Article By Nanette Wiser
November is National Diabetes Month and there’s no better time than now to work on preventing diabetes with healthy lifestyle choices. With COVID-19 risks, people with diabetes need to take extra precautions and are at higher risk. For more prevention and treatment information on diabetes, consult your physician or visit this website:
www.cdc.gov/diabetes/prevention/index.html
About 28 percent of Americans with diabetes are undiagnosed, and another 86 million American adults have blood glucose levels that greatly increase their risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the next several years. Diabetes affects an estimated 29.1 million people in the United States and is the 7th leading cause of death. Diabetes Increases the all-cause mortality rate 1.8 times compared to persons without diagnosed diabetes, increases the risk of heart attack by 1.8 times and is the leading cause of kidney failure, lower limb amputations, and adult-onset blindness.
Unlike type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes can sometimes be prevented. Excessive weight gain, obesity, and a sedentary lifestyle are all things that put a person at risk for type 2 diabetes. In the past, type 2 diabetes usually happened only in adults.
Prediabetes: The window of opportunity to prevent or slow the progression of prediabetes to type 2 diabetes is about three to six years. Make sure you take the following steps to be on the right path to fight prediabetes and take the appropriate steps to lower your blood sugar level.
To prevent prediabetes from progressing to type 2 diabetes, try to:
- Eat healthy foods. Choose foods low in fat and calories and high in fiber. If you have this type of diabetes the foods you eat should have a low glycemic load (index) (foods higher in fiber, protein or fats) like vegetables and good quality protein such as fish, chicken, beans, and lentils. Choose whole grains and whole grain products over refined grains and other highly processed carbohydrates. Skip the sugary drinks, and choose water, coffee, or tea instead. Limit red meat and avoid processed meat; choose nuts, beans, whole grains, poultry, or fish instead.
- Be more active. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity a week.
- Lose excess weight.
- Stop smoking.
- Take medications as needed.
- Stay hydrated. Drinking enough water may help you keep your blood sugar levels within healthy limits. In addition to preventing dehydration, it helps your kidneys flush out the excess blood sugar through urine.
Good News For People with Diabetes: One of the new treatments for those with diabetes is islet transplants and there has been some long-term success with this procedure. The Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) out of Florida announced results from a new study in which five people who’d received islet transplants into the liver 6-17 years ago were still completely able to go without insulin injections.
At a recent diabetes conference, Patti Urbanski addressed the benefits of a low-carb diet for adults with all types of diabetes (T1, T2, and Prediabetes). She discussed the evidence from five clinical trials examining low-carb eating and a systematic review of health outcomes. This is an especially big deal given that American Diabetes Association as an organization has historically been slow to recognize the value of low-carb eating for people with diabetes, continuing to officially recommend high levels of grains and starches in its food pyramid until 2008.
For women with diabetes, there are new guidelines for health for both mother and gestating infants. The American Diabetes Association offers updated diabetes and pregnancy guidelines outlining everything from blood glucose and blood pressure targets, to medications to avoid during pregnancy, to lactation management and postpartum care.
www.care.diabetesjournals.org/content/diacare/42/Supplement_1/S165.full.pdf
Can vitamin D supplements prevent or delay type 2 diabetes in adults who are at high risk? A major clinical study included a whopping 2,423 participants from 22 locations across the US. The researchers note: “We found that among people with prediabetes and sufficient vitamin D level, vitamin D supplementation at 4,000 units per day did not significantly reduce the risk of diabetes.” Still, they insist that taking vitamin D capsules is a good choice for anyone with diabetes: “These findings do not change the need for all individuals to meet the vitamin D requirements set out by the Institute of Medicine. Adults up through age 70 need 600 units of vitamin D intake daily and those older than 70 years need 800 units daily.”