Prediabetes is a condition in which a person has abnormally high blood sugar, but not yet enough to be diagnosed with diabetes. About 70% of people with prediabetes will go on to have their condition worsen into type 2 diabetes. Prediabetes is also known as “pre-diabetes” or impaired glucose tolerance.
Diabetes is a health issue that affects millions of people. In other words, those who are prediabetic are at a greatly increased risk of developing diabetes. This is because the prediabetic person, even if they have a slight increase in blood sugar, will be enough to tip the scales for them. Luckily, if you want to lessen your risk of diabetes or even prediabetes, there are quite a few minor lifestyle tweaks that can be made.
If you’re worried about diabetes, you’re not alone. We’ll share just a few of the most effective ways to prevent it. Keep reading (on the next page) to get the best results and learn more about these tips. You’ll be glad you did!
1. Make Adjustments To Your Diet
Two of the biggest risk factors for diabetes are foods that contain large amounts of sugar or refined carbs.
Looking for a healthier lifestyle? Here are the first steps for diabetes prevention, which should always include cutting out sugar and refined carbs. Sugar and refined carbs are particularly harmful because they can lead to diabetes or just an unhealthy lifestyle in general.
When you eat foods that are abundant in refined carbs, your body breaks it down quickly. This sugar is absorbed into your body’s bloodstream quickly, which can be dangerous.
Sugar is the enemy when it comes to your health. Your pancreas might produce more insulin because of all the sugar in your blood, leading to diabetes. Eating healthier food options can help you stay healthy and reduce your risk for diabetes.
2. Drink Plenty of Water
Diabetes is a risk you can’t ignore. And it’s not just what you eat. Also, important are the fluids you drink, not just water. The best way to reduce your risk of diabetes? Drinking plenty of H2O as your main source of hydration!
Water is the most natural and healthy beverage available to you. It’s also less harmful than many of the other choices, such as brand-name drinks and sodas.
Did you know that drinking large amounts of soda may lead to prediabetes or diabetes? This is not just a theory–scientists have found this to be true. In addition, they also discovered that drinking sodas may also lead to other diabetes-related conditions such as latent autoimmune diabetes of adults, or LADA.
According to a few studies, water can benefit your body by keeping blood sugar levels under control, and it may even help with insulin sensitivity. Drinking water is good for you – so drink up!
3. Get Plenty of Exercises
If you’ve been hanging around this website, you know that eating clean is only half of what it takes to live a healthy life. What else is important? The answer is lots of exercise and physical activity.
If you exercise, your cells are happier because they get insulin better. The insulin lets your body do things like process sugar in your blood. Less insulin is required to do that, which means that your body can keep its blood sugar at a manageable level.
In a study of how exercise affects the body’s response to insulin, it was discovered that people need to work out for a recommended 2000 calories a week to maximize their potential diabetes prevention. If you often find yourself in an elevator, take the stairs every once in a while. You would be surprised how many calories you can burn by doing so.
4. Lose Some Extra Weight
Obesity is a leading cause of diabetes, but not everyone who is obese will have type 2 diabetes. An increased risk for developing prediabetes, however, is given to people who are overweight or obese with an excess of visceral fat in the midsection or abdomen.
The previous point highlighted the importance of exercise, but do you know what can help to reduce your risk factor for diabetes or prediabetes? Having a healthy weight. Even if you lose just a few pounds, it will help to some degree. But as your weight goes down, so will your risk of diabetes. Studies have shown that the more weight you lose, the better! If you keep up with your diet, exercise regularly, and stay hydrated, you’ll see some healthy results in no time.
5. Eat More Fiber
Too many people are eating too many unhealthy foods. This makes it difficult to maintain a healthy diet. Cutting out refined carbs and sugar is just as important as increasing your fiber intake. This way, you can maintain a diet that includes only healthy foods – no processed crap!
There are two major types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Of these two, soluble fiber is especially useful for protecting your body against diabetes. It does this by slowing the absorption of sugar into your bloodstream. It does this by absorbing water and forming a gel-like substance in your digestive system.
6. Get More vitamin D
Along with working your fiber, you should also be taking your vitamin D. It has the ability to lower your blood sugar levels.
Ok, so your risk of developing type 2 diabetes has been cut by 43% if you take in more vitamin D. If you’re interested in incorporating more vitamin D into your diet, try eating fatty fish like salmon or even a spoonful of cod liver oil.
To stay healthy, you could go for a walk outside. If it’s sunny, don’t forget to put on sunscreen to avoid getting sunburns! It’s important not to overdo it, though. Sunburns are still painful, regardless of how healthy they are.
7. Drink Coffee or Tea
A water may remain your primary choice for hydration, but you might also want to drink some coffee or tea every once in a while. Though they are not always the best choice, they can help protect your body against diabetes.
Drinking coffee or tea on a daily basis can significantly reduce the chances of diabetes, with regular drinkers having their risk of type 2 diabetes reduced by anywhere between 8% and 54%. Coffee and tea are both packed with special antioxidants known as polyphenols, which can also help to protect your body against the effects of diabetes. Ways in which coffee intake has been found to reduce the risk of diabetes are through reducing insulin resistance or blood glucose levels.
For many people, a piping hot cup of coffee or tea in the morning is the best part of waking up. And now, research has shown that it can also positively impact your physical health.