Did you know that, at this moment, around 415 million people worldwide have Diabetes? This number is predicted to rise to 640 million by 2040. In fact, around 700 people develop Diabetes every day just in the United Kingdom alone! Diabetes is big, it is growing and it’s serious; and in some types, it is preventable.
What is Diabetes ?
Diabetes is a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than normal. This can be because a person is producing no insulin or very little insulin or can be because the body just isn’t responding to insulin the way it should. Insulin is needed by the body to transport glucose from the bloodstream into our muscles and cells so that it can be used as energy.
There are a few types of Diabetes, including:
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 Diabetes accounts for about 10-15% of cases of Diabetes. This type of Diabetes is most likely to occur in people under 40 years of age, but can occur at any age. It is an autoimmune disease. At this stage, the cause of Type 1 Diabetes is not yet known, but we do know it has a strong family link and cannot be prevented. We do know that the cause has nothing to do with lifestyle.
In Type 1 Diabetes, there is very little or no insulin being produced. The management is lifelong treatment with insulin. Maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle is important for people with Type 1 Diabetes.
Do you have Type 1 Diabetes? We can help with:
- Regulating your blood sugars
- Carbohydrate counting (DAFNE trained Dietitians)
- Optimising your diet to prevent the complications associated with Type 1 Diabetes (e.g. cardiovascular/heart disease)
- Managing high blood pressure
- Lowering cholesterol and other blood fats
- Changes associated with your lifestyle- pre conception planning, pregnancy, sport, life events.
Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 Diabetes is a common lifelong condition that causes the level of sugar (glucose) in the blood to become too high.
Our bodies break down the foods we eat into glucose and other nutrients, which are then absorbed into the bloodstream. The glucose levels in our blood rise after we eat. This then triggers the pancreas (a small organ behind your stomach) to release a hormone called insulin; into the bloodstream. Insulin works like a key that opens the doors to cells and lets the glucose in; so it can be used for energy.
In Type 2 Diabetes, the body doesn’t produce enough insulin, or has difficulty using the insulin it does produce (known as insulin resistance). Without working insulin, glucose can’t get into the cells (the doors are “locked” and there is no key) and so it stays in the bloodstream. As a result, the level of sugar in the blood remains higher than normal. Over time, this can damage blood vessels and nerves and can result in severe complications including: blindness, heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, nerve damage, amputation, and erectile dysfunction. Type 2 Diabetes accounts for 85-90% of all cases of Diabetes.
What are the symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes?
People who have Type 2 Diabetes may experience one or more of the following symptoms:
- Frequently having to wee
- Feeling thirsty all the time
- Tiredness
- Losing weight without trying to
- Itchy skin
- Infections
- Slow wound healing
- Blurred vision
There are a number of risk factors for developing Type 2 Diabetes. It is, to a large extent, a lifestyle disease and many in cases could be prevented or delayed through simple lifestyle changes. The risk factors for developing Type 2 diabetes include obesity, poor diet and inactivity.
Managing your Type 2 Diabetes
Adopting a healthier lifestyle can help to manage Type 2 Diabetes, and can also significantly reduce your risk of heart disease, and stroke. It can also contribute to your overall well-being and quality of life.
To manage your Type 2 Diabetes, you will need to:
Eat a Healthy Diet
Reduce Your Weight, (if overweight)
Be More Active
Do you have Type 2 Diabetes? We can help you with:
- Regulating your blood sugars
- Carbohydrate management
- Optimizing your diet to prevent the complications associated with Type 2 Diabetes (e.g. cardiovascular/heart disease)
- Managing high blood pressure
- Lowering cholesterol and other blood fats
- Controlling your weight
Gestational Diabetes
This type affects females during pregnancy. Some women have very high levels of glucose in their blood, and their bodies are unable to produce enough insulin to transport all of the glucose into their cells, resulting in progressively rising levels of glucose.
Diagnosis of gestational diabetes is made during pregnancy.
The majority of gestational diabetes patients can control their diabetes with exercise and diet and some will need to take some kind of blood-glucose-controlling medications. Undiagnosed or uncontrolled gestational diabetes can raise the risk of complications during childbirth and can cause problems for your baby.
Women who have had gestational Diabetes have an increased chance of developing Type 2 Diabetes at a later stage.
Do you have Gestational Diabetes? We can help you with:
- Regulating blood sugars during pregnancy
- Carbohydrate management
- Healthy eating in pregnancy
Preventing Type 2 Diabetes (Prediabetes)
Do you have a family history of Diabetes? Have you just found out that you have Pre-Diabetes of are concerned that you don’t want to be another Type 2 Diabetes statistic?
Changes to our lifestyles can go a long way to preventing the onset of Diabetes.
So what can you do to reduce your risk? Three simple steps.
1. Manage your weight.
Keeping to a healthy weight can reduce your risk of developing diabetes considerably. A growing waistline, particularly, can indicate you are at risk. Keep regular checks and try to keep your weight in the healthy weight range for your height. If you are overweight, even losing 5-7% of your body weight has been shown to reduce the risk of developing Type Diabetes by 50%.
2. Re-haul your diet
It’s not just all about weight, it’s also about the “nitty gritty” of what we are eating every day that is important for Diabetes prevention.
Whether you have weight to lose, or just want to keep on track, a dietary make-over may go a long way towards reducing your risk. Write down what you are eating and when and have a good look at the quality of your diet. Are you eating too many refined carbohydrate foods? Are your meal patterns irregular? Do processed foods figure a lot in your week? Changing the way we eat can seem very difficult, especially if it feels like we suddenly have to give up foods or treats we really enjoy, or change the way we cook and shop. In fact, achieving a healthy diet isn’t as difficult as you might think. It can sometimes only take a few changes to make a big difference to your diet.
3. Be more active
Even 30 minutes a day could help towards reducing your risk of developing diabetes. Regardless of your shape or size, physical activity has been shown to add years to your life, and life to your years. But you don’t have to run out and join a gym, even simple increases to activity will make a difference. I’m sure there are lots of ways to increase the activity you do each day…see what you can come up with.
