Exercise

• Aerobic exercise is the most effective natural method of reducing the blood sugar level quickly. This type of exercise includes activities, such as bicycling or running, that expend a significant amount of energy over a long period of time. Aerobic exercise gets much of the energy it requires from glucose in the blood.
  
  The decision to lower the blood sugar level by exercising requires careful monitoring of the ketone levels, especially if you have diabetes. Diabetics are unable to produce enough insulin, which is needed to use glucose as a form of energy. Consequently, a diabetic may begin to use fat instead of sugar while exercising. The use of fat as an energy source produces ketones as a byproduct. Therefore, if there are already ketones in the blood, exercise can further raise ketones to toxic levels.
  
  Patients with type 1 diabetes and a blood glucose level higher than 240 mg/dL should check their urine for the presence of ketones. This can easily be done with a variety of home test kits. Patients should not exercise if the test shows the presence of ketones in the urine. Patients with type 2 diabetes should not exercise if their blood glucose level is higher than 300 mg/dL, whether they have ketones in their urine.
  
  

Medication

• Diabetics may need to routinely inject insulin before a meal to use the sugar that will be produced. The physician determines the specific schedule of insulin injections based on a number of complex factors.
  
  A specific episode of severe hyperglycemia because of diabetes may be also be treated by injecting fast-acting insulin. There are a variety of insulin preparations with a range of actions and duration. For example, lispro is the fastest-acting form of insulin available. It begins to take effect within 15 minutes of injection and reaches its peak effect in about an hour. The effects of lispro last for 3 to 4 hours.