Diabetes is a bunch of diseases that correlate to abnormal blood sugar levels. A hormone called Insulin is responsible for processing the sugar present in the bloodstream and making it available for the cells. When a person has diabetes, his/her body either doesn’t produce enough insulin or is unable to utilize it.
Type 1 of the disease is generally not induced externally, hence it cannot be prevented. This condition makes your body damage the insulin-producing cells, the cause of which is unknown. On the other hand, in Type 2 diabetes, either the body does not produce enough insulin or it resists insulin. This condition can be prevented with a few lifestyle changes, medication, etc.
The risks of becoming a victim of diabetes relate to increased weight, abnormal blood pressure, cholesterol or triglyceride ( blood fat ) levels.
There are a lot of ways through which you can stop these hazards from turning into diabetes.
Here are some of those.
1.Compute The Risk.
Before pegging your mind to the thought that you’re going to turn a diabetic, measure how prone you are. Take ” Life! Risk Assessment test “. A score of 12+ indicates that you are highly inclined towards developing type 2. You can then bring about changes according to this measured risk.
2. Skip Sugary Drinks And Switch To Water, Tea ( Not Too Sweet ) Or Nutrasphere’s Diabetic Supplement Drinks.
Sugary beverages have a high glycemic load ( affect blood sugar heavily ) due to which their consumption boosts the risk of diabetes. If you still wish to savour sweet beverages, do for Nutraspheres’ diabetic supplement drinks. They satiate your sweet desire without making you prone to diabetes.
3. Limit Your Alcohol Intake.
Alcoholic drinks also contain sugar. Consuming too much alcohol can lead to weight gain and increase triglycerides levels in the blood. Due to this, it is recommended that you regulate your alcohol consumption. No more than two regular drinks should be taken by any man and no more than one drink for a woman, per day.
4. Reduce The Risk Of Cardiovascular Diseases.
There are a lot of risk factors that are common to both diabetes and cardiovascular problems. Obesity, physical inactivity, hypertension ( high blood pressure ), etc. If you are aiming at reducing the risk of diabetes, you simultaneously prevent yourself from heart problems too. Therefore, maintain healthy body weight, check blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
5. Quit Smoking.
Cigarettes contain tobacco. Tobacco can increase blood sugar levels. In certain scenarios, it may lead to an increase in your body’s insulin resistance. The more frequently you smoke, the higher is your risk of diabetes. People who smoke heavily ( multiples in a day ) have almost double the risk of diabetes in comparison to those who do not.
6. Limit Red Meat And AVOID Processed Meat.
Consuming red ( pork, beef, lamb ) and processed meat ( bacon, hot dogs ) have been observed to increase diabetes risk. While both of them are harmful if you are prone to diabetes, processed meats are even more dangerous. Even if you consume minimal amounts of processed meat each day, you are 51% more likely to get diabetes.
7. Follow A Plant-Based And Low-Calorie Diet.
Tune-up your diet to include more fruits and vegetables. This dietary structure has been observed to lower the risk of diabetes. While including these, avoid those foods that are rich in trans fats ( also called hydrogenated fats ). Pizza, burgers, cakes, cookies, etc. are known to have it. Also, limit your saturated fats consumption.
8. Keep Medical Appointments.
You should get yourself diagnosed regularly. The symptoms for type 2 diabetes are mild as compared to type 1. In order to prevent it from happening, you must get regularly rounded-up by your doctor. Not just for diabetes, rather a whole body check-up every once in a while will help you know your general health.
9. Workout Regularly.
Being physically active on a routine basis may help you to prevent diabetes. Exercising increases your body’s insulin sensitivity. In other words, you become less ‘insulin-resistant’ and the efficiency of it increases. So with exercise, a lesser amount of insulin will be needed to process the same amount of sugar. Insulin sensitivity has been known to hike by about 51% if a person indulges in a moderate-intensity workout. Whereas, a high-intensity workout hikes it to about 85%!
10. Optimize Vitamin-D levels.
You may not be knowing this but vitamin D is very essential for sugar control. A lot of studies have highlighted that people who do not get enough vitamin D have a greater risk of all kinds of diabetes. Since childhood, those people who have had good amounts of vitamin D or have taken their supplements, have a 78% lower risk of developing diabetes ( especially type 1 ).
The bottom line is that there are cases wherein you cannot do anything to prevent diabetes. However, you have control over a lot of factors to prevent others. Rather than viewing fluctuating blood sugar levels as a stepping stone, look at it as a challenge. Adopt the kind of lifestyle behaviours that give you the best opportunity of avoiding diabetes.
