Diet and Exercise Is Key for Diabetics

If you’re living with diabetes, being overweight or obese heightens your chances of complications. Losing weight through healthy eating and exercise can help you better manage your diabetes and lower your risk of additional health problems.

The first step to eating healthy is choosing the right foods. Eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dried beans and lean proteins. You should also consume low-fat milk and diary products and healthy fats in moderation. Healthy fats include vegetable oils mayonnaise and margarine with no trans fat. You can continue to enjoy potato chips, cakes, soda and other snacks, but it’s important that you reduce your intake of these types of foods.

In addition to choosing the right foods, be sure to watch the amount of food you consume. Portions consumed at restaurants and at home have greatly increased over the past 10 years. Eating too much, even healthy food, can cause you to gain weight.

Physical activity is a critical component of a healthy lifestyle. It can help lower blood glucose, cholesterol and blood pressure levels and decrease your risk of chronic diseases. Calories are in everything you eat and drink. You can burn the calories you consume through exercise. The more exercise you do, the more calories you can burn. Diet and exercise go hand in hand for everyone and is especially important if you’re living with diabetes.

Gastric Bypass Surgery to Cure Diabetes May Soon Be Available for Non-Obese Diabetics

Gastric bypass surgery is a relatively new and encouraging option to help treat – if not outright cure – Type 2 diabetes. The surgery reroutes the patient’s digestive system and can result in continued weight loss, normal blood pressure, and the elimination of diabetes, which after all, can be brought on by obesity.

Up until recently, the procedure was only permitted on morbidly obese individuals with body-mass indices (BMI) over 35, which is the level established by the American Diabetes Association for which the surgery “may be considered.” In addition, Medicare and many private insurance providers cover the surgery above that BMI threshold.

Naturally, this threshold left many diabetics with a BMI of less than 35 without the gastric bypass option for managing diabetes – until now. In certain instances, doctors have been given permission to perform the surgery on individuals with a BMI lower than 35 – and the results are equally promising.

Public Health Advocates Look to Anti-Tobacco Movement as the Model for a More Rigorous Anti- Childhood Obesity and Diabetes Campaign

In 2010, Michelle Obama launched a high-profile anti-child obesity campaign.  Two years in, most health experts agree that the effort created much-needed visibility around the issue.  Yet childhood diabetes and obesity rates remain frustratingly high, and experts now argue that something more drastic needs to be done.

Public health advocates point to the anti-tobacco movement as an optimal model moving forward.  That movement relied heavily on advertisement campaigns – just like the First Lady – but went much further.  It penalized the tobacco companies themselves for knowingly marketing damaging products to children; it instituted strict health warnings on packaging; it sued the companies, and it lobbied for higher tobacco taxes to decrease consumption.

Needless to say, these proposals are fraught with political implications.  One can imagine the outcry if a State Attorney General takes Burger King to court.  Yet that's precisely what occured during the anti-tobacco movement.  And with obesity-related deaths – including heart disease and diabetes – topping 200,000 last year alone, advocates suggest it will be worth the effort.

By Reducing Childhood Obesity, Can New York Serve as a Model for Other Cities?

Childhood diabetes is one of the biggest health challenges facing America today. And when we typically talk about the ailment, we frequently see the link to childhood obesity, which is particularly prevalent in suburban and rural areas where children and their parents drive everywhere.

But childhood obesity and diabetes is also rampant in urban areas, particularly poor neighborhoods. Children in these neighborhoods rarely have access to fresh fruit and vegetables, at least compared to those in more affluent areas. In addition, many of these neighborhoods are dangerous, precluding opportunities to exercise.

But there is good news, and it comes from one of the largest urban areas, New York City. In what will hopefully be a model for other urban areas, the city has seen small, but nonetheless encouraging, improvements in the rates of childhood obesity.

Based on new data from the Centers for Disease Control, the obesity rate of children between five and 14 dropped by over five percent from 2006 and 2011.

And while experts are not unanimous that this drop can be attributed to any one specific initiative, they agree that the city has taken the lead in its anti-obesity efforts, which contain an anti-soda marketing campaign, a ban on trans-fats, and calorie labeling in chain restaurants.

New Study Identifies Links Between Childhood Diabetes and Asthma

The fact that childhood diabetes and asthma are both growing health concerns is not news.  What is news, however, is a recent study conducted by Kaiser Permanente, which found that children with diabetes are potentially more likely to have an above-normal rate of asthma. 

In addition, it found that kids with both asthma and diabetes had a more difficult time in controlling their blood sugar when compared to children who only had diabetes.

Researchers are not sure precisely what connections can be drawn from these findings – namely, if diabetes can contribute to a child developing asthma, or to what extent environmental conditions like poor air quality or diet play a role.

That said, the “elephant in the room” is childhood obesity; it is irrefutable that obesity can lead to type 1 diabetes.  And diabetic and overweight kids, therefore, may have a more difficult time in regulating lung function.

