Smoking and Type 2 Diabetes - 7 Reasons to Quit

Are you a type 2 diabetic who smokes or who lives with a smoker or socialises with smokers? It's a known fact that smoking, including passive smoking, causes cancer but perhaps less well known that smoking and type 2 diabetes really do not mix.

Here are 7 reasons why smoking and type 2 diabetes are a really bad idea and why a diabetic should quit smoking.

Reason #1 - Neuropathy (Nerve Damage). Because smoking has an effect on the circulatory system, blood doesn't reach the nerve endings, particularly those in the feet, as readily as it otherwise might. Diabetics are already prone to circulatory problems and need to take great care of their feet to prevent infections and sores which in the worst case can lead to amputation.

Reason #2 - Joint Mobility. Smoking and type 2 diabetes increase the risk of joint mobility becoming limited. If joints are painful, movement and therefore exercise is limited too. This is particularly bad as exercise is the best thing to mitigate the effect of diabetes.

Reason # 3 - Kidney Disease. Smoking and type 2 diabetes both cause kidney disease and can ultimately cause kidney failure so a diabetic who smokes is at double the risk.

Reason # 4 - Raised Blood Pressure. Diabetics are already at risk of high blood pressure so once again, smoking doubles the risk.

Reason # 5 - Cardiovascular Disease. Because diabetes causes vascular abnormalities, heart disease is already a risk factor. Smoking is known to contribute to cardio vascular disease because it causes hardening of the arteries so the combination could be lethal.

Reason # 6 - High Blood Sugar. Smoking increases blood sugar levels. As a diabetic may already have trouble controlling glucose levels, smoking exacerbates this problem.

Reason # 7 - High Cholesterol. Smoking increases cholesterol levels which are another contributory factor in heart disease. Insulin can increase the amount of bad cholesterol and lower the amount of good in the blood stream.

From the above you can see that smoking and type 2 diabetes both have a detrimental affect on the cardiovascular system and that continuing to smoke will make controlling diabetes doubly difficult. So if you're a diabetic, do yourself a favour and quit smoking without delay. Even passive smoking can have a detrimental effect, so do your friends and family a god turn and get them to quit too. It's much easier to give up if a few of you do it together.

For more information on the effects of smoking and type 2 diabetes as well as dietary and lifestyle tips, visit Good Diabetic Diet.