More than Half of all Type 2 Diabetes is Preventable

Today is World Diabetes Day.

Diabetes has been a part of my life since I met my husband 25 years ago!

He was diagnosed with type I diabetes when he was 7.

It’s impacted his life significantly and will continue to do so as he ages. At 33 he was told that he would likely be blind within 5 years. He isn’t, because we found an excellent diabetic eye specialist.

2 years ago, aged 44 he had a stroke. Fortunately, it was mild, and he fully recovered.

I am very aware of the complications and challenges associated with diabetes.

I know the horrific impact diabetes can have on the quality of a person’s life

AND I know that more than 50% of type II diabetes is preventable.

I feel justified to have a little rant about it. 😤

There are 3.8 million people living with diabetes in the UK.

That number is predicted rise to 5.5 million by 2030.

The dramatic increase in obesity is the primary cause of Type 2 diabetes in the UK.

Diabetes is a leading cause of blindness, amputation, heart disease, kidney failure and early death.

I read a post from someone in my group earlier this week telling me that they had recently been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and that their doctor had told them that they must have potatoes, pasta, bread or rice with every meal.

My husband was told the same thing more than 35 years ago, and I understand why given his age at diagnosis and the fact that he was type 1.

But he has been scared to not eat bread, potatoes, pasta or rice with every meal until very recently. Even with the health coaching and studies that I was doing into diabesity he wouldn’t consider cutting out those carbohydrates.

Their importance was ingrained into his belief system.

That was until I spoke to a fellow health coach early last year.

Her husband was also a type I diabetic and he had cut out all refined carbohydrates and was in great health with excellent blood sugar control. 

So, my husband agreed to swap sandwiches for salads at lunch time and didn’t have bread, pasta, rice and potatoes with his dinner, replacing them with colourful vegetables.

And he’s had great results.

His HbA1c (average blood glucose level) has been consistently 25% lower over the past 12 months than at any other time over the previous ten years.

There is a substantial amount of evidence to demonstrate that an excess of bread and pasta, which contain highly refined carbohydrates, and other foods containing highly refined sugars are significantly contributing to the obesity and diabetes epidemic, sometimes referred to as diabesity.

I took the below statements from the Diabetes UK web site…

Whilst it’s difficult to prove that any one part of the diet is the responsible for conditions such as obesity and type 2 diabetes, there is growing evidence that excessive carbohydrate and sugar intake are playing a significant role in the development of these conditions.

People with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes will find that the more carbohydrate you have, the more likely you are to experience problems with the following:

• High blood sugar levels
• Increase in insulin resistance
• Increasing body weight
• Increased appetite

Carbohydrate’s direct impact is to raise blood sugar levels and therefore too much carbohydrate can cause problems for people with diabetes.

A reduction in daily carbohydrate intake can address both weight gain and poor diabetes control.

Warning: If you are on diabetes drugs that can cause hypoglycaemia, you should not decrease carbohydrate intake unless your doctor is happy for you to adjust your carbohydrate intake.

We need more doctors to talk to patients about the possibility of working with a heath or weight coach to increase their chance of putting their diabetes into remission.

Research shows that the sooner after diagnosis a patient starts to reduce their weight, the greater their chance of achieving remission, and no longer needing to take medication.

A recent Diabetes UK study found that 46% of people taking part in a weight management program achieved remission within 12 months.

Remission was closely linked to weight loss, with 64% of participants who lost more than 10 kilos still being in remission after two years.

If you are type 2 diabetic or pre diabetic, please talk to me about how I can help you lose weight and improve your health.

Whilst it may be possible to temporarily lose weight through dieting, it’s important to change your whole approach to eating and your relationship with food for life.

If you would like to chat, please message me or schedule a call directly on my calendar. https://sparklediscovery.as.me