8 Tips for Flying with Diabetes

Bring your own meal or snack

These days, few airlines offer free meals; you're probably out of luck if you're flying economy class or you're on a relatively short flight. The meals and snacks offered are expensive and unhealthy to boot. So tuck some decent food in your carry-on-bag that will help keep your blood sugar on track.

Book an aisle seat

You may be tempted to pity the person on the end of the row who gets disturbed every time someone else wants to leave their seat. But it’s actually better to move around on the plane. Sitting for hours on end raises the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or blood clots in the legs. Poor circulation can be a challenge for diabetics and DVT can be life-threatening if the clot travels through the bloodstream and blocks blood flow to the lungs.

Set a digital reminder to get up

It’s easy for time to get away from you while you’re sleeping or watching in-flight movie. Wear a digital watch with an alarm that will go off every 60 or 90 minutes after takeoff. This can be your reminder to get up for a stroll to the restroom and back.

Use airport time to burn calories

Catching a plane involves a whole lot of hurry up and wait. While you're waiting to board your plane use that spare time to tool around the terminal rather than grabbing an overpriced candy bar from the newsstand. You can save up to 420 calories!

Buy some bottled water once you've cleared security

You need to drink more to avoid dehydration and the one or two visits from the beverage cart won’t be enough for you. Becoming dehydrated can give you a headache and possibly raise your blood sugar. Getting up more often to use the bathroom is not a bad thing. Be sure to buy your water after you’ve passed through security.

Ask at the gate for an exit row seat

You can only book these seats once you're at the airport, even if you already have a seat assignment—something not many people know. In an exit row you'll have oodles more room to stretch your legs.

Happy feet

Keep your blood on the move with simple foot exercises every half hour. With your heels on the floor, lift your toes up as far as possible. Hold for a few seconds, then release. Next, lift one foot slightly off the floor and draw circles in each direction with your toes. Repeat with the other foot. Finally, lift one heel as high as possible, keeping your toes on the floor. Repeat with the other foot.

Time your arrival

Nothing adds to the stress of travel than barely making your flight. Lower your anxiety by leaving plenty of time to travel to the airport safely, park, check in with the agent, and get through security. Rushing around and getting stressed is just going to increase your blood glucose levels. For domestic flights, arrive 90 minutes before the flight. For international flights, show up at least two hours before departure. Add an additional 30 to 60 minutes if you're flying during the holidays.