My Diabetes My Way: January 2025 update
Happy New Year to everyone from the My Diabetes My Way team and we hope you all enjoyed the festive break. January is a time for resolutions for a happier and healthier 2025. There are lots of changes you can make, including understanding your diabetes more.
Free Online Courses
My Way Digital Health has two interactive online courses running in January that you can participate in. The first course is Understanding Type 1 Diabetes, running on Wednesday 29th and Thursday 30th January. This course includes a Live Q&A session in the evening. Link to the course: https://understandingtype1.mydiabetes.com/
The second course of the year is to support the management of diabetes during Ramadan for our Muslim community, or anyone wanting to learn more about the topic. It is available from Wednesday 8th January to Monday 31st March. There are 2 courses, one for patients and one for healthcare professionals, also including live Q&A sessions. This course is available in English, Arabic and Malay. Link to the course: https://ramadan.mydiabetes.com/
We also have our standard online courses that you can sign-up to at any time and complete when it suits you. These cover all aspects of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes management and several devices that you may now be using. You can see the full list of courses here: https://elearning.mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/courses/
Supporting Your New Year Resolutions!
One popular New Year resolution is “Dry January” when you give up alcohol for a month. Alcohol has a big impact on your blood sugar so be sure to monitor your blood sugar if you drink regularly and stop suddenly. If you want to learn more about diabetes and alcohol, the following resources are available on our website:
Diabetes and Alcohol Video: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/video/diabetes-and-alcohol/
Diabetes and Alcohol Leaflet: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/internal/alcohol/
If losing weight is your New Year resolution, then this could have a very beneficial effect on your blood sugar. If you have insulin-treated diabetes, either Type 1 or 2, then you should be monitoring your blood sugar closely as you reduce food intake to avoid any hypoglycaemic (low blood sugar) events. We have lots of resources on our website to help you eat healthier and lose some weight - your diabetes healthcare team may also be able to help you. Some of our resources are listed below:
Health Eating and Weight Management Video: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/video/healthy-eating-and-weight-management/
Weight Loss & Low Carb Diets for Type 2 Diabetes Video: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/video/weight-loss-low-carb-diets-for-type-2-diabetes/
Do I Need to Lose Weight?: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/internal/do-i-need-to-lose-weight/
Losing Weight: How Do I Start?: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/internal/losing-weight-how-do-i-start/
If you want to try some new recipes, Diabetes UK have some tasty calorie counted meals on their recipe finder: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/living-with-diabetes/eating/recipes
The final resolution that many people make is to get fitter and increase physical activity. Introducing an exercise plan will have an impact on your blood sugar so both tablets and insulin doses may need to be altered. If you have any medical conditions, as a complication of your diabetes or not, please speak to your healthcare team before embarking on an exercise plan. It is better to start slowly increasing activity and gradually build up your fitness and stamina over several weeks or months. If you have an insulin pump, you should be aware of switching the exercise setting on and off before and after exercise. If you are unsure about doing this, please contact your diabetes team. We have some resources about exercise and diabetes on our website and have linked some of them below:
Exercise and Physical Activity: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/internal/exercise-and-physical-activity-the-impact-on-blood-glucose/
Diabetes and Exercise Video: https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/video/diabetes-and-exercise/
Link Your Fitbit to My Diabetes My Way
My Diabetes My Way contains a link to Fitbit (www.fitbit.com) that allows you to add your activity tracker data to My Diabetes My Way. If you have a Fitbit device, log in to My Diabetes My Way and select “My Services”. You can then link your Fitbit account and connect your Fitbit records. When you do this, you will see a section named “My Activity” where you can monitor your steps, heart rate and many other Fitbit measurements.
Even if you don't own a Fitbit device, you can still track your activity for free by downloading the Fitbit app on your smartphone and using Fitbit’s MobileTrack function. MobileTrack lets you use the Fitbit app without a Fitbit device by using your phone's sensors to track basic activity data including steps, distance, and calories burned. More information on MobileTrack can be found here: https://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1875
Facebook and X (formerly Twitter)
Please remember, you can keep up-to-date with the latest news and useful information on the My Diabetes My Way Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) pages.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mydiabetesmyway
X (formerly Twitter): https://www.twitter.com/mydiabetesmyway
Help and Support
If you have not yet managed to gain access to your diabetes records on My Diabetes My Way, or would like an update on the status of your registration, please let us know. You can contact us regarding any problems or request further help and support by emailing: mydiabetes.myway@nhs.scot
Thank you for your continued support.