November is American Diabetes Month
Approximately 451,888 people, 14.3% of adults in Oklahoma, have diabetes. 1,036,000 or 36.9% of the adults in Oklahoma population have prediabetes.
Diabetes
- Total: 37.3 million people have diabetes (11.3% of the US population)
- Diagnosed: 28.7 million people, including 28.5 million adults
- Undiagnosed: 8.5 million people (23.0% of adults are undiagnosed)
Prediabetes
- Total: 96 million people aged 18 years or older have prediabetes (38.0% of the adult US population)
- 65 years or older: 26.4 million people aged 65 years or older (48.8%) have prediabetes
It is important to understand that diabetes can have harsh side effects.
High blood sugar can wreak havoc on your heart, brain, and—yep, even your sex life.
People do not take this seriously enough to take actions necessary to cope with or prevent diabetes,” says EPluribus Massey, a health and fitness expert.
Aggressive action is Massey’s solution to preventing and coping with diabetes. People usually associate the word aggressive with responses to life-threatening, dangerous, or difficult situations. Massey says this type of action helps reduce your risks. For example, athletes and coaches use this term when describing their efforts to overcome a challenging opponent or game. Diabetes is an adversary that requires aggressive action as it can strain your life and everyone around you.
“You should act aggressively to save your own life if you were to be attacked by a person trying to harm you,” says Massey. “You need to learn to apply this mindset to your health and act aggressively to prevent diabetes and cardiovascular diseases because they can wreck your health”
How To Prevent and Cope Better With Diabetes
What aggressive measures can you take to prevent this disease? According to Massey, there are four things you can do.
Start taking your physician’s advice and then live a healthier lifestyle.
Losing excess weight and fat reduces the risk of diabetes.
Engage in regular low-intensity workouts, such as walking, swimming, or biking, for 20-30 minutes a day, five days a week.
Exercise also lowers emotional stress levels. Stress takes its toll on your body. Stress makes it easier for diseases to attack your body.
Start an eating plan rich in nutrients and low in fat and calories. Improve eating habits by reducing or eliminating foods that are high in fat and eating more fibrous vegetables and fruits.
Eat lean meats like baked fish, and chicken, and reduce your red meat intake.
Just as world athletes use aggressive action to overcome difficult situations, so must you be aggressive in maintaining your health. This means taking action, doing whatever it takes, and pulling out all stops.
