If you already have diabetes, your best way of protecting yourself against the horrible complications and prolong a healthy life is by engaging with the health systems and getting regular checks.
- Attend your appointments.
- Get a referral from your doctor or nurse to a diabetes education programme to help you learn more about the condition which will give you the skills and confidence to manage it.
- Get regular checks to make sure diabetes is not damaging important parts of your body such as your eyes, kidneys and feet.
- Take your medications. Some of them can be life-saving. Every year 26,000 people die prematurely in England and Wales because of diabetes. If you have a problem with one medication report that to your GP who can try you on another.
- Get support to eat a healthy diet that include more vegetables, fruits, beans, fish, unsalted nuts, wholegrains, and less sugary drinks, biscuits, cakes, crisps, chocolates, white bread, beef, pork, bacon, and sausages.
- Do more regular exercise and sit less. Interrupt the time you spend sitting watching TV or behind the computer by standing up and working around every.
- Ignore extreme proclamations of a magic cure. There are a lot of junk information on the internet about a cure for diabetes. We are confident of putting type 2 diabetes into remission, at least for a while, but there is currently no permeant cure for diabetes so beware of false declarations.
Dougie’s tip: Diabetes is a complex condition and no single food can cause or cure diabetes. So if an internet ‘expert’ promises you salvation on your plate, beware. Take a holistic approach to eating healthily rather than quick fixes that tend to major on the minors. Be practical about your approach because this is supposed to be a long haul not a sprint.