13 Ways To Prevent Type 2 Diabetes

As the incidence of type-2 diabetes continues to rise across India, it’s important to remember that we are not helpless in the fight against diabetes. The chronic disease that is characterized by high blood sugar levels can be prevented if you take steps to adopt healthy diet and lifestyle practices. Here are some of the methods that you can use to lower your risk of developing diabetes type 2.

13 Simple Tips For Diabetes Prevention

Watch Your Sugar Intake

Although sugar intake alone is not a cause for diabetes, high sugar intake is associated with a higher risk of diabetes. This is because high consumption of sugar directly impacts blood sugar levels, increasing the long-term risk of diabetes.

Choose The Right Carbs

Fast digesting or simple carbs that are obtained from refined foods like bread, pastries, and biscuits are broken down rapidly, raising blood sugar levels. A high intake of such foods significantly raises the risk of diabetes over time. Instead opt for healthy complex carbs from fresh fruits, veggies, whole grains, pulses, nuts, and seeds.

Increase Fibre Intake

Most plant-based whole foods are rich in fibre, including soluble and insoluble fibre. While soluble fibre helps slow the rate of food absorption, helping stabilize blood sugar levels, insoluble fibre is also known to help lower the risk of diabetes.

Fill Up On Protein

While cutting down on simple carbs, you can also increase your intake of protein-rich foods. Such a diabetes diet can help improve insulin levels and will also help reduce abdominal fat.

Ditch Processed Foods

Diets dominated by highly processed foods are associated with a higher risk of almost all lifestyle diseases, diabetes included. Studies show that such poor-quality diets increase the risk of diabetes by as much as 30 per cent.

Hydrate With Water

Staying hydrated with increased water consumption helps to cut back on other beverages including processed fruit juices and diet sodas. Studies show that replacing such drinks with water can improve insulin resistance and blood sugar levels.

Stay Active

Sedentary lifestyles are linked to a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease, making regular physical activity a critical component in any diabetes control program. Any type of physical activity will help lower your risk of diabetes, moderate to high-intensity exercise routines are most effective.

Lose Excess Weight

Excess body fat is known to cause chronic low-grade inflammation and insulin resistance, increasing the risk of diabetes. If you are overweight, losing even a small amount of weight can significantly lower your risk of diabetes.

Quit Smoking

Smoking doesn’t just put you at risk of lung cancer, it also increases the risk of type 2 diabetes. This is why diabetes patients and anyone trying to prevent diabetes should quit smoking immediately.

Control Portion Size

Whether you adopt a diabetes diet or not, you should try to eat smaller and more frequent meals. This is because eating a large amount of food at one time is more likely to raise blood sugar levels, increasing your diabetes risk.

Drink Coffee

Although water intake should be your primary source of hydration, having a cup or two of coffee or tea a day can help provide some protection against diabetes. This is because of polyphenols that are present in both tea leaves and coffee beans.

Maintain Vitamin D Levels

Although the impact of vitamin D is overlooked among diabetes causes, evidence suggests that low vitamin D levels can increase the risk of all types of diabetes. Vitamin D intake can be improved with dietary modifications, sunlight exposure, and supplementation.

Lower Your Stress Levels

High levels of the stress hormone cortisol can make it harder for your body to effectively control blood sugar levels. Prolonged exposure to stress and anxiety can therefore increase the risk of diabetes over time. Stress reduction techniques like yoga, meditation, and progressive muscle relaxation can help you cope better with stress, lowering the risk of stress-related disorders.

If you are at high risk of diabetes it would also be a good idea to undergo routine diabetes tests as early detection of elevated blood sugar levels or prediabetes allows you to take preventive action. Prediabetes is a condition of high blood sugar that is reversible, but if not managed it progresses to diabetes.

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