If you have recently heard that you have pre-diabetes, or if you have a strong family history of diabetes or other risk factors, you may be wondering if it is possible to avoid developing Type 2 diabetes, or if it is possible that you can delay the onset of the disease.
If you currently have pre-diabetes there is a significant likelihood that you will develop Type 2 diabetes within the next ten years. It is important to understand the risk factors associated with Type 2 diabetes. You should discuss these with your doctor. If you have a family history of diabetes you are far more likely to develop the disease, especially if someone in your immediate family has diabetes. Ethnicity also is a risk factor. You are more likely to be diabetic if you are African American, Asian, Latino, Native American, Pacific Islander, or Native Alaskan. If you live a sedentary lifestyle and are overweight you are at a greater risk as well. Usually Type 2 diabetes strikes people aged 40 or over, but there has been a surge in younger people developing the disease as there are many more children today who are obese and sedentary, two of the main contributing factors to developing the disease.
If you have any of the risk factors listed above you should ask your doctor to screen you for diabetes. He or she will run a fasting blood glucose test to determine if you have diabetes or pre-diabetes. Diabetes affects almost every system in the body. It can cause blindness. It can result in slow healing wounds which can lead to infection and possibly amputation of the legs. Diabetes contributes to heart disease and stroke. You can also suffer painful nerve damage. The longer you live with diabetes, the more likely you are to develop complications, so it is important to try and delay the onset of the disease 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.
Losing weight and eating better mean changing the way you think about food. Over time, you can change what your body craves. You can move from potato chips and/or cookies to healthier snacks of fruits and vegetables. Try not to consume calories that have no nutritional value, such as soda. Its also important to get an understanding of real portion sizes. Often we eat what is given to us without thinking. Restaurant portions are often more than one meal and more often than not, most people consume the entire dish they are served rather than leave something on their plate or bring home leftovers. Make sure to look at packages to understand how many servings are in that box or bag or can. Often what you thought was one serving is much more. General guidelines to eat healthier are to reduce the amount of meat you consume and increase fruits and vegetables. Cut down on refined and processed foods in favor of whole foods. Switch from refined flours to whole grains. These changes will result in better overall health.
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.
Switching to a healthier diet and exercising regularly will help you to lose weight and will help to keep that weight off. These are the most important things you can do to delay or prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes.
