the habit can benefit from taking medications that help people quit. Some of these medications also assist with the emotional side effects of quitting, and they can lessen cravings. A doctor should be consulted by smokers to see whether it is safe to use these medications along with their diabetes meds.
• Encourage others to follow you – If another family member smokes, discuss stopping together. In this way, people can support one another. The individual who is quitting still risks exposure to smoke if the other person keeps smoking. It may be more difficult to quit smoking if you are exposed to secondhand smoke, which also poses a health risk.

Quit Smoking for Better Diabetes Management 

For efficient diabetes control, it is important to quit smoking. When you quit smoking benefits will begin to appear soon. Some of the benefits are listed below:

• Better control over blood sugar which results in better control of diabetes: Because smoking is linked to insulin resistance, which occurs when the body is unable to adequately respond to the insulin it produces and blood sugar levels rise, smoking makes it more difficult to control blood sugar levels. Quitting smoking will relieve your blood sugar management of this additional stress.
• Lower possibility of kidney problems: Diabetic nephropathy, a condition that can cause difficulties with the kidneys, is a danger for people with diabetes. Smoking damages the blood vessels that supply the kidneys, which can cause kidney disease in individuals who already have it to worsen more quickly.
• Lower risk of developing heart disease: If you smoke while having diabetes, your risk of developing heart disease is 2 to 3 times higher than if you didn’t smoke. Your blood vessels and heart will thank you if you give up smoking because smoking exacerbates the problems caused by diabetes, which include inflammation and blood vessel narrowing. When you stop smoking, your heart will benefit both immediately and over time. Your blood pressure and heart rate will start to return to normal in 20 minutes, your additional risk of heart disease will have decreased by half after one year, and after 2 to 5 years of quitting, your risk of stroke may be equal to that of a nonsmoker.
• Reduced possibility of foot issues: Diabetic neuropathy is a consequence of diabetes that can result in nerve damage, inadequate blood flow to the legs and feet, and other problems. Peripheral vascular disease, foot infections, ulceration, and, in severe situations, amputation, can all result from this combination. The nerves and blood arteries that supply the legs and feet can experience increased blood flow restrictions as a result of smoking. The good news is that circulation can improve within three weeks to two months of quitting smoking.
• Lowered risks of eye ailments: Smoking destroys the blood vessels that supply the eyes and has also been connected to higher-than-normal intraocular pressure, which can cause glaucoma and damage to the optic nerve. Diabetes harms the eyes as well and can result in diabetic retinopathy, a blinding eye condition. Giving up smoking lowers the chance of getting eye disease and can decrease the progression of eye disease if present.
• Lowered risks of mouth infections and gum disease: By increasing your risk for gum disease, throat, and mouth cancer, as well as fungal infections of the mouth, smoking can have an impact on your oral health. Diabetes also raises your chance of developing gum disease and fungus infections in your mouth. In addition to lowering your risk for gum disease and oral infections, quitting smoking also enhances your sense of taste and smell, making meals more enjoyable. Therefore quitting smoking is one of the best tips for diabetes control.

References:

• https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/library/features/smoking-and-diabetes.html#:~:text=Blood%20Sugar%20Changes&text=Nicotine%20replacement%20products%20such%20as,them%20if%20you%20have%20diabetes.
• https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/317411#tips
• https://www.riteaid.com/articles/six-ways-quitting-smoking-improves-your-diabetes