(RxWiki News) Belief in yourself and your own skills may help to improve your diabetes management. Having confidence in self-management skills is linked with improved blood sugar control.
A recent study looked at the control of blood sugar for people with type 2 diabetes and found that people who had high self-efficacy had better control of their diabetes.
Self-efficacy is the belief and confidence in a person’s own ability to complete a task or reach a goal.
"Speak with a diabetic educator to improve your diabetes management skills"
This study, led by Omar Abdulhameed Al-Khawaldeh, PhD, at the University of Jordan, interviewed 223 adult patients with type 2 diabetes. They found that people who rated higher on self-efficacy were better at their diabetes management.
Specifically, people with high scores on self-efficacy were better at managing their diet, exercise, medication, and blood sugar testing. The people with more confidence were also more likely to have good control of their blood sugar.
The authors of this study recommend that people with type 2 diabetes and diabetic educators focus on improving self-efficacy, which can lead to improved diabetic management.
Daily Rx spoke with Theresa Garnero, a nurse and diabetic educator. She stated that “The small daily efforts lead to health both short and long term.” Diabetic educators can provide skills training and education to help improve confidence and self-management of diabetes.
This study was reported in the February issue of Journal of Diabetes and its Complications. No conflicts of interest were disclosed by the study authors.
