Diabetes prevention measures

There is no universal solution that applies to everyone. Prioritize individualized lifestyle adjustments. High-risk groups must do regular early screening. There is no other shortcut.

The first misunderstanding that many people have is that "I won't get diabetes if I don't eat sweets like milk tea cakes." This is not true. I met a 52-year-old Uncle Zhang when I was volunteering in community chronic disease management. He didn’t touch anything sweet. He only had two large bowls of white rice with braised fatty meat every day. After eating, he would lie on the sofa and watch short videos for three to four hours. Last year, his fasting blood sugar level during physical examination was 6.8mmol/L. He was already in a pre-diabetic state with impaired glucose tolerance. There are actually two schools of thought in the academic community regarding dietary sugar control: one group is the supporters of "low GI priority" and believes that foods with a glycemic index higher than 55, such as refined sugar and refined rice noodles, must be strictly restricted, and whole grains and miscellaneous beans should be used instead of staple foods as much as possible to reduce blood sugar fluctuations at the root. ; The other group is the "calorie balance" group, which believes that as long as the total daily caloric intake is less than or equal to the caloric expenditure, there will be no problem even if you occasionally grab a milk tea wool or eat a cream cake. Extreme sugar control will easily lead to retaliatory eating due to suppression, which is not conducive to long-term maintenance. Judging from the intervention effects of hundreds of high-risk groups that I have come into contact with, there is actually no need to stick to one camp, whatever suits you is right: for example, if you like to eat staple food, then replace half of the white rice with oats or quinoa, without cutting off carbon completely; if you don’t like sweets, you can’t go out of your way to eat sugary processed foods for the so-called “nutritional supplement”.

Don’t just focus on eating. Exercise and sleep, which many people ignore, actually have a greater impact. There is really no need to squeeze out money to get a fitness card and then not be able to go there three times a year. If you get off work early, take two bus stops and walk 20 minutes home, go for a walk with your family after dinner, or even dance with the aunt downstairs for 20 minutes. As long as you can get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity every week, you can reduce the risk of insulin resistance by more than 30%. Oh, by the way, don’t think that being young means nothing. I met a 22-year-old Internet intern last year. He stayed up until 2 or 3 o’clock every day to change his plan. He didn’t even eat breakfast in the morning in order to catch up with work. His fasting blood sugar during physical examination was higher than that of his parents. Many studies have confirmed that people who sleep less than 6 hours for a long time have a risk of abnormal glucose metabolism that is 2.3 times that of people who sleep for 7 hours. To put it bluntly, staying up late does not create mental fatigue, but the function of one’s own pancreatic islets.

Another point that is most likely to be missed is early screening of high-risk groups. Don’t wait for the typical symptoms of “poor drinking, polyurination, polyphagia and weight loss” to be checked. By then, half of the pancreatic islet function may have been lost. As long as you have an immediate relative in your family with diabetes, a BMI over 24, who rarely exercise, or a woman who has given birth to a baby weighing more than 8 pounds, it is best to check fasting blood sugar plus glycated hemoglobin once a year - the latter can reflect your average blood sugar level in the past three months, which is much more accurate than a single fasting blood sugar test and is less likely to miss a diagnosis.

Some people may ask, should I take some health products such as chromium and lipoic acid for prevention? The current controversy is not small. Some nutritionists believe that supplementing this type of nutrients can improve pancreatic islet function. However, mainstream evidence-based medical evidence does not support routine supplementation for the general population. Unless your blood test confirms a trace element deficiency, you cannot afford to spend a lot of money on such products. It is better to save money and buy more fresh vegetables and whole grains.

I have seen many people who dare not eat or touch anything in order to prevent diabetes. They worry about their blood sugar levels every day. Instead, their blood sugar levels rise and fall due to emotional stress. In fact, there are really not so many mysterious rules for diabetes prevention. You don’t need to shackle yourself. Occasionally, if you indulge in hot pot or drink a cup of milk tea, nothing will happen. As long as you don’t eat haphazardly for a long time, lie down and stay up late every day, and find a life rhythm that you can stick to for a long time, it will be more effective than any folk prescription.