It's time to think about hot summer days, the cool breeze coming off the water, sandy beaches, and lazy hours spent listening to the surf crash or lap against the shore. If you have diabetes, it's also time to think about summer skin care and precautions for your feet so that your time in the sun doesn't result in a visit to your doctor.
People with diabetes can, and do, enjoy beach vacations just like the millions of other folks who don't have diabetes, vying for a space to lay their towel or build a sand castle. Diabetics just need to be sensible and prudent in their pre-planning and activity while at the beach.
A General Checklist:
- Take along twice the necessary amount of insulin and medication that you would normally use during your stay, and split it up among your personal carry-along belongings in case of theft or misplacement. This plus snacks to prevent hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) should be near to you at all times and familiar to those in your beach party. Make sure to store your insulin and medications at proper temperatures -- you can buy devices expressly made for this at your pharmacy or take along an insulated bag or small cooler.
- Carry some form of medical alert information (a necklace, bracelet, wallet card) stating your condition and any known drug allergies.
Some Special Precautions:
- Since people with diabetes may be more prone to fungal and bacterial infections, they need to take special care of their skin. During hot weather, they should shower at least once daily, especially after swimming. Skin kept in damp, sweaty clothes is susceptible to active organisms, the most common of which are yeast and fungi that cause athlete's food. Skin infections are also commonly contracted on pool and communal shower floors and from excessive sweat and rubbing of the skin. Change to dry clothing or swimsuit. A light dusting of talcum powder (not cornstarch) can help absorb any excess moisture and sweat.
- Feet need special attention at the beach, avoiding walking barefoot, breaking in new shoes gradually, and wearing canvas or leather shoes as open as possible. We have two special pairs of canvas slip-on shoes that we wear to the beach and into the water, changing into the dry spare when needed. A small cut caused by stepping on a broken shell could cause serious problems that can be avoided.
- Everyone, including those with diabetes, need to protect their skin from the damaging effect of the summer sun, particularly when near the water. Remember that you can get as serious of a sunburn on a hazy day as you can when the sun's in its full glory. Prudent use of sunblock (SPF 15 or more), broad-brimmed hats, and sunglasses that screen out both ultraviolet (UV) A and B rays will help.
- Minor sunburn can be soothed with cool baths or cool water or milk compresses, oral pain relievers, and topical cortisone creams. Topical numbing (anesthetic), oily, or greasy creams should be avoided. Expect minor sunburn discomfort to peak in 1 to 2 days after exposure.
- Should you get more sun than you wanted and major sunburn develops, with or without blisters, consult your physician at once.
Terrific Beach Destinations:
And now, for some great beach destinations, whether for a Memorial Day getaway, one day picnic, or a beach trip later on in the summer. First, since we literally "live on the net" we went "surfing" and found a marvelous site that has information and the know how to help you plan your beach outing: http://www.surf-sun.com/. Tell them diabetic-lifestyle.com sent you so that when we ask them to plan our next trip to the Greek island of Mykonos, we'll get extra special treatment. (Just kidding!)
In looking through their list of beach destinations, we were reminded of some very special ones that we've particularly enjoyed over the years, plus some we never considered. For those beaches not in the U.S. we've included those beaches which we've visited and others from countries where we know we have loyal members and monthly viewers.
United States
California: Balboa Island, Cambria, Carmel, Catalina Island, Half Moon Bay, Huntington Beach, Imperial Beach, Laguna Beach, Lake Tahoe, Long Beach, Morro Bay, Newport Beach, Pismo Beach, Redondo Beach, San Clemente, San Diego San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, San Simeon, Santa Barbara, Santa Crus, Seal Beach, Venice, and others
Connecticut: Mystic, Stamford
Delaware: Bethany Beach, Dewey Beach, Fenwick Island, Lewes, Rehoboth Beach
Florida: Boca Raton, Clearwater, Daytona Beach; Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Jensen Beach, Key West, Marco Island, Miami Beach, Naples, Palm Beach, Pensacola Beach, Pompano Beach, Sanibel Island, Sarasota, St. Augustine, St. Pete Beach, Surf Side, Tampa Bay, Vero Beach, and others
Georgia: Jekyll Island, Little St. Simons Island, Savannah, Sea Island, St. Simons Island, Tybee Island
Hawaii: chose from the great beaches on the Big Island (Hawaii), Kauai, Maui, Malokai, Oahu
Indiana: Michigan City
Maine: Kennebunkport, Kittery, Ogunquit, Wells, York
Maryland: Calvert County, Ocean City, Ocean Pines, Tilghman Island
Massachusetts: Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Provincetown
Michigan: South Haven
New Jersey: Atlantic City, Cape May, Long Beach Island, Wildwood
New York: Coney Island, Fire Island, Greenport, Hamptons, North Fork, Peconic
North Carolina: Carolina Beach, Outer Banks, South Brunswick Islands, Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach
Ohio: Lake County, Sandusky
Oregon: Cannon Beach, Gold Beach
Rhode Island: Block Island, Newport, South Kingstown
South Carolina: Charleston, Fripp Island, Hilton Head Island, Isle of Palms, Kiawah Island, Myrtle Beach
Texas: Clear Lake, Crystal Beach, Galveston Island, Lake Conroe, Lake Livingston, Port Aransas, South Padre Island, Texas City
Virginia: Chincoteaque Island, Colonial Beach, Norfollk, Virginia Beach
Washington: Camano Island, Ocean Shores, Orcas Island, San Juan Island, Whidbey Island
Australia
Bargara, Bondi Beach, Brisbane, Byron Bay, Cairns, Coffs Harbour, Fraser Island, Noosa Heads, Port Douglas, Port Macquarie, Sunshire Coast, Sydney,Tasmania
Canada
Bayfield; Cape Breton Island; Gand Bend; Halifax; Nova Scotia; Orillia; Port Elgin, On; Prince Edward Island; Sauble Beach, Shediac; Vancourver; Victoria; Wasaga Beach
Caribbean
American Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin Island, Cayman Island, Costa Rica, Curacao, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Jamaica, Martinique, Puerto Rico, Saba, St. Barths, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, Trinidad, and others
Greece
Andros, Crete, Cypress, Kos, Kythera, Mykonos, Paros, Rhodes, Santorini, and others
Italy
Alassio, Albenga, Capri Island, Elba Island, Ischia Island, Lampedusa Island, Naples, Positano, Sardinia Island, Stromboli
Pacific Islands
Bora Bora; Cook Islands; Fiji Islands; Guam; Marshall Islands; Micronesia; Norfolk Island; N. Mariana Islands; Papua, New Guinea; Tahiti; Tonga; and others
Spain
Alicante, Barcalona, Benalmadena, Castellon, Costa Adeje, Ibiza, Majorca, Marbella, Sagunt, Valencia
If we've inadvertently missed mentioning your favorite beach destination, drop us an e-mail, telling us why you think it's special and we'll include it in a later article.
Until then, break away from the daily routine and have a fantastic get-away, enjoying your beach destination in good health so you'll feel refreshed and renewed, ready to tackle life again when you return.
