Can I lower the risk of Type 2 Diabetes?

There are lifestyle changes through exercise and diet that can affect your chance of suffering from Type 2 Diabetes. Let's take a look at a few.

• Eating antioxidant-rich food, such as fruit and vegetables, can slash risk by as much as 27 per cent, according to research from France
• Avoid fizzy drinks, advise researchers in the Journal of Endocrine Society. And don't just go sugar-free on fizzy drinks instead.. A Swedish study found that two diet drinks a day can double the risk of getting the disease.
• Eating nuts, and using sunflower oil, will load you up with Omega 6 fatty acids which help stave off the condition, according to the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology.
• Cut down on red meat.. Apparently some researchers in Singapore found that those who ate the most red meat upped their risk by 23 per cent
• Reduce your salt intake. Government recommendation say we should not have over six grams a day. Eating just one gram a day more can increase risks by an incredible 65 per cent, according to Swedish research.
• Stay a healthy weight. A British Medical Journal study found that being a healthy weight can reverse Type 2 Diabetes. So try and find out if you are overweight (if it is not too obvious) and be responsible and do something about it. Storing fat around your tummy is not good.
• Move more. It sounds obvious, but there are people who genuinely do little to no exercise in a week. Naturally there are those hampered by physical health ailments - and they need to get professional assistance with this. But the average person needs to ensure they walk more, and do some kind of exercise that gets them slightly breathless. Walking just 30 minutes every day can reduce the risk of Type 2 by half, according to scientists from Massachusetts, US.
• Find a bedtime routine that works for you. Sleeping for less than five hours a night may change the way the body processes sugar,, and can therefore up the risk.
• Finally, check your family history. Although it is a lifestyle-related disease (hence, you can affect it), it does also seem to run in families. If you are over 40 and have a family history of the disease, see if you can get a free screening from your Doctor.

Again, it is a lot down to the individual choices and responsibility of individuals..  You have one body for your lifetime - look after it.