Diabetes Type 2 is Not a Death Sentence: Diet, Weight Loss and Exercise Can Reverse This Disease

Type 2 diabetes is also known as non insulin dependent diabetes. These people's pancreas are able to make insulin, but they have become insulin resistant. Usually these patients take oral medication to control blood sugars but if left unchecked they can progress to needing to take insulin.

Type 2 diabetes can not be cured. But with proper eating and exercise you can reverse it. You need to recognize that this is a disease that can have an excellent outcome, the pancreas is still working, you do make insulin. But you must take control of yourself, your life and your eating to master it completely.

There are approximately 23.6 million diabetics in America. The vast majority of those are type 2 diabetics. The best possible thing for these people is proper diet and exercise.

You must be aware of what you eat. Most people are unaware of how many carbohydrates they are eating a day. And why would Americans have a problem with carbohydrates? What with Pizza, Potatoes and Popcorn on every corner and in fast food restaurants everywhere.

It is critical to lower your carbohydrate intake. Carbohydrates are the culprits that cause blood sugars to spike. Carbohydrates turn into pure sugar once it enters your blood stream after digestion is started in the stomach. And it is not just the obvious carbohydrates, like bread or potatoes. You must be aware of your entire diet.

For instance not all vegetables are created equal. You need to eat more green leafy vegetables, like dark lettuces, spinach, broccoli, greens etc. Cut back on the starchy vegetables like carrots, corn and peas.

Really try to avoid red meat, no more than once a week. Get your protein from chicken and turkey, beans and legumes and nuts. And remember increasing the fiber in your diet will counterbalance any carbohydrates or sugars that you eat and help reduce the blood glucose level spike.

It is also good to eat fish, at least twice a week. And not deep fried, good healthy oily fish. You need the healthy fats, omega 3's and omega 6's in this choice.

Eat a lot of fiber, 40 - 50 grams a day, which is above the daily suggested requirement, but as stated, it helps to level out blood sugars and control those spikes. If you are eating something that is high in carbohydrates, be sure to include some fiber in that meal as well.

Make yourself be aware of nutrition labels. You will be surprised by the information you will learn about your favorite foods. And hopefully this will help you develop new favorite foods that will be healthful for you.

You also need to pay attention to the amount of food you eat. It is recommended that people with type 2 diabetes and that are overweight, should lower their caloric intake by 500 - 1000 calories a day. Of course, most people who are overweight, especially obese people are really not aware of how many calories they are actually taking in. It is usually very shocking to these individuals when they find out.

It is highly recommended that you go through several days of eating keeping a food journal. Write down absolutely everything you put in your mouth. Even if it is just licking the spoon while you are cooking. It all adds up. And it is those unaware excursions to the mouth that are usually sabotaging any effort for weight loss.

Once you know what you are realisticly taking in for a daily caloric count. Now you can reduce that by 500-1000 calories a day. Remember, Lowering your caloric intake (YOUR caloric intake, not what a magazine says you should be eating) by 500 calories a day will let you lose 2 pounds a week. Which is a healthy safe amount of weight to lose. And weight loss is one of the most important things to do to control type 2 diabetes.

The best reversal treatment for type 2 diabetes is exercise. Why? Because it stimulates weight loss, which is critical for successful diabetes management.

Exercise also helps you build muscle which stimulates metabolism and weight loss and it actually stimulates your cells to become insulin sensitive, which controls blood sugar levels.

Now many overweight or obese people have never exercised. Oh they may have taken a walk or two, but not the go to the gym type exercise that small people seem to love so much. You can not become an Olympian overnight. You must start slow. But know this, ANY exercise, no matter how little, is beneficial and better than the zero you were doing before.

You only need to exercise an hour and 15 minutes to 2 hours and 30 minutes a week. No not a day. Not several times a week. All together, total for the week. And remember exercise is accumulative. So if you do 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes at night, that is 10 minutes for this day. Congratulations!

If you have never seriously exercised, start slow. Do as little as five minutes a day of something that is fun or interesting to you. And something that you might actually stick with. For instance if you have problem joints, maybe walking is not a good choice for you at this time. Maybe after a few pounds are gone you will like that better. But what about swimming? You can get a membership at the local high school and swim several times a week if you enjoy it. Water aerobics are phenomenal for weight loss and fun!

And if walking is what you think you would like, don't start off power walking with weights strapped to every part of your body. It just isn't necessary and it is going to make you hate it and it could hurt you. Just go for a walk. Just make your body move.

Or how about dancing? Turn on the radio and start moving. But whatever you decide to do be careful. Until you get used to moving, your body is going to rebel. You will have sore muscles and joints. Don't overdo it. It is always advisable to check with your physician before starting any king of diet or exercise program for their invaluable input into your health and safety.

If you are overweight and on medication for type 2 diabetes. When you have lost just 10% of your body weight you could very easily be off medication or at least well on your way to removing them from your life. You do the math, what would your first weight loss goal be? It is doable.

So healthy diet and exercise can definitely reverse this epidemic disease called type 2 diabetes. Stop being a statistic. Start being in control of your life.

Source:

How to Reverse Type 2 Diabetes

WebMD, overview of type 2 diabetes