Importance of weight loss in type 2 diabetes

If you're overweight and have type 2 diabetes, weight loss and management is a must and a cornerstone of every diabetes treatment plan.  It may seem like an overwhelming goal if you have tried in the past to lose weight and have failed. But there are steps you can take and support you can utilize to help you reach your goals.

Here you learn more about the connection between heart disease and diabetes plus get a free diabetes recipes eBook! 

The first step to losing weight is to set a short-term goal for yourself.  A good goal when starting to lose weight is to take a small percentage of your overall weight and aim to lose that much in your time frame.  For instance, if you weigh 200 pounds aim to lose weight 5% of your body weight to begin (10 pounds).  When you lose weight as a diabetic you are helping your body by lessening your insulin requirements.  Weight loss will also assist you in keeping your blood sugar levels under control.

Choose the right food. Not to mention to stay away from cake, sweets and the usual beverages in the supermarket. It just takes a little time and effort to prepare the tasty deserts yourself, but it is totally worth it. In the end it´s the only way to take control. Love chocolate switch from milk chocolate to dark chocolate with at least 75% cacao. Or even better, prepare your own chocolate pudding, but replace the sugar with the most healthy natural sweetener "Stevia".

People with type 2 diabetes can eat fruits, but should watch their portions and choose the right fruits with less sugar. Fruits contain sugar as well as  fructose, which puts your cells energy burning mechanisms on overdrive.



Avoid processed foods, as they mostly contain high amount of sugar for a better taste. The food industry is tricky in hiding it, did you know that there are at least 61 different names for sugar listed on food labels? Check the labels for ingredients like:
    Agave nectar
    Barbados sugar
    Barley malt
    Barley malt syrup
    Beet sugar
    Brown sugar
    Buttered syrup
    Cane juice
    Cane juice crystals
    Cane sugar
    Caramel
    Carob syrup
    Castor sugar
    Coconut palm sugar
    Coconut sugar
    Confectioner's sugar
    Corn sweetener
    Corn syrup
    Corn syrup solids
    Date sugar
    Dehydrated cane juice
    Demerara sugar
    Dextrin
    Dextrose
    Evaporated cane juice
    Free-flowing brown sugars
    Fructose
    Fruit juice
    Fruit juice concentrate
    Glucose
    Glucose solids
    Golden sugar
    Golden syrup
    Grape sugar
    HFCS (High-Fructose Corn Syrup)
    Honey
    Icing sugar
    Invert sugar
    Malt syrup
    Maltodextrin
    Maltol
    Maltose
    Mannose
    Maple syrup
    Molasses
    Muscovado
    Palm sugar
    Panocha
    Powdered sugar
    Raw sugar
    Refiner's syrup
    Rice syrup
    Saccharose
    Sorghum Syrup
    Sucrose
    Sugar (granulated)
    Sweet Sorghum
    Syrup
    Treacle
    Turbinado sugar
    Yellow sugar

Did you know that berries are ideal for a diabetic diet. For example, the glycemic load of one half cup of blackberries is just 2.02 which makes them an ideal option for diabetics.

Lovely vintage illustration of blackberries on Etsy.

Another method to lose some weight is physical activity and exercise.  Getting your body  moving will increase your metabolism and that act will assist in losing weight too.  Not  only will increased metabolism aid, it will also help in controlling blood  glucose levels. You don´t need to go to the gym, but every additional step you do helps.

Healthy eating and exercise go hand-in-hand with weight loss.  It also takes patience and time but as you begin the road to weight loss the benefits you will derive as a diabetic will begin right away. And as you reach your preferred weight you will gain better control of your blood sugars.