Urbanization leads to lots of social, economical and environmental changes. These changes reduce physical activities and lead the way to a sedentary lifestyle. A sedentary lifestyle is the commonest cause of obesity which accompanies a huge risk for health. Here we are going to discuss Dietary tips to prevent diabetes.

Introduction

Diabetes is the most common lifestyle disorder caused by obesity and a sedentary lifestyle. In this, the blood glucose level gets increased above 120 mg/dl, fasting. The patient may experience the following symptoms.

  1. Polyuria (excessive urination)
  2. Polydipsia (excessive thirst)
  3. Polyphagia (excessive hunger)

These three P’s indicates diabetes. At later stages, major complications may occur like Retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy. To avoid these risk factors, diet alteration is the first step.

5 Important Dietary Tips to Prevent Diabetes

Dietary changes play an important role in the treatment of diabetes. A rich nutrients diet helps in reducing blood glucose levels in the body. The diet should be devoid of fats. It means eating a moderate amount of healthiest food within meals. Here are the dietary tips to prevent diabetes.

1. Intake of Healthy Carbohydrates

During digestion, the end product of carbohydrates after breakage is glucose. Avoid taking foods and drinks with added sugar, sodium and fats. Consider taking the following food items:

  • Fruits - You can eat an apple, papaya, plum, orange, melon, guava, and avoid eating mango, dates, litchi, and grapes.
  • Vegetables - Avoid taking jackfruit, yam, potato, canned, and frozen vegetables.
  • Take low-fat dairy products.

2. Addition of Omega-3 Fatty Acid

Intake of polyunsaturated fats helps in lowering down the cholesterol level. In diabetes, Omega 3 fatty acid plays an important role and helpful in controlling the insulin resistance in patients with diabetes.

Sources of Omega 3 fatty acids- Nuts (especially walnut), Oily cold-water fish such as mackerel, salmon, fortified eggs, and flax seeds.

3. Include Millets in the Diet

These are extremely nutritious and possess numerous health benefits. These are low in carbohydrates and take a longer time to digest which decreases the breakdown of glucose. It is a high fiber-rich diet that forbids us from excessive intake of food. Beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes as it contains magnesium which regulates the secretion of insulin and glucose.

4. Avoid taking Saturated Fats

Saturated fats increase the risk of Diabetes and cholesterol levels in the body. Patient’s who take saturated fats may develop various cardiac disorders such as Myocardial infarction, Congestive cardiac failure, etc.

Foods to avoid- Butter, beef, Oils intake (coconut and palm kernel oil).

5. High Fiber-Rich Diet Intake

Fiber-rich diet decreases the blood sugar level. It includes the following foods like:-

  • Vegetables
  • Fruits
  • Nuts (especially walnuts)
  • Legumes (beans, etc.)
  • Whole grains

Intake of these helps in lowering down the blood glucose level and delays digestion.

Conclusion

Thus, we can conclude that the alteration of the diet is most important for controlling diabetes. The diabetes diet control possesses other benefits also as it lowers down the risk of cardiovascular diseases and many other ailments. We have tried to give all the relevant information in the most effective way.