Nutrition for the Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas is no longer able to make insulin, or when the body cannot make good use of the insulin it produces.

Over the long-term high glucose levels are associated with damage to the body and failure of various organs and tissues.

Did you Know?

According to the International Diabetes Federation:

• 1 in 11 adults has diabetes (415 million).

• 1 in 7 births is affected by gestational diabetes.

• By 2040, 1 adult in 10 (642 million) will have diabetes.

• Every 6 seconds a person dies from diabetes (5.0 million deaths).

• 5% of adults with diabetes are undiagnosed

• Three quarters of people with diabetes live in low and middle income countries

• 12% of global health expenditure is spent on diabetes

• ($673 billion)

Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes-International Diabetes Federation:

The guidelines & recommendations for type 2 diabetes prevention emphasize on lifestyle modifications aiming to reduce weight in those who are overweight with a goal to achieve at least a 5% to 7% of body weight loss.

Lifestyle changes include:

• Controlling portion sizes.

• Avoiding high sugary and sweetened foods and beverages.

• Reducing the frequency of eating out (where size and content of meals cannot be controlled).

• Cutting the daily caloric intake by 500 to 600 kcal/day.

• Increasing physical activity to at least 150 minutes per week.

*Some guidelines recommend medications when the lifestyle modification strategy is not enough.

The most common drugs are metformin or alpha-glucosidase inhibitors (AGI), although at present most regulatory agencies do not authorize the use of medications for diabetes prevention purposes.