Women who find their jobs mentally tiring are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, according to brand new research that analysed data from 73,517 women over a 22-year period. Dr Sarah Brewer – CuraLin.
Life races past at 100pmh, I mean it’s nearly April already – When did that happen? When you’re balancing a demanding schedule, it can be hard to maintain healthy habits. It’s often easier to grab a fast food lunch, miss out on your 8 hours sleep and guzzle down 5 coffees with 2 spoonfuls of sugar to keep you going.
If you’re concerned that your tiring job is putting you at risk of developing the ‘lifestyle disease’, our experts are here to help you implement a healthy lifestyle in the workplace…
The biggest epidemic of the 21st century
“According to the World Health Organisation, at least 422 million people were living with diabetes in 2014 compared with 108 million in 1980. In the UK alone, almost 3.7 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes and this number will rise to over 5 million by the year 2025 if nothing is done to curb what has been described as the biggest epidemic of the 21st century.
“The main underlying factors relate to diet and lifestyle – being overweight/obese and not getting enough physical activity. Eating sugary foods and sugar-sweetened drinks contributes to weight gain, which in turn, increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, but the current consensus is that sugar has no unique diabetes-causing effect on its own. If you have diabetes, however, it’s important to cut back on sugar intake as consuming sugary foods and drinks will increase your insulin needs and worsen your glucose control,” explains Dr Sarah Brewer, maker of supplement, CuraLin.
Did you know that “you could have pre-diabetes if your waist measures more than: 94cm (white European males), 90cm (South Asian or Chinese males) or 80cm (females).”
Let’s not panic – It’s possible to reverse the effects of type 2 diabetes
“Everyone is different and there are no guarantees, but in some cases it is possible to regain normal glucose control by following a healthy, low GI diet, losing excess weight and increasing your level of physical activity. In those who are overweight or obese, a weight loss of greater than 5 percent body weight appears necessary for beneficial effects on glucose control (HbA1c), blood lipids (cholesterol, triglycerides) and blood pressure.
Greater degrees of weight loss lead to progressive improvements in glucose control in type 2 diabetes. A weight loss of 10 percent body weight can prevent future diabetes in people with prediabetes or metabolic syndrome,” explains Dr Sarah Brewer”.
