How to avoid becoming Type 2 diabetic

Prediabetes is a kind of warning signal prior to developing diabetes - it is usually picked up from blood tests that show elevated blood sugar levels.

To be classified as prediabetes, the blood sugar levels must be high but not quite high enough for the person to be considered diabetic. Research on those with prediabetes shows that, without intervention, Type 2 diabetes is likely to develop within 10 years. 

The important thing to remember with prediabetes is that progressing to Type 2 diabetes isn’t inevitable. There are lots of things you can do to prevent becoming pre-diabetic or stop prediabetes developing into Type 2 diabetes.

For many people, the right lifestyle changes such as weight loss, increased exercise and healthier eating can aid in bringing blood sugar levels back to a more normal range. 

This could mean making healthier and more informed food choices, getting regular exercise, focusing on sleeping well and making time for relaxing and enjoying life. Now, this is obviously easy to say, and we all have the best of intentions, but putting all of these intentions into regular practice can be a bit more challenging.

A good way to go about making changes to your lifestyle is to take a step back and look at the big picture. Are there positive changes that you can easily make? Maybe going for a regular walk in the evening with a friend. Taking the time to read food labels or doing a course on understanding better nutrition to help with food purchase decision-making. 

Having made a good start, now look for changes that could be considered a work-in-progress. This could be as simple as learning to cook healthier food. A quick online search (try Diabetes NZ) and you can find any number of recipes designed specifically for people with diabetes – why not add these to your food routine. There are loads of recipes on the Te Atatu Toasted website that are made with our low-sugar Healthy Blend Muesli.

If you are concerned about prediabetes, consider switching to our Healthy Blend Muesli for your everyday breakfast.

Finally, you will need to sort out some of the big stuff which may require some pretty important life decisions. This could mean changing jobs to avoid shift work or long hours, finding ways to have more movement in your life or looking at how to heal or improve existing medical conditions.

What we’ve covered so far:

• Why Type 2 diabetes could affect you
• How to avoid becoming Type 2 diabetic

Coming up:

• Three ways to manage Type 2 diabetes
• Make your healthy habits stick