2019-06-01_Healthy_Food_Guide_UK_(2)

Youmaybetrim,butif you’resufferingthetelltalesigns

oftype2 diabetes,it’stimetoseeyourGP.EmmaElvin,

seniorclinicaladviseratDiabetesUK,hasthisadvice

onwho’smostatriskandwhattowatchfor

Y

OUDON’TNEEDtobe

overweighttobeatriskof

developingtype2 diabetes,

asNickiHayleyfoundoutwhen

shewasdiagnosedat46.

Nicki,5ft4in,weighedaround9 stone.

Sheatea healthydiet,andhada healthy

BMI.Herjobasa teachingassistantand

lookingafterherthreechildrenandtheir

dogkeptherfit.She’dbeenfeelingtired,

weepyandmoody,butthoughtshewas

goingthroughearlymenopause.

Herdadhadtype1 diabetes,but

Nicki’sdiagnosiscameasa shockto

bothherandherdoctor.Thehardest

partoflivingwithdiabetes,shesays,

is thestigma– theassumptionspeople

makewhentheyhearit’stype2.Even

hernursepractitioner,onhearingNicki

hadthecondition,said,‘Oh,sohave

youlosta lotofweight?’

Thesearetheotherriskfactorswe

shouldallbeawareof...

Ethnicityandage

Thosefroma blackAfrican,Afro-

CaribbeanorSouthAsianbackground

aretwotofourtimesmorelikelyto

developtype2 diabetesthanthose

froma whiteEuropeanbackground

• andtheriskincreasesovertheage
  of25.ForwhiteEuropeans,therisk
  increasesovertheageof40.

Familyhistory

If type2 diabetesrunsinyourfamily,

yourriskgoesup.MichelleGriffith

Robinson,a DiabetesUKambassador

andretiredTeamGBOlympian,is a

pictureofhealth,yeta bloodtesthas

revealedshe’sata veryhighriskof

developingtype2 diabetes.Michelle’s

fatheris Barbadianandhermother,who

is Jamaican,wasdiagnosedwithtype 2

diabetesat58.Michelle’sgrandmother

diedasa resultofcomplicationscaused

bythecondition,andotherfamily

membersareaffected,too.

Medicalhistory

Womenwhodevelopgestational

diabetesduringpregnancyareat

increasedriskofdevelopingtype 2

diabetesinthefutureandshould

havetheirbloodglucoselevelstested

regularlyaftergivingbirth.Womenwith

PolycysticOvarySyndrome(PCOS)are

alsoatincreasedriskasthecondition

is associatedwithinsulinresistance.

Otherlifestylefactors

lCertainfoodsanddrinksareassociated

withanincreasedrisk– redand

processedmeat,potatoes(specifically

fries),refinedcarbohydrates(white

breadsandsugarycereals),sugar-

sweeteneddrinksandexcessive

amountsofalcohol.Foodsassociated

witha reducedriskarewholegrains,fruit

andveg,yogurt,cheese,teaandcoffee.

lSmokinganda sedentarylifestyleare

alsoassociatedwitha higherrisk.Don’t

forget,if youspenda lotoftimesitting,

youcanstillhavea sedentarylifestyle

evenif youdotherecommended

amountofexerciseperweek.

Doyouknowthesymptoms?

Symptomsoftype2 diabetesinclude

passingurinefrequently,feelingthirsty

ortired,andunexpectedweightloss.

It progressesslowly,however,andnot

everyonewillhaveobvioussymptoms,

soit’simportanttocheckyourrisk.Use

theDiabetesUKKnowYourRisktool

(riskscore.diabetes.org.uk/start)tohave

yourriskreportemailedtoyou.

If you’reatmoderateorhighrisk,you

shouldseea healthcareprofessional.

Theycanhelpyouloweryourrisk,help

youmakelifestylechanges,if necessary,

andmonitoryourbloodsugarlevels.

If yourriskis linkedtofactorssuchas

yourethnicity,ageorfamilyhistory,it’s

importanttoseea GPfora bloodtest.

Toensureyourriskdoesn’tincrease

evenmore,a healthylifestyle,eating

wellandbeingactivearealsoessential.

If youspendlongperiodsoftime

sitting,workingata deskorwatching

television,forexample,breakupyour

periodsofsittingwithsomelight

activitylikewalkingor,if you’reat

a deskallday,goforwalkingmeetings.

Everylittlethingyoucandohelps.

Peopleover 40 livinginEnglandare

eligiblefora freeNHShealthcheck,

whichincludesa bloodglucosetestfor

type2 diabetes.If you’reeligible,speak

toyourGPformoreinformation.

symptoms,soit’simportant

tocheckyourrisk❜

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Talking point

98 HEALTHY FOOD GUIDE JUNE 2019