According to the British organization Diabetes UK, one in 10 people over the age of 40 has diabetes. Its numbers have doubled in the last two decades.
Research suggests that by the year 2030, an additional 5.5 million people will be affected by the disease.
There are basically two types of diabetes: type one and type two. Type one is not very common and there is no cure.
Type 2 is caused by excess weight gain, and a lifestyle that involves sitting for long periods of time, but there can be other causes as well.
According to the International Diabetes Federation, about 33 million people aged 20 to 79 years have diabetes in Pakistan.
If your blood sugar is very high but not in the diabetic range, you are considered ‘pre-diabetic’. This means you may have diabetes.
But the good news in all this is that up to 80% of type 2 diabetes is curable.
Let’s try to find out what you can do to prevent diabetes.
Know where you stand
Type 2 diabetes does not come quickly and the symptoms are obvious. So it is important to know about the potential risks. Get tested to find out what your risks are.
People who have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes may have symptoms such as excessive thirst, fatigue, and frequent urination, but it is also possible to have diabetes without any symptoms.
Eat well and beat diabetes
If you are overweight, you can reduce your risk of developing diabetes or slow down the process.
By losing just one kilogram of weight, you can reduce your risk of diabetes by 16%. You can control your weight with exercise and a good diet.
Not every diet is ideal for weight loss, so a balanced diet is recommended. If you are pre-diabetic or have type 2 diabetes, it is very important for you to control your weight.
Maintaining a healthy weight makes diabetes easier to control and major complications associated with the disease can be avoided.
What is a good diet?
Eat as many vegetables as you want without any worries. They are low in calories and cheap too. So make them a part of your diet.
Vegetables contain a lot of fiber and are good for digestion. The stomach also feels full and they slow down the dissolution of sugar in the blood.
The more variety of vegetables you eat, the better. However, potatoes, sweet potatoes and bananas cannot be eaten every day. They are high in starch so should be eaten in moderation.
Beans and pulses can be included in the daily diet.
Whole Green
Whole grains such as brown rice and wholemeal bread contain carbohydrates, and it is often questioned whether people with type 2 diabetes or who may develop the disease should eat foods that are high in carbohydrates.
When it comes to carbohydrates, their quality is very important.
Refined carbohydrates such as whole wheat bread, pasta etc. are easy to make but it is best to avoid them if possible.
Hulled grains are better than refined grains. The husk is the most nutritious part of the grain, containing fiber and protein.
Read labels carefully when shopping: Some products claim to contain healthy whole grains, but they’re also high in sugar and other ingredients. For example, some brown breads are white breads but are only brown in color.
Protein
Protein provides a feeling of fullness and can help you control your appetite.
Foods that contain protein also contain fiber, vitamins, and good fats. But things like processed meats are high in fat and salt along with protein, so they should be eaten infrequently and less often.
Good sources of protein include fish, nuts, lentils, low-fat Greek yogurt (yogurt), and many legumes (such as soybeans, which are used to make tofu).
fruit
Fruits are good for us because they are rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber.
But some fruits are high in sugar. So make a variety of fruits a part of your diet.
Tropical fruits are especially high in sugar.
Instead of drinking juices and smoothies, eat fruits. Fruits are high in fiber, which slows down the absorption of sugar in our body. Eating fruits also suppresses our hunger.
Juicing the fruit removes most of the fiber. When we juice a fruit, it is difficult to decide how much juice we should drink.
Grease
Fat is essential for good health, but we don’t need a lot of it. It makes us feel full after eating which helps us control hunger.
Eating the right kind of fat is important. Many types of fat are harmful to our health, such as trans fat, the fat found in processed foods and the fat found in processed meat or ghee are also not good for us.
Excess fat also has a protective effect. Good fats include extra virgin olive oil and fats found in fish, vegetables and fruits.
Foods that are high in fat and sugar are bad for your health. They should be avoided.
Be wary of foods that are labeled as low-fat because they replace the fat with other unhealthy ingredients.
Water
We often cannot differentiate between hunger and thirst. So if you want better eating habits, drink more water.
There is no doubt that water is good for us, best because it contains no calories. Many other beverages contain a lot of sugar, caffeine, or addictive substances, such as soft drinks, energy drinks, and coffee.
Try to drink these types of sweet drinks infrequently, there is also evidence that sweet foods increase the feeling of hunger.
If you don’t like the taste of water, add lemon, ginger, mint to make it better. You can also make herbal tea instead.
Everyone needs a different amount of water, but you can tell how much you need by the color of your urine. If the color of the urine is clear or pale yellow, then you are drinking the right amount of water.
Gym and exercise
Exercise is essential for good health. Not only does it help in maintaining a good weight, it also keeps blood sugar low. This is because exercise helps the body use insulin more efficiently.
You don’t need to go to the gym. Just keep going about your daily routine and make some exercise goals.
You can do anything that moves your body like walking, doing housework, playing with children, etc.
Does dieting prevent type 2 diabetes?
New research suggests that people with type 2 diabetes should eat a very low-calorie diet to keep blood sugar levels under control.
Participants in the study ate a variety of foods under medical supervision.
Research has shown that weight loss reduces the amount of fat in the liver and pancreas. By doing this, the blood sugar level becomes normal and the insulin function improves.
By watching our weight and diet we can control diabetes.