Diet and Exercises to Help Prevent Diabetes

Updated August 30, 2024

Diet and exercise are vital components to managing pre-diabetes and preventing people from developing type 2 diabetes. A healthy eating plan that is naturally rich in nutrients and low in fat and calories is essential. Key elements include fruits, vegetables and whole grains. In fact, a diabetes diet is the best eating plan for almost everyone.

Pre-diabetes means you have high-than-normal blood sugar levels yet are not considered diabetic. If you have received a diagnosis of pre-diabetes, you have a better chance of reversing your health through lifestyle changes that incorporate diet and exercise, which can lower your risk of developing this metabolic disease.

If you have diabetes or pre-diabetes, your doctor will likely recommend you work with a dietitian to help you develop a healthy eating plan. The plan helps you control your blood sugar (glucose), manage your weight and control risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure and high blood fats.

Preventive maintenance is always better than break-down maintenance. Anyone who wants to avoid diabetes should consume food with less sugar and avoid excessive sweets and processed foods. Regular exercise that meets your fitness level, like brisk walking, yoga, strength training and more, can help you avoid serious complications associated with type 2 diabetes, like eye and heart problems and digestive and kidney diseases. Even those who have received a diagnosis of early-stage diabetes have been known to prevent or delay the disease and even put it into remission when they have embarked on a lifestyle change program. By doing so, you can avoid many, if not all, of the health problems associated with type 2 diabetes.

Foods you should include in your diet

 These changes including good habits can have a great positive effect and results.

• Healthy carbohydrates. During digestion, sugars (simple carbohydrates) and starches (complex carbohydrates) break down into blood glucose. Focus on the healthiest carbohydrates, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains, legumes (beans, peas and lentils) and low-fat dairy products.
• Fiber-rich foods. Dietary fiber includes all parts of plant foods that your body can't digest or absorb. Fiber moderates how your body digests and helps control blood sugar levels. Foods high in fiber include vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes (beans, peas and lentils), whole-wheat flour and wheat bran.
• Heart-healthy fish. Eat heart-healthy fish at least twice a week. Fish can be a good alternative to high-fat meats. For example, cod, tuna and halibut have less total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol than meat and poultry. Fish such as salmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines and bluefish are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which promote heart health by lowering blood fats called triglycerides.

The Role Food Choices and Physical Activity Play in Diabetes Prevention

Many people live sedentary lifestyles and eat excessively. These habits are key factors in developing diabetes, particularly if you have a family history of this chronic disease. Excessive eating and lack of regular exercise contribute to unhealthy weight gain. Learning how to make healthy meal choices and keep physically active can help you lose weight. A healthy weight can make a decided difference in your health.

Foods You Should Include in Your Diet

All food affects your blood glucose, but some do so more than others. Healthy eating is a little bit different for e everyone, but when you incorporate good eating habits into your routine, they can positively affect your health and help lower high blood glucose.  Consider incorporating the following foods for effective diabetes prevention.

• Consume healthy carbohydrates. During digestion, sugars (simple carbohydrates) and starches (complex carbohydrates) break down into blood glucose. Focus on the healthiest carbohydrates, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes (beans, peas and lentils) and low-fat dairy products.
• Fiber-rich foods. Dietary fiber includes all parts of plant foods that your body can't digest or absorb. Fiber moderates how your body digests and helps control blood sugar levels. Foods high in fiber include vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes (beans, peas and lentils), whole-wheat flour and wheat bran. Fiber-rich foods help with losing weight and lower the risk of diabetes because they make you feel full faster. They also interfere with dietary fat and cholesterol absorption to aid in disease control and prevention of heart disease, high blood pressure and inflammation.
• Eat heart-healthy fish at least twice a week. Fish can be an excellent alternative to meats high in saturated fats. For example, cod, tuna and halibut have less total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol than meat and poultry. Fish such as salmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines and bluefish are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which promote heart health by lowering blood fats called triglycerides.
• Eat plenty of plant foods. These provide essential vitamins, minerals and the "good" carbohydrates your body requires for energy. Your diet should include plant food like tomatoes, peppers, tress fruits, leafy green, broccoli, cauliflower, beans, chickpeas, and lentils.
• Avoid "bad" carbohydrates. Limit consumption of foods with added sugars, like fruit juices and those with high-fructose corn syrup. You'll also want to limit foods with little fiber, like bread, pastries and pasta made from white flour.
• Eat healthy fats. Consume high-calorie foods with an excessive fat content in moderation. However, healthy fats are essential to your diet, so you should include monosaturated and polyunsaturated fats to promote healthy blood cholesterol and good heart and vascular health. Healthy fats include olive, sunflower safflower, cottonseed, and canola oils. Saturated fats are found in dairy products and meat. Limit them by eating low-fat dairy products and lean chicken and pork.
• Skip fad diets. The goal of nutrition to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes is to make healthier eating choices. Fed diets, including the glycemic index, keto or paleo diets, can help you lose weight, but little research is available about their long-term benefits. Your initial goal should be to lose excess body weight and maintain weight loss through healthy eating. Healthy dietary decisions should include your own preferences for food that you can use as a strategy that becomes a lifelong habit that will become beneficial over time. One simple strategy involves dividing your plate into portions, with one half encompassing healthy fruits and vegetables, one quarter consisting of whole grains and the other quarter with protein-rich foods, including lean meats and fish.

Increasing Physical Activity

Becoming physically active is difficult for many individuals, especially if they are not used to aerobic exercise or have a health condition that prevents them from partaking in intense activity. More physical activity will translate into dropping pounds. Weight loss reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. One study indicates that people reduced their risk of developing diabetes by nearly 60 after losing about 7% of their body weight. The American Diabetes Association recommends those with prediabetes lose at least 7% to 10% of their body weight for diabetes prevention.

Benefits of Losing Weight Through Physical Activity

Exercise not only helps you lose weight, but it also lowers high blood glucose and boosts your sensitivity to insulin. A healthy plan includes the following:

• Aerobic exercise. Get 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, like brisk walking, swimming, biking or running for 150 minutes weekly. You can increase the intensity as you become more fit.
• Resistance exercise. This includes weightlifting and yoga to strengthen muscles, improve balance and maintain an active lifestyle.
• Limit inactivity. Break up long periods of inactivity to help control blood glucose. Stand, walk, or do another light activity every half hour.

VIVAA Can Help Reduce Diabetes Risk Factors

Would you like to embark on a lifestyle change program for preventing diabetes but don't know where to start? The doctors and staff at VIVAA are ready to help with practical lifestyle changes that work. Book a consultation today by calling 425-250-9999 or completing our Request an Appointment form.