“I wish we could all take a vacation from negation.” Rebecca Beard

What kind of day do you communicate to your cells? Remember they feel all your emotions. If you are gloomy, glum, bored, angry, fearful (or any of emotions of gray variety), your cells will not go to work with joy and vigor. Maybe your stomach cells will not digest very well. Perhaps your head cells will hurt as a headache.

If you are happy, upbeat, grateful, laughing, exhilarated (in short, feeling emotions of golden variety), your cells will function in tip-top fashion. They will be efficient and robust. Joy-filled. Vigorous. Healthy.

No doubt about it; our emotions affect our bodies. Better watch how we are feeling so our cells can sing song of blooming, radiant, zestful health.

And Today . . .

Put your periscope up today and look around. What do you see? Bad weather and enemy ships? A long list of things you must do that you don’t enjoy? Surly people?

Or great weather and peaceful waters? A day ahead filled with things you enjoy? Fun and fulfilled people?

If view from your periscope is gloomy, you will report that to your cells. Time to go into “act as if” mode. Lots of research has shown that if you act way you want to be, pretty soon you will be that way.

So act as if you are feeling golden emotions all day today and, after a while, you will. Your cells will thank you for it. You are captain of your attitude and your health; take command now. © 2002 Stephanie West Allen

Do your housework and get more than a clean house. Turn up music, get some exercise and burn away those calories. Exercise is a really important tool, because it can help lower your blood sugars. Your muscles use sugar, glucose, as source of energy, so it can actually lower your blood sugars. Begin after you have undergone a stress test before starting on a fitness routine. Just walking like maybe half a mile in beginning, would be enough, then you can slowly build up from that.

Do walk whenever you have chance. Get off bus or subway a few stops early or park at far end of lot. Walking is a great place to start . You don't need any fancy equipment, you don't need to have a special outfit or anything, what you really need is a good pair of walking shoes, and to go out and start.

Do avoid smoking. Smoking doubles damage to body by contributing to poor blood glucose control by interfering with timing and effects of insulin. It also raises your blood glucose level, which contributes to poor diabetes control. If not checked in time ,it can cause hardening of arteries. This particularly affects body's larger arteries to legs and brain, making amputation and strokes more likely. Although it is true that most people gain some weight when they quit smoking, for vast majority of smokers gain amounts to less than 10 pounds. The health benefits of quitting far outweigh risks of a few extra pounds . Beyond fear of weight gain, most common obstacle to quitting is addictiveness of nicotine. Ask your doctor or nurse about ways to help you quit smoking. Log on to: http://www.diabetes.org/main/community/forecast/page46.jsp to know more on Diabetes & Smoking.

Do talk with family and friends about managing your diabetes. Be an inspiration with your healthy lifestyle.

The mainstay in treatment of Type 2 diabetes is actually diet and exercise. Regardless what type of medicines you're going to be on, diet and exercise are always going to be important. Your medicines are not going to work if you mess up at your diet.

For more information on diabetes care, call National Diabetes Education Program at 1-800-438-5383 or visit NDEP Web site at www.ndep.nih.gov .