On Diabetes Awareness Week 2020, lets talk about how diabetes affects you and how you can reduce your risk. Diabetes is a serious health condition where the levels of a simple sugar, glucose, is too high in our blood. Insulin is they key hormone needed for glucose to enter our cells. If there is too little or no insulin the glucose stays in our blood in high quantities. Undiagnosed or untreated, diabetes can cause a range of severe health complications. Diabetes can come in many different forms, but two of these occur more frequently, type 1, and type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes happens when the immune cells attack the cells that create insulin, reducing the levels of insulin produced. Type 2 diabetes, the most common type of diabetes, is when the body does not produce enough insulin or the insulin produced is faulty so glucose remains in the bloodstream. The risk of developing type 2 increases depending on your diet and lifestyle. Having a BMI over 30 is the biggest modifiable risk factor for Type 2 Diabetes. The good news is that this is modifiable, and here is where Achieve Oxfordshire helps you with our free services.

Move More Being physically active is tremendously helpful in reducing your risk of Type 2 diabetes. Exercise helps your body use insulin better which will reduce the amount of glucose in your blood stream, improves your blood cholesterol and blood sugar. Exercise is also a great way to lose weight and having a healthy BMI and waist circumference will lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. You can stay physically active with our virtual gym, The Other Room, providing you with a range of exercises to suit all mobility and fitness levels. Sign up here.

Eat WellA healthy and balanced diet that incorporates foods from each of the main food groups is essential to keep your risk of Type 2 low. You should ensure that you eat at least 5 portions of fruits and vegetables daily, and also include some unsweetened dairy, healthy unsaturated fats, proteins and starchy carbohydrates. It is important that the carbohydrates have low glycaemic index, that will slowly break down into glucose, and not spike your blood sugar levels. To learn more about nutrition, why not sign up for one of our free courses? You can do so here.

Drink LessDrinking too much alcohol may increase your risk of type 2 diabetes, so it is best to stay within the recommended guidelines for alcohol consumption. It is recommended to drink no more than 14 units of alcohol at week, ideally having spreading these units out and having two completely drink free days. If you want to reduce your risk of diabetes our free interventions are here to help you lead a healthier life. So what are you waiting for? Get access to all of these amazing free services today Call: 01865 338 119Email: Hello@achieveoxfordshire.org.uk