When you have diabetes or are at risk of getting diabetes, it’s important to monitor your blood sugar levels to prevent spikes. Being too low or too high on the scale has drastic results, leading to complications like kidney disease, vision problems, and heart problems.

This can be done by eating regularly, following a diabetes-friendly diet, and exercising frequently. But did you know these aren’t the only things that prevent blood sugar spikes? You should also keep these ten factors in mind when controlling your diabetes!

1. Dehydration

As we go about our day, our body absorbs sugar from the food we eat. We need to drink plenty of fluids to counter that sugar so our blood doesn’t end up too saturated with it. Otherwise, it can lead to hyperglycemia which then leads to diabetes.

Think of it like drinking tea. If we accidentally add too much honey, we make it taste normal again by adding more water or tea.

2. Artificial Sweeteners

We tend to be very lenient with ourselves whenever we consume things with artificial sweeteners. But if there’s no sugar in Diet Coke or Diet Sprite anyway, what’s the big deal?

Well, we might be tempted to replace what we didn’t eat with something else that’s just as unhealthy. Sure, you might have saved 200 empty calories by drinking Diet Coke instead, but what happens if you reward yourself with an extra cookie or slice of pie? You’re back to square one!

Artificial sweeteners are a treat and should be consumed in moderation. Or better yet, stop drinking soda and other artificial sweeteners altogether!

3. Medications

Some medications such as steroids, birth control pills, antidepressants, and diuretics can lead to blood sugar spikes. They can mess with you in several ways. Some spike your blood sugar levels or lower them so much even when your diet is normal. They can also trick your tests into thinking your blood sugar levels are crazy even when they’re totally normal!

You must talk with your doctors when getting a new medication. They should only prescribe you medicines that won’t mess with your diabetes management.

4. Dawn Phenomenon

As the dawn breaks and your body prepares to wake up, your brain releases cortisol and other hormones. These hormones make you more resistant to insulin and can cause major blood sugar spikes in diabetics.

You can also wake up with too low a glucose level if you take too much insulin or too little food the night prior. You were spending the past few hours sleeping and not eating, thus fasting to the point your blood lacks sugar.

Make a habit of monitoring your blood sugar levels every morning so you strike that perfect balance.

5. Menstrual Cycles

It’s so difficult being a woman, isn’t it? Not only do you have to deal with several days of bleeding, painful cramps, food cravings, and mood swings, but you also have to deal with crazy blood sugar levels!

According to researchers, insulin resistance increases the week before your period starts. It goes back to normal once menstruation actually begins. So, if you notice that your blood sugar levels are higher than usual the week before, you might want to eat fewer carbohydrates or adjust your insulin medications for that week.

6. Lack of Sleep

Lack of sleep is frankly torture for our bodies. We use it as restorative therapy, so if we lack sleep, we lack the time to refresh everything and repair anything broken. The less sleep we have, the more stress we have in the body. The more stress we have in the body, the higher our sugar levels will be.

It gets worse when we’ve been diagnosed with diabetes. Many people with the condition suffer from sleeping troubles, including sleep apnea—this is when the body has difficulty breathing through the night. So, it’s important we get a good night’s sleep by sleeping as much as we can and creating an environment that makes it easier to sleep in.

7. Extreme Weather

Just like the timeless classic Goldilocks, you want to be just right when it comes to temperature. Neither too hot nor too cold!

Extreme weather makes our already affected bodies even more affected. Diabetes makes it harder for people to regulate their temperatures, which may cause our blood sugar levels to spike up to compensate for being too hot. This makes us lose fluids more quickly, which makes everything even worse!

8. Traveling

Knowing when to take your medicine and eat meals is already tricky enough—if you have to travel constantly while doing it too? That’s so much harder! You might end up doing things out of order and out of sync, disrupting your routine and thus your blood sugar levels.

On top of that, many people who travel end up eating more, drinking more, and sightseeing more. This also takes a toll on your glucose level. You should always monitor your signs even when you’re on vacation unless you want to deal with a big problem when you get back.

9. Caffeine

Caffeine can affect people in a variety of ways. On one hand, it can help the body manage blood sugar better and may even reduce symptoms caused by diabetes.  On the other, it can affect the way our blood uses insulin, leading to too low or too high blood sugar levels.

Thankfully, up to 400 mg of caffeine a day is okay. You should use this to experiment and monitor your blood sugar levels. Depending on the results, you should cut back on caffeine or continue drinking to your heart’s content!

10. Inaccurate Blood Sugar Readings

Sometimes the thing that affects your blood sugar readings is entirely your fault! You should always practice proper hygiene when conducting your test. If you don’t, say, wash your hands before handling your blood sample, the test might say you’ve got more sugar in your system than usual. This makes you take more insulin, which then drops your blood sugar too low.