There is currently an increasing global incidence of type 2 diabetes, closely tied to an increased rate of diabetes. But what is often overlooked when examining the statistics of both diabetes and obesity is that both conditions are largely preventable. Even mild weight loss can decrease the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 5 to 10%. A combination of a healthy balanced diet and regular exercise are key to preventing (and managing) both obesity and type 2 diabetes. Knowing this leads one to wonder: why do the rates of both conditions continue to rise? One key underlying factor for the rising rates of diabetes and obesity is an increased social acceptance of higher caloric intakes, decreased activity levels, and even larger available pants sizes.
One of the most important things to do to begin taking control over the management of these conditions is to open your mind to the factors you actually have control over. Try not to point fingers or pass the ownership -- it may be true that type 2 diabetes runs in your family, that technology enables us to be more idle, that pants sizes seem to run bigger than they used to, and that many restaurants offer super-size portions -- but you have no control over your genetic make-up, very little control over restaurants and retail, and only part of hereditary obesity and diabetes risk can be blamed on your genes, anyway.
What you do have control over is what and how much you eat, and how much physical activity you get. I realize it isn't that simple -- losing weight and managing diabetes isn't easy to do because the conditions are multi-factorial, and this is why you have a whole diabetes team of experts helping to manage your condition at your doctor's office. In my experience, one of the biggest hurdles of helping clients lose weight and manage their disease is helping them to accept, and take some level of ownership over, their condition. Simply admitting to yourself that you may have played a role in getting to where you got -- allowing yourself to own that thought, even being able to verbalize that thought to friends and family -- I find this to be a key step towards moving in the right direction with disease management. My clients who are able to do this seem to have a much easier time proceeding to taking ownership over the treatment aspects they have control over -- what and how much they eat, and how much they exercise -- whereas my clients who get stuck blaming their condition on their family, glands, or social factors seem to have a harder time embracing effective treatment modalities.
So consider this. Then check out the following resource links to helpful diabetic diet articles on meal planning and grocery shopping:
Sources:
Krishnan S, Rosenberg L, Palmer JR. Physical activity and television watching in relation to risk of type 2 diabetes: the Black Women's Health Study. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2009; 169:428-34.
Qi L, Cornelis MC, Zhang C, van Dam RM, Hu FB. Genetic predisposition, Western dietary pattern, and the risk of type 2 diabetes in men. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2009; 89:1453-8.
Shaw JE, Sicree RA, Zimmet PZ. Global estimates of the prevalence of diabetes for 2010 and 2030. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice. 2010; 87:4-14.
Knowler WC, Fowler SE, Hamman RF, et al. 10-year follow-up of diabetes incidence and weight loss in the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study. Lancet. 2009; 374:1677-86.
Lindstrom J, Ilanne-Parikka P, Peltonen M, et al. Sustained reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes by lifestyle intervention: follow-up of the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study. Lancet. 2006; 368:1673-9.
