Diabetes is a medical condition whereby the body is not able to appropriately utilise and manage glucose (the type of sugar in the blood) levels in the system. The causes are numerous, for example lack of the hormone insulin, which regulates blood sugar, or simply a poor diet, especially as witnessed in the last few decades. The bottom line is that the body ends up overwhelmed by high and low sugar spikes, which are dangerous. And believe me, the effects and outcomes of diabetes are not pretty at all by any degree; imagine limb amputations, kidney failure, blindness, wounds that refuse to heal, general weakness and premature death. The upside though is that, yes, Type II diabetes can be prevented.
There are two types of diabetes. One is called juvenile or Type I diabetes because it starts in early childhood and requires insulin for the person to live. The other one, Type II is usually referred to as adult onset since it shows mostly in adulthood - but note that children are not spared of late also from this type. Type II does not necessarily require insulin for the victim to survive; it can be prevented and well managed by a proper diet and lifestyle. Of the two types of diabetes, Type I and Type II, most cases in the world are Type II, also known as non-insulin dependent. But as with obesity, data on the prevalence of diabetes is scanty. What we should all know though is that all of us are at risk of Type II if we neglect our diet and have a poor lifestyle.
It has been shown time and again that there is a strong evidence of increased risk of developing diabetes if one is overweight or obese. Another strong link exists if a person has excess fat around the stomach area, so you see there is more than a cosmetic reason why those rolls and tyres must go. Physical inactivity is another strong trigger for sugar diabetes, hence being a couch potato has never been sexy or healthy after all. Added to these is maternal diabetes. If the mother has diabetes during pregnancy, chances are high that the child will develop diabetes later in life. Yet another link exists with increased consumption of saturated fats. Therefore, eating more of the healthy oils such as olive oil, avocado, and so on. and less beef tallow would help.
So what does one have to do to decrease the risks and prevent diabetes? For starters, we need to lose the excess weight and increase physical activity. Secondly, we must eat more whole grain cereals such as whole wheat bread, sorghum, brown rice, and less processed and refined foods. It would be a wise idea to clear the pantry and cupboards of all the white and smooth stuff henceforth. Increasing the intake of fruits and vegetables to more than five a day comes highly recommended.
I am sure since most of us nowadays are very diet conscious (I hope) we must have heard of low glycaemic index foods or low glycaemic diets right? These are basically foods that when eaten, do not cause blood sugar to rise rapidly. For example sweets, chocolates, white rice bread, white rice, and so o as opposed to complex carbohydrates such as brown bread, bran cereals, sorghum with bran and so o. And did you know that if you breastfeed your child, the risks of diabetes is reduced by 3 times for that child. Well all factors constant, breastfeeding continues to prove to be the best on many fronts, diabetes included. In summary the following are recommendations to prevent diabetes:
l Improve nutrition, promote proper growth, decrease intake of high calorie foods, and increase physical activity in young children
l Promote exclusive breastfeeding and prevent overweight and obesity in young children and adults of course
l Increase physical activity and include an endurance activity at moderate to greater level of intensity such as brisk walking 3-4 time per week
l Decrease saturated fat intake and increase fibre as found in fruits, vegetables, and legumes to 20g daily. Till next time, keep the sugar in check!
