Diabetes: precautions to take while traveling

in collaboration with

Dr Gérald Kierzek (Medical Director of Doctissimo)

In France, nearly 3.5 million French people have diabetes, or 5.3% of the population. However, the disease (characterized by the presence of an excess of sugar in the blood), does not take a break… and this, even on vacation. Preparing your trips and trips in advance is therefore recommended.

Don’t run out of insulin

People with diabetes must carry a sufficient stock of insulin to cover their needs during the trip, ie the round trip and the stay on site. It is even recommended to carry a little more insulin than planned, in order to prevent any delay or disruption during the trip (plane canceled, breakdown on the road, etc.).

To note : the disease is not an obstacle to travel provided that type 1 diabetes (which requires more intensive treatment to control blood sugar) or 2 (which can be treated without necessarily having to resort to recurrent insulin intake) is properly balanced.

Do not expose insulin to the sun

This advice seems obvious and yet: on vacation, it is easy to forget insulin in the sun, on the beach and/or by the swimming pool. The problem ? This protein hormone does not tolerate temperatures above 30°C and must be stored exactly between 4°C and 8°C. By car, it is therefore better to place your insulin cartridge in the glove box.

Disconnect your insulin pump

Sun, sand and water don’t mix well with the insulin pump. Also, in order not to damage it and/or gain in comfort, it is possible to disconnect the pump at the beach or at the swimming pool for a maximum of one hour. Then, it will be necessary to control the glycemia again.

Understand the meals

On vacation, skipping a meal or having a late dinner is common. However, these disruptions in food rhythm are not ideal for the good balance of the body of diabetics. It is therefore better to take snacks that are easy to carry with you, such as dried fruit, a compote with no added sugar, cut fruit, a few squares of chocolate… in order to avoid drops in blood sugar.

Monitor your blood sugar

This advice particularly applies to people with type 1 diabetes, whose pancreas no longer produces enough or even no insulin at all.

During the holidays, self-monitoring of blood sugar is therefore a good idea: it makes it possible to monitor the balance of diabetes but also to adapt the treatment if necessary.

Find out about the health infrastructures of the country visited

Several weeks before departure, it is advisable to find out about the healthcare systems of the country concerned, its diabetology services and its health facilities. The goal?