On the bright side, kids who are on both asthma and diabetes medication generally manage their blood sugars better.

Your Daily Walk

More and more folks are getting out there and enjoying their daily walk. It’s a great form of physical activity that can really help the fight against obesity and other cardiovascular diseases. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, there is even more reason to get out and walk.

Walking is a great help for folks managing diabetes as it reduces blood glucose levels. Walking for 30 minutes to an hour each day helps the muscles to absorb the sugar that could become built up in the bloodstream. And while this is great news it isn’t permanent, you have to get out there and walk consistently to reap this benefit. If you have diabetes you’re at an increased risk of heart disease and walking helps to keep your weight in control.

Once you have the go-ahead from your physician, it is important to enlist the help of a podiatrist to make sure your feet remain healthy. Any blistering or sores on the feet could lead to infection. But with a great pair of walking shoes that fit comfortably, do not rub at the toe or the heel, you should find walking very enjoyable.

Just remember to wear your diabetes ID bracelet and carry any necessary diabetes supplies (such as a snack or your diabetes medication, etc.).

Diabetes and Weight: How do they connect?

Type II diabetes is a form of diabetes that is normally controlled by eating well. It has been proved that there are strong links between obesity and the high risk of being diagnosed with type II diabetes. Although this form of diabetes can occur in any person, there is a higher probability of people with obesity to have diabetes. More so, children who grow up obese normally are diagnosed with Type II diabetes which is normally only diagnosed in older at least middle age folks.

Nevertheless, this type of diabetes can be controlled with discipline through the use of diet and exercise. There are many symptoms of this type of diabetes which include frequent urination onset by high levels of thirst while also suffering from dry and irritated skin. However, some people fail to show these signs and go undiagnosed for much longer. Basically the body has lost the control to use the body’s insulin or there is not enough insulin being made.

Those diagnosed with Type II should consult a doctor and a nutritionist who will work out a healthy diet plan to help control diabetes from progressing. Some commonly changed diets include the following: changing dairy products for soy, choosing fat free products, switching your carbs to whole grain carbs such as whole wheat pasta and brown rice, more fruit and veggies including broccoli, green beans and spinach. You should also avoid processed and refined sugars. The more natural your diet the better. If you are craving sweets try your best to eat fruits while you can also eat sugar free cookies and such but should best be avoided for other cancerous risks.

If you have a well planned out diet and stick to it then you will lose weight and you will also prevent your diabetes from progressing to another stage.

Diabetes and Weight Loss

The link between diabetes and obesity is well documented. Being overweight or obese drastically raises your risk of developing diabetes. Losing weight now can reduce those risks significantly; if you already have diabetes, losing weight now will help reduce blood sugar levels, blood pressure and a lot of other symptoms of the disease. Even a 10% reduction in body weight will help reduce symptoms. A few simple tips will help you lose weight gradually; ensuring that you don’t harm your body by losing weight too quickly.

Eat a healthy diet. Chances are your doctor referred you to a dietician to help you design a diet to fit your particular needs and lifestyle. Follow your dietician’s advice; they get paid to know what they’re talking about. Avoid processed sugars in foods, while keeping quick fix snacks like candy on hand in case of a dramatic drop in blood sugar. Insulin sometimes can reduce your blood sugar too much; in this case you need to eat a sugary snack like hard candy or drink a soft drink. Don’t make a habit of this; only eat and drink these foods in the case of a blood sugar emergency. Dietician’s advise to eat all the major food types; don’t cut out carbohydrates. Everyone, even diabetics, needs to consume carbohydrates to be healthy. Reduce your carb intake along with everything else. The goal of a diabetic diet is to reduce the amount of calories and processed sugars consumed by a diabetic, not to cut out any specific food. Following a reduced calorie diet, while maintaining the right mix of foods will help your body shed pounds gradually.

Exercise at least 30 minutes a day, three times a week. Five days is even better, but three days a week will help your body burn those extra calories. Brisk exercise is recommended; fast walking, light jogging, aerobic exercise; all these are great ideas to help you lose weight. As with any exercise, drink plenty of fluids while working out so you don’t become dehydrated. Unlike others, diabetics should avoid sugary drinks while working out and this includes sports drinks. Water is the best bet for diabetics; no added sugars and all the hydration you need. Monitor your blood sugar levels before and after exercise; physical exertion can dramatically lower blood sugar levels after a workout and you may need to have a quick fix snack handy in case of a hypoglycemic event.

These are almost exactly the same weight loss recommendations given to non-diabetics. In our stationary, sugar obsessed society, everyone can benefit from eating healthier foods and exercising more frequently. With the increase of obesity and diabetes in children, it has become necessary that adults lead through example and get their kids out from in front of the television. Healthy meals will go a long way towards preventing childhood obesity and diabetes, and outdoor activity will get their bodies in gear to shed the pounds they’ve acquired playing video games and watching television. Let your children go on walks or runs with you; you may be surprised at the response you get from them.

[tags]diabetes, weight loss, obesity[/tags]