When your body has a surplus of blood sugar, you can expect that you are on your way to getting Insulin Resistant Type 2 Diabetes.
Given the dire consequences of this disease, you will suffer so many complications in your health that will take you time, effort, energy, money – practically your entire life.
Luckily, there are measures one can take to prevent Type 2 Diabetes from creeping up later in your life. How do you exactly adopt a healthy lifestyle in order to reduce the likelihood of getting this disease?
Move More and Maintain A Healthy Weight
Obesity is one of the major factors leading to the development of type-2 diabetes, and staying on a normal BMI or on a normal body weight will be a good preventative approach. Morbidly obese individuals should seek their physician’s advice if they need to get a bariatric surgery (a surgery that reduces the size of your stomach).
Though invasive, this procedure can help. However, not all obese individuals have to undergo this operation. Some will only require to make better lifestyle decisions. Did you know that losing as little as 5 kilos can already reduce the risk of diabetes by 50%?
Regular exercise is also essential in maintaining a good blood circulation and a healthy weight. Relying on diet alone is simply not enough. Maintaining optimal muscular functions is key to proper insulin response as the muscles are involved in the absorption of glucose, which they burn for energy. When you exercise every day, and keep your muscles moving and active, you are improving your body’s sensitivity to insulin and ensuring that your blood sugar levels are stable.
Smart Food Decisions
Purging your kitchen or pantry is the first thing you need to do to start eating smarter. Get rid of all the junk food lying around, including most processed foods. The main goal is to reduce your intake of sugar. There are 3 kinds of sugars, simple sugars, starches and dietary plant fibers. Simple sugars are your maple syrup, honey, and regular white and brown sugar.
These sugars generally make up more than 10% of the food you eat. Yes, it does not sound like it is too much, but believe us when we say it is.
Simple sugars are easily digested and absorbed by the body – this forces your body to produces more insulin. Starches are the hardest to digest, so they do not rapidly assimilate in your blood stream.
Dietary fibers are the best kinds. They are sugars found in fruits, vegetables and whole grains. They are tougher on the stomach and rely on your bacterial flora for them to be digested. It takes much longer for them to be digested, causing sugar to only gradually show up in your blood stream. Therefore it is recommended to limit your intake of simple sugars and starches. Opting for dietary plant fibers is the optimal strategy for diabetics.
Another smart food decision it to eat the right kind of fat. Eating the wrong kind will also influence the development of your body to resist insulin. A diet of saturated fats promotes chronic inflammation and will result to Type 2 Diabetes. Eating healthy fats like avocados, olive oils and fish oils containing omega-3 fatty acids is preferred. Eating unsaturated fat will reduce the likelihood of you getting Type 2 Diabetes as omega-3 improves your body’s response to insulin.
Use Spices Instead of Sugar and Salt
Sugar and salt aren’t really bad if used minimally. But with all the processed food we are eating, nobody can track how much sodium and glucose we are putting in our bodies. One way to flavor your food is with the use of spices, and these spices can be an instrument in preventing diabetes.
Cinnamon is widely used as an ingredient in sweet treats. But do you know that when used right, cinnamon can improve sugar tolerance. It also has the ability to interfere with byproducts that can destroy blood vessels. Aside from cinnamon, Jamaican allspice, thyme, turmeric and black pepper are among the many spices that can prevent Type 2 Diabetes.