5 Encouraging Facts About Diabetes

More than 96 million Americans have prediabetes, and about 37 million more have diabetes. Diabetes is a serious condition and is the seventh leading cause of death in the world. With stats like this, it’s easy to understand how a diabetes diagnosis can be disheartening. 

While diabetes is a serious condition that requires regular management, it’s important to know that you can thrive with diabetes and enjoy an active and happy life. At Premier Family Physicians in Bastrop, Texas, Dr. Pompeyo Chavez and his team are experienced in helping those with diabetes manage the condition. 

Below, Dr. Chavez shares five encouraging facts about diabetes.

1. Diabetes can be managed

Although uncontrolled diabetes can negatively impact many different body systems 一 from your kidneys to your eyes to your blood vessels 一 it’s important to know that diabetes can be managed. 

Depending on what type of diabetes you have, Dr. Chavez may recommend:

• Oral medications
• Insulin injections
• Insulin pumps
• Lifestyle modifications, including regular exercise and dietary modifications

Regularly monitoring your blood sugar can also ensure that your blood sugar levels remain in a healthy range.

2. Meal planning doesn’t have to be hard

Dietary changes are an important part of your diabetes management plan, but meal planning doesn’t have to be arduous. Meal planning can help you maintain a healthy weight (another key component of diabetes management), keep your carbohydrates in check, and help you prevent diabetes-related complications. 

There are many tools and apps to make meal planning easier. In addition to using an app to track carbohydrate, protein, and fat intake, you can also use a notebook (to plan meals in advance), enjoy a diabetes-friendly recipe book, utilize the Plate Method, or enlist the services of a registered dietician. 

3. Sweets aren’t off limits forever

When people first learn they are diabetic, they fret that they’ll never get to eat sweets again. While sugar and sweet treats should be limited, they aren’t forbidden forever. Ideally, it’s better to make your own dessert so you can track the carbohydrates, make substitutes where possible, and control the ingredients. 

The American Diabetes Association offers a plethora of dessert recipes to help satisfy your sweet tooth. Whether you treat yourself to a hot chocolate or a chocolate peanut butter chia pudding, the key is to track your carbohydrates for the whole day. You can substitute some carbohydrates from your snack or meal to make your dessert fit into your day without going over macros.

4. You can reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes

While you can’t prevent type 1 diabetes, you can take action to reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes. Prevention strategies include:

• Maintaining a healthy weight
• Exercising at least 150 minutes per week
• Eating a well-balanced, nutrient-dense diet
• Drinking plenty of water and limiting sugary beverages 

But what if you have prediabetes? Even if you have prediabetes, you can still take action to reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Remember, prediabetes doesn’t guarantee that you’ll definitely develop diabetes, but a prediabetes diagnosis is serious. If you have prediabetes, talk to Dr. Chavez about the best course of action for you.

5. Knowing your risk factors can help you prevent diabetes

Some risk factors for diabetes are within your control, and some aren’t. Knowing which risk factors you have can help you create a stronger prevention plan against diabetes. The most common risk factors for diabetes include family history of diabetes, being overweight, having high blood pressure or high cholesterol, and having polycystic ovarian syndrome. Additionally, being diagnosed with gestational diabetes also increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes after pregnancy. 

Even if you don’t have prediabetes 一 but you do have other risk factors 一 it’s never too early to adopt healthy lifestyle habits. For instance, according to a diabetes prevention plan sponsored by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, losing 5% of your body weight can help reduce your risk of diabetes by up to 58%. If you’re overweight, this is a comforting fact knowing that losing weight (even just 5%) can have a profound effect on your health. 

If you need help losing weight, our team is ready to help. We offer customized meal plans, regular weigh-ins, supplements, emotional support, activity plans, and more. It’s our mission to help you lose weight, manage diabetes, improve your overall health, and prevent other obesity-related diseases.

To learn more about diabetes, call Premier Family Physicians at 512-262-4699 or use the online booking tool to schedule an appointment today. With our concierge-style medicine, prevention health care plans are just a call or click away.