Living with diabetes: Your beach day preparation checklist

When you're planning out your next beach day, preparation is key to keep diabetes from making waves. Keeping your condition in mind while creating a checklist can help keep you healthy and ensure nothing prevents you from enjoying the sand and sun!

There are a couple of things you'll want to bring to the beach in addition to sunscreen and lounge chairs. Follow this beach day preparation checklist to have a relaxing, fun experience without worrying about your diabetes.

Diabetes-friendly snacks

Diabetes doesn't need to drive your beach day preparation plans — but it does influence what you might throw into your snack bag. It's important to have sources of fast-acting sugar on hand at all times, as lows can sneak up unpredictably when you're in the heat and playing on the beach. Juice boxes can quickly spoil in the summer heat, so pack a few things that won't be affected by high temperatures, such as glucose tabs.

Blood glucose monitoring supplies

Excessive heat can mask the symptoms of low (and high) blood sugar, so while at the beach, make a point to check your blood sugar often. It's wise to always have a fingerstick glucose meter on hand to keep tabs on your glucose levels, but performing multiple tests over the course of a few hours can be painful and frustrating.

This is one of the reasons why continuous glucose monitor (CGM) technology has become so popular. Without having to draw any blood, you can watch your glucose levels and make dosing decisions based on the way your numbers are trending. Even better, this monitoring can be done — anytime and anywhere — through an app on your smartphone.

Water (and other hydrating drinks)

Heat and high blood sugars can quickly cause dehydration, so staying hydrated while at the beach is super important! Make sure to bring plenty of water when you're packing your beach day preparation bag — and if "plain old water" isn't your thing, explore sugar-free lemonade or sugar-free iced tea options.

Also, as someone with a diabetes diagnosis, it's best to stick with caffeine-free beverages while at the beach, as caffeine can increase your chances of dehydration. Keeping your hydration levels up will help prevent overheating, so make sure there's always a cool drink nearby.

Proper insulin storage

Insulin doesn't care if you're at the beach — keeping that vital vial cool at all times is essential to its efficacy! Unopened insulin should be kept between 36 degrees and 46 degrees Fahrenheit when not in use. If you wear an insulin pump, you'll have your insulin literally "on you" at all times, but insulin vials and pens need to be kept in a cooler or with a cool pack in order to protect the integrity of the insulin.

Insulin can technically be kept at room temperature for about four weeks before being used but its proteins will break down faster in high temperatures. Accordingly, you should always try to keep your insulin as cool as you can while at the beach. Take care not to freeze it, though! Extremely low temperatures can also negatively affect insulin's effectiveness.

Lots (and lots) of sunscreen

When at the beach, it's a good idea to stay slathered in a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. It goes without saying that sunburns are not fun. However, if you have diabetes, they can also be dangerous! Sunburns cause your body to experience internal stress, which can lead to higher blood sugars and the risk of hyperglycemia.

Keep sunscreen carefully applied, stash a sun hat (and a coverup) in your beach bag and remember that you can still get sunburned even when you're in the ocean or the pool. You come to the beach for rest and relaxation, so stay safe and take precautions to avoid discomfort!

A few helpful accessories

In addition to the items on this beach day preparation checklist, it's worth packing a few accessories that can help make your visit a success. Consider bringing along these extra items that can help you feel comfortable and confident while enjoying the sunshine.

• Sterilizing wipes. It's always smart to keep an alcohol wipe (or two) in your beach day bag, just in case you need to clean your fingertip for a blood sugar check or clean your skin for a diabetes device insertion. Make sure your skin is clean and dry before checking your blood sugar or changing a device site.
• Storage solutions. It helps to have a clean, water-tight container on hand while at the beach. This can help keep diabetes devices away from damaging sand and salt if you need to store them while swimming. As an added bonus, it can help shade your items from the sun's rays.
• Extra adhesives. If you're having trouble keeping diabetes devices like CGMs and insulin pumps stuck to your skin amid the heat of summer, check out medical overlay tapes to help keep things sticky.
• Medical ID information. When you're enjoying a day at the beach, it's still a good idea to wear a medical alert ID, as blood sugar excursions can happen without warning.

Thinking ahead about beach day preparation helps you "shell-ebrate" the summer safely! Looking to order a few supplies in preparation? Visit the Edgepark website to explore its many offerings related to diabetes testing and insulin delivery.