Studies have revealed that maintaining a healthy diet, normal body weight, exercising, avoid smoking as well as moderate consumption of alcohol can lessen the danger of type 2 diabetes as well as other illnesses. Type 2 diabetes is considered as the most common as it affected around 26 million individuals last year.
The studies have indicated that maintaining these healthy lifestyle routines will decrease the danger of having Type 2 diabetes by around 80 percent. The study analyzed how these lifestyle routines, whether individually or as one group, would play a factor to the lessening of the risk of contracting the Type 2 diabetes.
The study involved over 200,000 individuals who were included in another diet-and-health research by the NIH-AARP. These individuals had ages starting from 50 up to 71 at the start of the research in 1995. None of the individuals had any symptoms of cancer, heart disease or even Type 2 diabetes.
A detailed questionnaire was answered by the participants that included food and alcohol consumption as well as smoking or non-smoking habits. The participants of the study also provided their exercise routine, if any, along with their height and weight in order to get the body mass index.
The participants were grouped from the worst to the best. Members of the best group practice the five lifestyle routines while the worst did not have any of these lifestyle routines.
According to Dr. Jared Reis, the average participant in the study maintained two of the five lifestyle routines. The study also indicated that the risk of Type 2 diabetes was closely linked to the body mass index of the individual.
The risk of contracting the disease among men who normal weight was reduced by 70 percent compared to overweight men. Among women the risk factor for contracting Type 2 diabetes was reduced by around 78 percent.
The study also pointed out that the risk of contracting Type 2 diabetes was reduced by 30 percent if both men and women have an exercise routine and diet which are considered healthy. Non-smokers who have a good exercise routine and healthy diet have reduced the risk of contracting type 2 diabetes by around one –third.
The report also indicated that overweight individuals also have the opportunity to lessen the risk of contracting Type 2 diabetes if they follow at least one healthy lifestyle routine and make it into a habit.
