Diabetes effects of thirty million Americans. There are two types, one which is preventable through a healthy lifestyle. Here are preventative steps to take to avoid this disorder.
Before you can seek help you must be aware of the gravity of your condition""if you have one at all.Thus, the first step is to get tested.An adult should be tested every two or three years after the age of thirty-nine.The administration of a FPG, or fasting plasma glucose test gives accurate results.In this test blood sugar is examined immediately after the patient wakes up in the morning.A healthy reading is between seventy and ninety-nine milligrams of glucose per deciliter of blood.Levels higher means that you have prediabetes, or if the count is over one hundred and twenty six, full-fledged diabetes.The oral glucose tolerance test is another option is you are over forty and are concerned about having diabetes.Blood is tested after an overnight fast and again two hours after you drink a glucose mixture.On the second test a level of normalcy is below one hundred and forty milligrams per deciliter.Any measure over this mark and under two hundred signifies prediabetes; two hundred and over indicates that you that have diabetes.
It is important that this weight loss take place through a specific diet.Whole grains should make up a substantial amount of your carbohydrate intake.Whole grain, unlike refined grains like white rice and white bread, slow the absorption of sugar in the bloodstream.This lessens the blood-sugar jumps that are the catalyst for your appetite and that put you at risk for weight-gain.Eating fruits and vegetables will help you prevent diabetes.If you eat seven servings a day you are likely to find a decrease in caloric intake accompanied by an increase in fiber.Replace fatty foods with vegetable and fruit helpings.Fat has twice the caloric value of carbohydrates and protein.All fats have the potential to lead to weight-gain, and are therefore, not diabetes-friendly products.Since you cannot cut out all fat from your diet, stick to lean meats and low-fat dairy products.It may seem obvious, but you should avoid sugar.Sugar is absorbed very quickly in the bloodstream and causes huge spikes in glucose and insulin levels. Sugars also contribute to obesity.
A diet alone is not sufficient to reverse the diabetic-trend.Exercise is essential in the fight against the disease.It has been proven that exercise makes the cells in your body more responsive to insulin and increases the cells' ability to expel sugar from the bloodstream.In addition, exercise lowers blood sugar by burning glucose for fuel.Weight loss is a precipitate of exercise (coupled with a healthy diet) as well.Thirty to forty five minutes of walking each day will do wonders for weight loss in individuals who are not used to getting off the couch and will allow a relatively active person the ability to maintain a healthy condition.For the more ambitious out there, a program of cardiovascular, aerobic, and strength training is suggested.Two-thirds of sugar removal takes place in the muscles, therefore a muscle work out will naturally lead to the loss of glucose from the body and will promote fat loss.
Once you have implemented a new way of eating and exercising you will most likely find a decrease in diabetic symptoms, or you will be able to prevent the disease altogether.While these guidelines are standard for those wishing to combat diabetes, if you have tested positive for either prediabetes or diabetes you should consult a doctor as well.
