Avoiding Type 2 Diabetes
Learning that you have pre-diabetes or glucose intolerance can be a bit scary. Learning that you are in the high risk categories for developing diabetes can also be nerve-wracking for many people. Youre likely to be asking yourself many questions. What does it mean? What do I need to do now? Can I avoid developing Type 2 diabetes?
If you have pre-diabetes, you are very likely to develop Type 2 diabetes within a ten year window. Many people today currently have pre-diabetes or even diabetes itself and are not aware of that fact. The first thing you should do is assess your risk factors. If you have a family history of diabetes or if you are part of one of the following ethnic groups you are far more likely to develop diabetes: African American, Alaska Native, Latino, Native American, Asian, or Pacific Islander. People over 40 are also more likely to develop diabetes, however, there has been a steady increase in young people developing Type 2 diabetes recently. This is due to the fact that many young people are much more sedentary now than in the past. Being less physically active puts you at a higher risk for developing Type 2 diabetes. Being overweight is also a significant risk factor.
If you find yourself with some of the risk factors noted above it is important to discuss the possibility of diabetes with your doctor, and have a fasting blood glucose test run to see if you have the disease. Diabetes affects almost every system in the body. The longer a person lives with diabetes, the more likely he or she is to suffer from diabetic complications. Diabetes can cause blindness, it contributes greatly to heart disease, puts you at risk for stroke, can cause circulatory problems or slow healing infections which can lead to amputation of limbs. These are just a few of the complications you can suffer, so it is important to avoid allowing pre-diabetes to degenerate into Type 2 diabetes as long as possible.
The easiest and most effective way to prevent diabetes is to lose weight and be more active. Sounds familiar? Generally, this is the advice given for many ailments. Many people groan inwardly when their doctors suggest these lifestyle changes, but since they help to prevent a multitude of health issues from cancer to heart disease, and they can help prevent or delay the onset of Type 2 diabetes, losing weight and beginning an exercise regime should be immediate goals. Generally, we dont want to give up our sedentary lifestyles and junk-food diets, but a diagnosis of pre-diabetes should be further incentive to make the change to a healthier lifestyle.
Changes in diet require changing your habits and changing the way you think about food. Snacks should shift from a bag of potato chips to an apple or an orange. Portion control is important too. Often we consume more than we think we do simply because of the way our food is packaged or presented to us; restaurant portions are almost always two or more meals. Cut out soda and other sweetened beverages. Decrease your consumption of carbohydrate heavy foods such as potatoes. Switch from white bread to whole grain breads. Reduce the amount of meat youre eating and increase your fruits and vegetables. Over time you will get used to eating like this and wont crave the things you have given up. Eating healthier has its own rewards.
Exercise is also very important for diabetics. Exercise can help to reduce the amount of sugar in your blood and will help you to lose weight and keep it off. You should strive to exercise 6 days a week and try for one hour a day. This is probably an aggressive goal initially. You can start gradually. Most doctors suggest 30 minutes a day for 5 days as a good starting point, and you can break up your exercise into 10 minute segments until you can work up to a longer period of time. Walking is one of the easiest, least costly methods of exercise and is something most people can do with minimal impact. Make sure to discuss your planned exercise regime with your doctor first.
If you can change your eating habits and exercise regularly you will be able to lose weight and keep it off, and that is perhaps the best way to avoid developing Type 2 diabetes.