Your Guide To Managing Type 2 Diabetes

You may have just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and wondering how much of your life is going to have to change to be able to manage your disease and live a happy and healthy life.

It is reasonable and somewhat expected to feel angry and depressed. However, having type 2 diabetes does not mean that it is the end of the world. The last thing you want to do is ignore the situation and pretend that you do not have type 2 diabetes, type II diabetes or type two diabetes.

There's no cure for type 2 diabetes, but you can take some comfort in the fact that you are not alone and it's possible to manage your type 2 diabetes and hence can live long, healthy, happy life.

Many people think that type 2 diabetes is caused by the pancreas. No, it is not. Type 2 diabetes, formerly called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), or adult-onset diabetes, is a disease in which the body fails to make or properly use insulin, a hormone that takes glucose or blood sugar out of the blood and into the cells of the body where it is converted to energy.

Type 2 diabetes is the most prevalent form of diabetes and accounts for 90-95% of all diabetes.

It is sometimes described as a 'lifestyle disease' because it is more common in people who take unhealthy diet, do insufficient physical activity and are overweight or obese.

Unlike type 1 diabetes that can only be treated with insulin injections and constant blood glucose monitoring, type 2 diabetes can be controlled with diet change, regular exercise and/or medication in the form of tablets or insulin injections.

According to research, those who did not take medication but instead made positive lifestyle and diet changes reduced their risk by a much larger 58 percent.

In your guide to managing type 2 diabetes, there are suggestions on how to begin to start implementing change into your life.

Diet Change

Your body cannot produce insulin to help your cells absorb the glucose that is used to feed the cells in your body. So, you will need to provide the right foods to your body because you cannot rely on medication alone.

You need to watch your carbohydrate levels because you cannot have elevated levels of glucose. You need to watch what kind of fats that you eat. Not all fats are bad; Omega-3, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats will protect your heart and not hurt your body. You should avoid saturated and trans fats. They will elevate your cholesterol and will increase your chance for heart disease. Having diabetes already raises your chances for heart disease.

Many people still believe that you need to eat the same foods all of the time. Nothing could be further from the truth. There are a variety of foods that you can eat and you do not necessarily need to eliminate all of the previous foods you used to eat. The American Diabetes Association has a lot of useful information about what types of foods you need to be eating.

One of the biggest myths about having type 2 diabetes means that you cannot partake in any sweets ever again. This is simply not true. In moderation, sweets are permissible in your diet.

Weight Control through Regular Exercise

Weight gain is something that you definitely want to avoid. You really cannot afford to gain a lot of weight and if you are overweight, it is important that you lose some of it.

Weight control should be achieved through a combination of increased physical activity and reduced calorie intake. Increasing physical activity means that you will have to start an exercise routine.

No one will have the same routine because some people will be starting out on their first exercise routine in their life and others will have already had a fitness routine in place. Either way, you will need to consult your doctor to find out what is acceptable level of exercise for you.

The goal that you are trying to build up is to exercise 30 minutes in a day, 5 days out of the week. You want to include aerobic exercise, strength training and flexibility exercises in your routine.

If you are not used to exercise then you definitely do not want to start doing all of this in the very beginning. You might want to start out with taking a brisk walk around the neighborhood and then work your way up to more involved workouts.

Your guide to managing type 2 diabetes is just an introduction to how to change your lifestyle around. For more information, check at your doctor's office and local health agencies. They may also be able put you in contact will local support groups. Do not discount support groups for these are made up of people that have the disease that you do.