Are you in the diabetes danger zone?

IN the UK, 3.7 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes, around 90% of those with Type 2.

Approximately one million people are living with diabetes but haven’t been diagnosed, and a huge 12.3 million are at an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

“It’s increasing significantly over time so it’s definitely something we have to pay a lot more attention to,” says Chanelle Corena, Prevention Lead at Diabetes UK (diabetes.org.uk).

So could you be at risk?

Understand the basics

Type 2 diabetes is a serious condition that causes the level of sugar (glucose) in the blood to become too high and can happen gradually.

“Unfortunately, in a few cases it can progress over a 10-year period, which means people might not recognise it straight away,” says Chanelle.

“It’s really important people start to identify some of the symptoms, such as a sustained, increased thirst, needing to wee a lot and tiredness, sooner rather than later.”

If left untreated, diabetes (both Type 1 and Type 2) can contribute to early death and lower-limb amputation, but as many as three out of five cases of Type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed.

The lifestyle changes you can easily make

Around 60% of cases of Type 2 diabetes can be delayed/prevented by making lifestyle adjustments: Diabetes UK’S advice is to follow a healthy, balanced diet that’s realistic long term. Include plenty of fruit and veg, watch portion size and avoid sugarladen snacks and soft drinks. Chanelle says: “Free sugar – that’s added in sugar that doesn’t occur naturally

foods and drinks – is a big trigger for or weight gain, and being overweight obese is linked to Type 2 diabetes.” Although you should aim for about two-and-a-half hours of moderate-intensity activity a week in your free time, “the main message is move more than you’re already moving”, says Chanelle. Integrate things like getting off the bus one stop earlier, taking the dog for a walk and using the stairs instead of the lift. Introduce small

changes to achieve a larger goal. Carrying weight around your middle can make it harder for your body to control levels of sugar in the blood. This can increase your risk, and makes it harder to manage diabetes. “There’s no easy way to reduce of your waist size but a combination the two other interventions will help you reach a healthy measurement,” says Chanelle. For more info, visit Diabetes UK at diabetes.org.uk.