About Your Heart
Diabetes raises your risk of getting heart disease by 2 to 4 times. You can lower that risk a lot if you follow a healthy lifestyle plan.
Keeping your blood sugar levels in your target range can help prevent or delay further progression of complications of heart disease.
Helpful Definitions
- Lipids – blood fats.
- Cholesterol – a waxy, fat-like substance made by the liver that helps your cells function. Your body makes all the cholesterol it needs.
- LDL (low-density lipoprotein) – known as the "bad cholesterol", because it sticks to the walls of your blood vessels.
- HDL (high-density lipoprotein) – known as the "good cholesterol", because it carries away the sticky (LDL) cholesterol.
- Triglycerides – another kind of fat in your blood. Levels can go up after eating a high-fat meal.
- Lipid Profile – a series of lab tests including LDL, HDL, and triglycerides.
What Are the Risk Factors For Heart Disease?
There are many risk factors for heart disease. These include:
- Age: over 45 years old if you're male, and over 55 years old if you're female
- Family history of heart disease
- Smoking
- High blood pressure
- Low HDL
- High LDL
- High triglycerides
- High cholesterol
- Little or no daily exercise
- Diabetes
Women with diabetes are at higher risk for heart disease, especially after menopause, than women who do not have diabetes. Talk to your healthcare team about your risk. The more risk factors you have, the greater your risk for heart disease. Since you can't control some of these factors, it helps to change what you can control, like lowering your cholesterol.
How Do I Lower My Cholesterol Levels?
Your healthcare team will help you come up with a healthy lifestyle plan. This chart gives you an idea of what your team looks for and what they may recommend.
| Type of blood |
Best Result |
Risk goes up when levels are |
What to do to lower your risk |
| Cholesterol |
Less than 200 mg/dL |
HIGH |
Eat less saturated fat Eat less cholesterol |
| LDL (bad cholesterol) |
Less than 100 mg/dL if you have diabetes |
HIGH |
Eat less saturated fat Eat less cholesterol Maintain a healthy weight
Medication (if prescribed) |
| HDL (good cholesterol) |
For women: more than 50 mg/dL
For men: more than 40 mg/dL |
LOW |
Exercise regularly Stop smoking Maintain a healthy weight |
| Triglycerides |
Less than 200 mg/dL |
HIGH |
Cut down on alcohol Exercise regularly Maintain a healthy weight |
| Triglycerides |
Less than 150 mg/dL if you have heart disease |
HIGH |
Eat fewer simple sugars
Eat less saturated fat Medication (if prescribed) |
About Your Skin and Teeth
Good skin care is important for everyone. Keeping your blood sugar level in a healthy range can help prevent bacterial infections, like styes and carbuncles, and yeast-like fungus that cause itchy rashes in the folds of your skin. Dry skin can be common in people with uncontrolled diabetes, but you can prevent problems by taking good care of your skin daily. If you think you have a bacterial or fungal infection, call your doctor.
We all should go to the dentist regularly and take good care of our teeth and gums. Maintaining healthy blood sugar levels can help prevent bacteria-causing growth in the mouth. You can prevent periodontal disease by practicing good oral hygiene and making regular visits to your dentist.