Steps you can take if you want to avoid developing type 2 diabetes

- 17:20, 9 May 2016
- Opinion
- by JOHN DOLLAR

Too many of us in the UK are too heavy - and being overweight is the most important factor when it comes to the causes of the disease

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If you want to reduce your diabetes risk, lose weight

Around 3.8 million adults in the UK suffer from Type 2 diabetes , while another 14 million are on the brink of it with pre-diabetes and high blood sugar levels.
For people wanting to avoid diabetes there’s plenty you can do, although the most important factor is also the most difficult – don’t get fat.
Too many of us are too heavy. Having a body mass index of (BMI) above 25 is the single worst risk factor for Type 2 diabetes.
So why is being fat so significant? In a nutshell, being fat prevents insulin from doing its job properly. It can no longer mop up sugar from the blood.
Blood sugar levels rise (pre-diabetes) as do levels of insulin, and eventually the body becomes insulin resistant (diabetes).
The second risk for diabetes is waist size. Men whose waist measures more than 40in (102cm) are five times more likely to get Type 2 diabetes.
Women with a waist measuring more than 35in (88cm) are three times more likely to develop the condition.

Diabetic check — A patient is given a diabetes test

Your risk of diabetes increases once you get past the age of 40 and if you don’t move around enough, your muscles become resistant to insulin, raising your blood sugar levels.

A diet high in sugary drinks, cakes and biscuits creates more sugar than your cells can take in and the excess spills into the blood. Just one can of sweetened drink a day is enough to increase your risk of Type 2 by nearly 20%.
Read more: Gorging on fatty foods could cause night terrors, say experts
Even diet drinks can raise your risk because the sweeteners mimic the action of sugar in the body.
Then there’s the genetic factor. If one of your parents has Type 2, your risk increases by 15%. If both parents have it, your risk increases by a whopping 75%.
Family lifestyle factors such as poor diet and inactivity, ‘inherited’ as family behaviours, are key.
So what can you do?

Lose weight and your blood sugar levels will plummet. A short sharp diet could be your most effective tool.
Professor Roy Taylor of Newcastle University gave 11 people with newly diagnosed Type 2 a liquid diet providing 600 calories a day.
After just a week, MRI scans showed the fat around their livers had dropped by 30% and blood sugar levels were back to normal.
Participants also lost an average of 2st 5lb (15kg) over the eight-week study. Intermittent fasting, as with the 5:2 diet, can do the same thing.
Top tip – a 15-minute stroll after each meal will lower your blood sugar.