Eat your veggies: If you eat 1.5 servings per day of green vegetables you are 14% less likely to develop diabetes.
Skip sugary drinks: Sugar-sweetened beverages like soda and fruit drinks can increase your risk of diabetes, even if you’re not overweight.
Eat breakfast: Eating within two or three hours of waking up reduces your risk of diabetes by 34%.
Choose fats wisely: Good fats, like those found in vegetable oils, nuts and seeds can help ward off Type 2 diabetes.
Choose whole grains: Eating an extra two servings of whole grains a day decreases the risk of Type 2 diabetes by 21%.
Limit red meat and avoid proccesed meat: Instead, go for healthier protein sources such as nuts, poultry, fish, low-fat dairy or whole grains to lower the risk for diabetes.
Choose healthy snacks: Raisins and unsalted almonds, walnuts, pecans and peanuts are good choices to help avoid diabetes.
Skimp on dessert: Choose the ½ cup individually packaged cups of ice cream rather than the ½ gallon container, which may invite over-consumption.
Physical activity
Get moving and eat right: A combination of healthy eating and physical activity cuts your risk of developing diabetes by 58%.
Start walking: A study by the University of Washington showed that adding just 3,500 steps a day was associated with a 29% lower risk of developing diabetes than those who walked less.
Encourage being active: Once a child is overweight, chances are more than doubled that the child will develop diabetes. Children and teens should get 60 minutes of exercise per day.
Lift weights: Weight training can significantly reduce your risk of developing diabetes.
Build strength: A recent study showed that 16 weeks of strength training helped participants better control their blood sugar, which is comparable to taking diabetes medication.
Lifestyle changes
Control your weight: Obesity makes you 20-40 times more likely to develop diabetes.
Model healthy habits: Type 2 diabetes runs in families partly because children tend to pick up bad habits, like poor diets, from their parents.
Quit smoking (or do not start): Smokers are about 50% more likely to develop diabetes, and the risk increases the more you smoke.
Relax: Chronic stress can elevate your blood-sugar levels, which can lead to diabetes.
Get more sleep: Research shows that those sleeping less than six hours a night have a 60% higher rate of diabetes.
Get vitamin D: Research suggests an association between low levels of vitamin D and an increased risk of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Turn off the TV: Teens who watch a lot of TV have more body fat, which can increase their risk for diabetes.
Be vigilant: People who work a rotating shift are more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes.
All in the family: If you have a family member with diabetes, you are more likely to develop the disease.
Regular doctor visits
See your doctor: Early treatment of diabetes or prediabetes can prevent serious problems such as loss of eyesight or kidney damage.
Get a flu shot: People with diabetes are at high risk of serious flu complications, even when the diabetes is well-managed.
Keep your blood pressure in check: The chance of developing diabetes increases if your blood pressure is 140/90 or higher.
Monitor cholesterol: If you have unhealthy levels of bad cholesterol, you are at a higher risk of developing diabetes and heart disease.
Get tested: If you are 45 or older, especially if you are overweight, getting tested for diabetes or prediabetes is strongly recommended.
Pregnant or planning a baby?
Get moving: Women who are physically active before and during their pregnancy reduce their risk of gestational diabetes by about 70%.
Choose breastfeeding: Studies suggest that breastfed infants and those receiving vitamin D supplements may have a reduced risk of developing Type 1 diabetes.
Eat more fiber: One study looked at diets of women before they got pregnant. Each 10-gram increase of fiber per day reduced their risk of gestational diabetes by 26%.
