Tips on Traveling with Diabetes

Woody Short

6 years ago

Planning your next getaway? These tips on traveling with diabetes will help you know what to pack and have you ready to go without worry!

Living with diabetes requires planning and a good sense of management in order to properly execute a care plan. While it is not so complex that it becomes a tedious task, it is good to rely on certain tips when certain situations arise. Traveling with diabetes, for example, can sound complicated but if you follow these useful tips, your trip will be all fun without any fuss.

Many diabetic patients wonder how to travel with insulin on an airplane, or may wonder what would be good travel snacks for diabetics that are of easy access, won’t be too bulky and will keep their glucose levels in check.

All of these concerns are legit. Thankfully, there are many ways to tackle these issues without creating a stressful situation for yourself, or your loved ones during your vacation.

In order to understand how to travel with insulin on an airplane, one must know that diabetic medication can be certainly sensitive to drastic changes in temperature. This means that, putting your insulin on your checked luggage is something you want to avoid, because these bags are often exposed to very cold or very hot temperatures.

For this reason, keeping your insulin and other medications on you is the best advice when traveling with diabetes.

In many ways, this is particularly helpful as it eliminates the risk of losing your supply in case of luggage delay, it maintains a regulated temperature (especially if you use a cool pack) and it is always accessible in case of emergencies.

Aside from these reasons, it is actually reassuring to know that if anything were to happen, your flight got delayed, your missed a connection or something happened to your bags, you are still covered during your trip.

Other great tips on traveling with diabetes include knowing what to bring as part of your healthy snacks.

Good travel snacks for diabetics don’t have to be too complex either, or take a lot of space in your handbag or carry-on. For example, you can rely on fruits, nuts and certain unrefined carbs – think of whole grains, high fiber and low fat – yogurt, nut butters, dark chocolate, etc.

These snacks are not only good for diabetics, but will actually help in case of unexpected changes in your glucose levels.

Moreover, something that you may want to include on your travel bag are glucose tabs, as these are perfect to raise your glucose levels whenever needed, they stand changes in temperature, stay dry and are super easy to use.

In addition to knowing how to travel with insulin on an airplane, packing some good travel snacks for diabetics and keeping your other medications within reach, it is important to know what type of documentation is an essential part of your trip.

A certified letter from your Doctor and Specialist stating the state of your diabetes and the need of traveling with your medication, provides easier access to carrying your supplies on you at all times, especially with the added security at airports.

If you are traveling to a part of the world where English is not the first language, you should make an effort to have your documentation translated into the country’s official language, as it may become necessary to show these to airport officials.

Furthermore, if you are traveling with friends or coworkers instead of your close family members, it is important for them to know your situation. That way they will be ready in case of an emergency, and won’t be taken by surprise if you need to make a quick stop to check your glucose levels during the trip.

Traveling with diabetes does not have to ruin the fun of your trip. With these helpful tips and your diabetes travel check-list in hand, you can have great time and expect things to go as smoothly as possible, without the worry of complications.