Type 2 Diabetes Prevention, Support and Nutrition Guidelines

If you are at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes or have been diagnosed with prediabetes, it’s important to make lifestyle changes now. Changing your diet and exercise habits can help you avoid both Type 2 diabetes and its associated complications. Beaufort Memorial offers a variety of services, including nutrition counseling and our LifeFit Wellness Center, that can support you on that journey.

Preventing diabetes starts with an annual wellness visit with a primary care provider. Need a provider? Find one accepting new patients.

Reduce Your Risk of Diabetes

Some Type 2 diabetes risk factors — your age, ancestry and family history, for instance — are beyond your control. However, a poor diet, excess weight and lack of physical activity are risk factors you can control by:

• Changing your diet. Avoid foods that are high in calories and fat, as these can increase your risk of diabetes.
• Engaging in regular physical activity. Exercise does more than burn calories. It also helps lower blood sugar levels, improving your chances of avoiding Type 2 diabetes. At the Beaufort Memorial LifeFit Wellness Center, our professionals can help design an exercise plan that works for you.
• Lose weight. A weight loss of just 5% to 7% can help you prevent or delay Type 2 diabetes.

Your primary care provider may recommend other lifestyle changes, such as giving up cigarettes if you smoke and limiting alcohol consumption, to move your blood sugar levels into a healthier range.

Diabetes Nutrition and Diet Plans

If you want to prevent Type 2 diabetes, you may think that the only dietary change you need to make is avoiding sugar. Although avoiding sugary drinks and foods is important, overall changes to your diet are equally crucial.

A diabetes-prevention diet includes plenty of healthy whole foods — fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein sources and low-fat dairy — and very few heavily processed and fast foods. These are often high in sodium, saturated fat and added sugar, which can increase your risk for Type 2 diabetes. You should aim to:

• Control portion sizes to limit your calorie intake
• Drink water instead of sodas and other sweetened beverages
• Eat foods high in heart-healthy fats, such as nuts, seeds, fatty fish, avocados and olive oil

Our registered dietitians can help you foster healthier eating habits that allow you to better control your blood sugar, as well as heart disease and high blood pressure, triglyceride and cholesterol levels, all of which can increase your risk for Type 2 diabetes. They will help you craft a realistic diet that you can sustain long-term and provide counseling to help support healthy lifestyle changes.