So much focus nowadays is on treating the symptoms of diabetes (usually with expensive drugs), yet the best way to treat diabetes is to prevent it!

In this newsletter, our resident Sports Scientist and Celebrity Trainer will provide you with 4 actionable tips on how you can prevent type 2 diabetes.

1. Maintain a Proper Weight & Low to Moderate Body Fat Levels

Research has shown that being overweight increases your risk of developing diabetes by over 700%, primarily because it increase insulin resistance, the primary risk factor in type 2 diabetes. Therefore, one way to decrease your risk of developing diabetes is to maintain a proper body weight which can be done through adequate diet and exercise!

2. Exercise More

It sounds too simple to be true, but exercise has been shown to reduce your risk of developing diabetes, whereas inactivity has been shown to drastically increase the risk.

While high-intensity exercise may offer increased benefits with regard to greater calorie expenditure and weight loss, research has shown that simply walking for 30 minutes a day may also reduce your risk.

Although walking is a great start, if at all possible you should focus mainly on high-intensity exercise and, more specifically, weight training as it can increase carbohydrate tolerance and insulin sensitivity. This is key for a diabetic as it can improve long-term blood sugar control (the key risk factor in diabetes).

Key point; Get active about 4 times per week, including high-intensity exercise and strength training.

3.) Eat More Whole Foods

There’s a good reason we focus on whole foods here at Nutrition Solutions.

Refined starches such as white rice, white bread, breakfast cereals and other sweets have been shown to cause a greater insulin response when compared to whole grains. When this occurs over the years, and is combined with inactivity and overeating, our cells become unresponsive to insulin. This leaves the carbohydrates (blood sugar) floating in our blood which damages our cells and nerves and increases fat storage.

Therefore, it’s no surprise that research has shown that, over time, diets high in refined grains may increase the risk of developing diabetes, whereas diets high in whole grains may offer a protective effect!

While the odd treat is fine, focus on healthy whole foods and whole grains. If you do want a sweet treat, stick to something like fruit, our Protein Pancakes, Bars or Clean Cheatz.

4.) Choose The Right Fats

Not all fats are bad. However, trans fats often found in baked goods, margarine and fried foods have been shown to increase your risk of developing diabetes, whereas polyunsaturated fats have been shown to decrease the risk of developing diabetes.

Here at Nutrition Solutions, our meals contain no trans fats, while some of our meals are high in natural, healthy polyunsaturated fats and omega 3 fatty acids – these have been shown to be also beneficial for our heart, general health, skin, hair and diabetes risk.

Wrapping it Up!

Diabetes is a serious health condition that currently affects millions of people across the world. However, type 2 diabetes is primarily caused by a bad diet and lifestyle. Therefore, it’s no surprise that there are several ways in which you can reduce your risk of developing diabetes through a healthy lifestyle, exercise, and a sound nutrition plan. Here are a few take-home tips:

• Maintain a healthy bodyfat and bodyweight.

• Workout more – although any exercise is better than none, try to focus on high-intensity exercise over the long term.

• Increase your whole food intake, especially healthy whole grains, fiber, and protein.

• Ditch the processed fats and focus on healthy fats such as omega 3s and polyunsaturated fats.

Author: Rudy Mawer, MSInternational Celebrity Trainer, Sports Scientist

References

1. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/diabetes-prevention/preventing-diabetes-full-story

2. Sun Q, Spiegelman D, van Dam RM,et al. White rice, brown rice, and risk of type 2 diabetes in US men and women. Arch Intern Med. 2010; 170:961-9.

3. Grøntved A, Hu FB. Television viewing and risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and all-cause mortality: a meta-analysis. JAMA. 2011; 305:2448-55.