Top 10 Tips to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes
6. Eat a High-Fiber Diet
Diets rich in fiber such as Grapefruit, papaya, oranges, raisins, okra, lima beans, sweet potatoes, zucchini, granola, oat bran and oatmeal play an important role in preventing and managing type 2 diabetes. Dietary Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that is found in plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. In people with diabetes, fiber, particularly soluble fiber, can slow the absorption of sugar and help improve blood sugar levels. A healthy diet that includes insoluble fiber may also reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) says that “fiber acts like your body’s natural scrub brush which passes through your digestive tract and carry a lot of bad stuff out with it.” By increasing your intake of foods high in fibre you can help yourself in reducing your weight because these foods are filling and most are lower in glycemic index, which can help to control your appetite and have less of an effect on blood glucose levels.
7. Minimize Your Intake of Ultra-processed Foods
Foods with preservatives and artificial flavors are ultra-processed and are often high in sugar, fat and empty calories. People who eat heavily processed foods like sugary drinks, chicken nuggets, frozen dinners, or sweetened cereals are more likely to develop diabetes than those whose diets contain more foods found in nature.
Now a large observational study published online Dec. 16, 2019, by JAMA Internal Medicine links the consumption of such “ultra-processed” food to an increased risk for developing diabetes.
The research suggests that a mere 10% increase of ultra-processed foods in your diet is linked to a 15% higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
To help reduce your chances of developing type 2 diabetes, it’s important to live an active lifestyle, eat nutritionally dense foods, and avoid ultra-processed products.
8. Monitor Your Blood Sugar Levels
Regular blood sugar monitoring is the most important thing you can do to manage your diabetes and prevent its complications. You’ll be able to know the effect of diabetes medications on your blood sugar levels, see what diet and exercise makes your numbers go up or down. With this information, you can work with your health care team to make decisions about your best diabetes care plan.
These decisions can help delay or prevent diabetes complications such as heart attack, stroke, kidney disease, blindness, and amputation.
9. Avoid Sedentary Behaviors
Sedentary behavior like sitting down for long periods can result in changes in the body’s metabolism, including insulin resistance, which can lead to Type 2 diabetes. According to the study published in the journal Diabetologia, People who sit for long periods of time on a daily basis double their risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, even if they take regular exercise. The researchers analyzed results from a study that suggested breaking up sitting time with two-minute walk breaks every 20 minutes and found that it helped maintain glucose control and insulin response.
Therefore, to reduce your risk of diabetes avoid long sitting periods, try to take regular breaks, do standing meetings, walk during your lunch breaks.
10. Optimize Vitamin D Levels
Vitamin D also called sunshine vitamin, plays a number of important roles in the body, including maintaining the health of your bones, teeth and joints. Now a growing number of recent studies suggest a link between vitamin D and type 2 diabetes. “Studies have found that people who have insulin resistance and a low level of vitamin D may have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes,”
A small randomized controlled trial published in September 2019 in the European Journal of Endocrinology found vitamin D supplementation for six months improved insulin sensitivity and production in 96 participants who were at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes or newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. The findings suggest that vitamin D may help delay type 2 diabetes.
By just exposing your skin to the sun for 15 to 20 minutes each day can help increase your body’s own production of vitamin D and thus reduce your risk of diabetes and other serious medical conditions.
