Diabetes Type 2

When it comes to diabetes the most common form is type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes occurs when a person’s body has problems producing insulin. When someone has type 2 diabetes there are high levels of the sugar glucose in the blood. As we all know most people who contract type 2 diabetes are overweight and with Susan’s current bmi she is greatly increasing her chances of contracting it, on top of that her chances are greatly increase even more due to the fact that she has a family history of type 2 diabetes. From what is known about it, type 2 diabetes is not a genetic disease meaning that it is not passed on from person to person the same way that something like sickle cell anemia can be, so the most obvious reason for her having a family history of the disease is that she has a family history of obesity, which is something that can be passed on from parent to offspring. Some of the risk factors of type 2 diabetes are weight, age, family history, race and inactivity, all of these things can increase your chance of getting type 2 diabetes. As I mentioned earlier, most people with type 2 diabetes are overweight, but age can play a factor as well every year after the age of 45 the risk of type 2 diabetes increases. Another factor that I mentioned was family history; if your parent or one of your siblings has type 2 diabetes then your chances are increased as well. Race can also play a factor in increasing the odds of contracting type 2 diabetes, blacks, Hispanics, American-Indians, and Asian Americans all have a higher risk of getting the disease. Physical activity also plays a factor in helping to reduce type 2 diabetes, the more active that you are less chance of contracting type 2 diabetes, because when you are active you are burning the glucose energy and helping your body to produce insulin.
Based off of her current eating habits, Susan in consuming way to many open calories which includes food that are high in fat, I would recommend to Susan that she eats less fried foods as well as eating less fatty meats. On top of the fact that Susan has a current family history of type 2 diabetes, her current BMI puts her at an even higher risk of getting type 2 diabetes; With all of the above information be stated I have created a created a diet and exercise plan for Susan to follow. For her meal plan I have created a 1 day example that I feel would help her to reduce her risk of type 2 diabetes. For breakfast Susan should eat whole grain pancakes, with fresh blueberries on top, and drink one cup of skim milk. For lunch she instead of eating fast food she could prepare her meal in advance and eat something like oven fried fish, whole wheat roll, a romaine salad, and drink something like fresh juice instead of a large soda. For snack she could have a yogurt parfait and wheat pretzels with no salt. Then finally for dinner she should eat something like Tofu, brown rice, and steamed broccoli with a glass of milk or 100 percent juice. Also throughout the day she should be making sure that she is consuming at least 8 glasses of water per day. By doing this Susan will be able to lose weight in a healthy way which will help her to lower her BMI in to a healthy range which will lower her chances of getting type 2 diabetes. The reason that I chose this meal plan for Susan was because Susan is currently trying to lose weight and by eating this meal plan that I have chosen for her she will lower her daily caloric intake from a ridiculous 3561 to a more reasonable 1800 calories which will still give her the energy that she need to burn fat and function while also allowing her to lose weight and lower her BMI. According to the Mayo Clinic “Losing just 5 to 10 percent of your body weight if you're overweight can make a significant difference in your blood sugar control. A healthy diet is one full of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes, with a limited amount of saturated fat (Mayo Clinic, 2012).” Three specific food intake goals that I have for Susan are to intake more whole grains, eat more legumes, and consume less salt, each of these goals has been proven to help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Exercise has been proven in helping to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes; so in addition to Susan changing her diet, I would also recommend that she starts exercising more regularly. There are many different exercises that can help to reduce diabetes, so I would recommend that Susan partakes in at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise at least five days per week. The reason that I am recommending that Susan does at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise at least five days a week is because aerobic exercise helps to reduce lower cholesterol and it also improves blood circulation. It is also proven that doing at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week can lower fat levels by 5 to 10 percent which will also lead to weight loss. According to “How exercise helps to reduces the risk of getting type 2 diabetes” “A study conducted by the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study Group concluded that subjects at high risk of developing diabetes who were part of an intervention in which they lost weight, ate more fiber, reduced fat intake and increased physical activity reduced their risk of type 2 diabetes by 58 percent (Markowitz PhD, 2009).” Two outcomes that Susan could use to measure her success in reducing her risk of getting type 2 diabetes are losing 5 to ten percent of her current body weight. Another outcome that Susan could use to measure her level of success in reducing her chances of getting type 2 diabetes is lowering her currently unhealthy BMI into the healthy BMI range.
As we all know when our bodies get older they are not as resistant and resilient as they were when we were younger. So as we get older we have to adjust our habits to match that of our bodies. As Susan gets older I would recommend that she continues with her current nutritional goals that I have set forth for her in the about stated meal plan, but I would also recommend that as she gets older she increases the amount of foods that she consumes containing fiber to help her in the digestion process as it pertains to absorbing good nutrients and expelling those that the body doesn’t need or that are harmful to her body. I would also recommend that as she gets older she increases the amount of aerobic exercise that she is doing either by the number of days or by the length of time that she is doing them. I would also recommend that she starts doing simple muscle strengthening exercises such as doing squats and lunges every other day to help prevent her muscles and bones from becoming weaker and frail. Another thing that Susan may want to do as she gets older is to join a group that helps to promote healthy lifestyles, because as we know it is easier to live with tough decisions and goals if we are surrounded by other people that share the same goals and way of life that we do. By doing these simple things Susan will not only prevent herself from getting type 2 diabetes, but at the same time she will be lowering the risk of any children that she might have from getting type2 diabetes. Also by following my recommendations for diet and exercise Susan will be helping herself to reach her weight goal that we established for her in the first few weeks of class and she will also be reducing her risk of getting other diseases such as heart disease, lung disease as well as others that begin to plague out bodies as we get older.

References

1. Mayo Clinic. (2012). Diabetes: Lifestyle and Home Remedies. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/diabetes/DS01121/DSECTION=lifestyle-and-home-remedies
2. Markowitz PhD, A. (2009). How exercise reduces the risk of getting type 2 diabetes. Retrieved from http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/sns-health-diabetes-exercise-reduces-type2,0,3317531.story