Beat Diabetes Before It Starts: 5 Fun and Easy Tips
2024-08-01 2024-08-01 17:25Beat Diabetes Before It Starts: 5 Fun and Easy Tips
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Beat Diabetes Before It Starts: 5 Fun and Easy Tips
Changing your lifestyle is a big step towards preventing diabetes, and it’s never too late to start. Here are some simple tips to help you.
Changing your lifestyle can help prevent type 2 diabetes, which is the most common type. Prevention is very important if you are at higher risk because you are overweight, have high cholesterol, or have family members with diabetes.
If your doctor says you have prediabetes (a higher than normal blood sugar level that isn’t high enough to be diabetes), changing your lifestyle can prevent or delay getting diabetes.
Making changes now can help you avoid serious problems later, like nerve, kidney, and heart damage. It’s never too late to start.
1. Lose Extra Weight
Losing weight lowers the risk of diabetes. In a big study, people reduced their risk of getting diabetes by almost 60% after losing about 7% of their body weight with more activity and better eating.
The American Diabetes Association says people with prediabetes should lose at least 7% to 10% of their weight to stop the disease from getting worse. The more weight you lose, the more you will benefit.
Set a weight-loss goal based on your current weight. Talk to your doctor about good short-term goals, like losing 1 to 2 pounds (0.45 to 0.90 kg) per week.
2. Be More Active
Regular exercise has many benefits. It can help you:
- Lose weight
- Lower your blood sugar
- Improve how your body uses insulin, which helps keep your blood sugar in a normal range
For most adults, these goals can help with weight loss and staying healthy:
- Aerobic Exercise:Try to do 30 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise, like brisk walking, swimming, biking, or running, most days. Aim for at least 150 minutes a week.
- Resistance Exercise:Resistance exercises, like lifting weights, yoga, and calisthenics, done 2 to 3 times a week, help you get stronger and stay active.
- Limit Inactivity:Break up long periods of sitting, like at a computer. Stand up, walk, or do some light activity every 30 minutes.
3. Eat Healthy Plant Foods
Plants provide vitamins, minerals, and carbs. Carbs include sugars, starches (energy sources for your body), and fiber. Fiber is the part of plant foods that your body can’t digest.
High-fiber foods help with weight loss and lower the risk of diabetes. Eat a variety of healthy, high-fiber foods, like:
- Fruits, like tomatoes, peppers, and apples
- Non-starchy vegetables, like leafy greens, broccoli, and cauliflower
- Legumes, like beans, chickpeas, and lentils
- Whole grains, like whole wheat pasta and bread, brown rice, oats, and quinoa
Fiber has many benefits:
- Slows the absorption of sugars and lowers blood sugar levels
- Reduces the absorption of dietary fat and cholesterol
- Helps with other things that affect heart health, like blood pressure and inflammation
- Helps you feel full and eat less
Avoid “bad carbs,” meaning foods high in sugar with little fiber or nutrients: white bread, pastries, white flour pasta, fruit juices, and processed foods with sugar or high fructose corn syrup.
4. Choose Healthy Fats
Fatty foods are high in calories and should be eaten in moderation. To lose weight and keep it off, include a variety of unsaturated fats, sometimes called “good fats.”
Unsaturated fats, both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated, help keep cholesterol levels healthy and support good heart and blood vessel health. Here are some sources of healthy fats:
- Olive, sunflower, safflower, cottonseed, and canola oils
- Nuts and seeds, like almonds, peanuts, flaxseed, and pumpkin seeds
- Fatty fish, like salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna, and cod
Saturated fats, the “bad fats,” are found in dairy and meats. Eat these fats less often. Limit saturated fats by eating low-fat dairy products and lean meats like chicken and pork.
5. Skip Fad Diets and Make Healthier Choices
Many fad diets, like glycemic index diets, keto diets, or paleo diets, can help you lose weight. But there’s little research on their long-term benefits or their role in preventing diabetes.
Your goal should be to lose weight and keep it off. So, make healthy eating choices that you can stick with for life. Making healthy choices that include your favorite foods and traditions can be helpful over time.
A simple way to help you make better food choices and eat the right portion sizes is to divide your plate into three sections:
- Half: Fruits and non-starchy vegetables
- One quarter: Whole grains
- One quarter: Protein-rich foods, like legumes, fish, or lean meats
When to See Your Doctor
The American Diabetes Association recommends routine screening for type 2 diabetes for all adults age 45 or older, and for these groups:
- People younger than 45 who are overweight or obese and have one or more diabetes risk factors
- Women who had gestational diabetes
- People diagnosed with prediabetes
- Children who are overweight or obese and have a family history of type 2 diabetes or other risk factors
Talk with your doctor about your concerns and how to prevent diabetes. Your doctor will appreciate your effort to prevent diabetes and may offer more suggestions based on your medical history and other factors.
