Diabetes Prevention and Precautions

As long as you control your weight within a reasonable range, stabilize daily blood sugar fluctuations, and get rid of bad habits that long-term damage to the pancreas, more than 90% of type 2 diabetes can be effectively postponed, or even never come to your doorstep in your lifetime.

Last month, I went to a free clinic with Dr. Zhang from the endocrinology department of a community hospital. I met a 42-year-old brother who runs a building materials business. His fasting blood sugar was found to be 6.8mmol/L, which is the critical value for impaired glucose tolerance. His body fat rate was almost 33%. Dr. Zhang told him at that time that if you continue to drink wine every day and drink water instead, you will be diagnosed with diabetes in up to six months. As a result, my eldest brother really listened to me when he returned home. I lost 12 pounds in three months. Last week, my fasting blood sugar level dropped to 5.4mmol/L, which is normal than many young people.

Many people’s impression of diabetes prevention is still “just don’t eat sugar”, which is actually outdated. A few years ago, the academic community was still emphasizing the restriction of refined sugar. In the past two years, more and more studies have pointed out that the rate of rising blood sugar in refined carbohydrates such as white rice and white steamed buns is not much different from drinking sugar water. Our body does not have any trouble digesting it. Blood sugar rushes up in a blink of an eye, and the pancreas has to secrete insulin to suppress it. After a long time, won’t it cause fatigue? Of course, some nutritionists have objected, saying that if the amount of daily exercise is high enough, such as workers doing heavy work on a construction site, who consume two to three thousand calories a day, there will be no blood sugar problems if they eat polished rice and white flour every day. The key is to "match intake and consumption."

To be honest, many young people nowadays have abnormal glucose tolerance. It is not because they eat too much sugar, but because of bad habits. I met a 28-year-old Internet operator in a clinic before. The girl doesn’t like sweets very much, but she can’t afford to have a cup of full-sugar milk tea as afternoon tea every day. In addition, she sits for 10 hours. Even when she goes downstairs to get takeout, she has to run errands. The physical examination showed that her fasting blood sugar level was 6.6. She almost shed tears at that time. Fortunately, she discovered it early, so she changed her milk tea to unsweetened oolong tea. She deliberately walked an extra 20 minutes to the subway station after get off work every day. She ate vegetables first and then staple food when eating. She checked again after half a year and found that her glucose tolerance was completely normal.

Don’t be superstitious about those “sugar-free foods” sold on the market. This is the biggest pitfall I’ve seen many people step into. There used to be an aunt in her 60s who was afraid of getting diabetes, so she bought a bunch of sugar-free biscuits and sugar-free cereals as a snack, thinking that there was no sugar to eat anyway. However, half a year later, her fasting blood sugar level shot up to 7.9, and she was almost diagnosed. Don't think that "sugar-free" means no calories. These products just don't add extra sucrose and contain a lot of wheat flour, starch, and non-dairy cream. If you eat too much, your sugar will rise faster than rice. Of course, some doctors think that there is no need to completely kill sugar-free foods. Occasionally, they can be used to relieve cravings. It is better than eating ordinary cakes and biscuits. As long as the amount is controlled, there is no need to overdo it.

Many people think, "My parents both have diabetes, so I can't escape it." This is simply an excuse for being lazy. The inheritance of diabetes is only "susceptible", not "inevitable". I have a child whose parents are type 2 diabetics. He has been paying attention since he was 25 years old. He regularly runs 5 kilometers three times a week. He cooks white rice at home and mixes half brown rice and oats. He rarely drinks sweet drinks. He is 40 this year. Every year, his blood sugar is stable at around 5 during physical examination. He is healthier than many people with no family history.

By the way, there is another point that many people ignore - don't stay up late for a long time. Staying up late will increase the body's cortisol level, which is a stress hormone that directly raises blood sugar. I met a young man who worked in design two years ago. He worked on projects until two or three o'clock every day for three months in a row. His physical examination showed that his fasting blood sugar was 6.7. He was shocked. Later, he adjusted his work schedule to go to bed before 11 o'clock without deliberately dieting. After a month's check, it was back to 5.3. The effect is more obvious than taking medicine.

In fact, after all, diabetes prevention is not as complicated as everyone thinks. You don’t have to make yourself afraid to eat or touch that. It’s perfectly fine to go out with friends for a hot pot or a cup of milk tea every now and then, as long as you don’t eat and drink like crazy every day, and have a different day and night. After all, health is about living a good life. If you live a miserable life just to control sugar, it will be more gain than loss.