Prevent Prediabetes

How I Beat Pre-Diabetes

age-well.org > Prevent Age-related Diseasel > Prevent Prediabetes

This is the story of how I beat a condition i had been suffering with for months or years without even knowing it and prevented the onset of Type 2 Diabetes.

I’d been exposed to a lot of unnecessary stress in the workplace, in addition to the usual stress that was associated with my job. This was caused by a small group of people who were plotting to get me out of my job and sabotaging my work in various deceitful ways, ranging from small things aimed at putting a spanner in the works to actually destroying files and sabotaging presentations.

While I'd had on-going sabotage to deal with for years, the campaign really got going when I found myself one man down and very upset myself when my Assistant of ten years lost her son and daughter in law in a plane crash. Knowing I was in a weakened position the perpetrators tried to go for my jugular. They even went as far as lying that the Board were unhappy with my work, which i subsequently found was untrue and quite the contrary.

During this difficult period I put on about ten kilos and developed high blood pressure. I was also diagnosed with “prediabetes”, a condition I had never heard of before.

A Pre-cursor to Type 2 Diabetes

People who develop type 2 diabetes almost invariable have prediabetes before getting the full-blown disease. In prediabetes blood glucose levels are higher than they should be but not enough to get the diagnosis of full-blown diabetes.

There are billions of people worldwide who have this condition without knowing it and, unfortunately, while not as destructive as full-blown diabetes, this condition can still cause a lot of damage to the body. It has a negative effect on the heart and the blood circulation system, in particular.

Type 2 Diabetes is more common in certain races such as Native Americans and people of African or Asian decent or people of mixed race. The risk of developing this disease also increases with aging. These same groups of people are also more at risk of developing prediabetes.

Prediabetes is a serious medical condition that should be treated. Learn how to prevent prediabetes to protect your heart and circulation and to avoid developing type 2 diabetes. There are different tests your doctor can use to determine whether you have prediabetes and you should consult your doctor if you think you may have this condition.

Prevention and Cure

Taking enough physical activity and watching your diet can bring your blood glucose levels within the normal range and help to prevent prediabetes in healthy individuals.

According to the American Diabetes Association “just 30 minutes a day of moderate physical activity, coupled with a 5-10% reduction in body weight, produced a 58% reduction in diabetes” in patients with this condition.

In my situation, I was ordered to lose ten kilos and sent to a nutritionalist who helped a lot in guiding my new eating plan. I was advised to eat six small meals a day, instead of four larger meals and to eat a healthy diet, avoiding sugar.

However, I did consult a doctor who specialized in helping pre-menopausal women lose weight, with lectures explaining why they had become overweight, self-help groups, and the use of special preparation to replace meals in the initial stages to prompt the initial weight loss. Learning why skipping meals can actually lead to weight gain was an eye-opener.

While the first five kilos were lost quite rapidly, I struggled with the next five and keeping it off long term was a battle I ultimately lost.

An On-going Battle

Ten years on and I have put the kilos on again. I intend to consult a doctor to see if this is normal with age or if I need to lose a few kilos. I intend to ensure that my blood sugar levels are normal.

The experience I went through led to an increased interest in health and aging issues and ultimately to the founding of age-well. I decided at that time that I didn't just want to prevent prediabetes from developing into full-blown diabetes. I also wanted to learn about other age-related diseases and how to prevent them. I also wanted to help other people from becoming ill because they didn't know enough about how to prevent age related conditions.

As I have mentioned, I also have to fight to keep the pounds off and to ensure that I age healthily. I think that this gives me an edge over those people who may tell you to lose weight in order to keep healthy, but who have never had to struggle to do so themselves. I must say that, being a natural skinny during my earlier years, I had really no idea how hard it was for those who were overweight.

Take Action Now

If you belong to one of the high risk groups for developing prediabetes, there is nothing you can do to change this. You can't change your race and there is not much you can do about aging. The American Diabetes Society advise people in these groups to concentrate on controlling what they can control.

This means becoming more active, eating healthier and controlling your weight. Learn how to prevent prediabetes and get started below:-

Nutrition

In order to find help in making the best nutritional choices to prevent or help treat this condition, please consult the following pages:

Learn About Healthy Eating

The DASH Diet for high blood pressure can also help prevent prediabetes

Cutting Down on Alcohol Can Also Help

Fitness and Exercise

Tips on how to include a healthy amount of physical activity into your daily routine:

Exercise well to age well

Walking is one of the best exercises as you age

Weight Loss

Keeping control of your weight is extremely important in healthy aging and in making sure you don't develop prediabetes or Type 2 Diabestes.

Watch Your Weight

Lose That Bellyfat

Tools

Learn all about diabetes and how to prevent it Weight Conversion Chart

BMI CALCULATOR - Calculate your body fat ratio

Healthy Recipes Databank

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