PajMon Information Blog

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.

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.

It is also very important to begin an exercise regime. Exercise will help you to lose weight but also offers a whole host of other benefits, such as increasing your good cholesterol and improving your heart function. Ideally, you should aim for one hour of physical activity 6 days/week, but if you cant do that, 30 minutes is an acceptable goal. If youve been a couch potato for the last few years, you can even start small with three 10-minute workouts a day. The easiest way to get moving is to start a walking regiment. Buy yourself a pedometer, you can find them for as little as $2, and aim for 10,000 steps a day. Dont forget to discuss your planned exercise routine with your doctor before you begin one.

Changing your eating habits and exercising regularly will help you to lose weight and keep it off. That in turn will help you to either avoid or at least delay the onset of Type 2 diabetes.

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