Ashima Sharda Mahindra • 09 Dec 2024
How Long Does It Take to Reverse Prediabetes? Know Easy Lifestyle Changes To Help You Do It
To reverse prediabetes, you must consume a well-balanced diet which consists of nutritious whole foods and exercise regularly
Prediabetes is a serious health condition that happens when your blood sugar levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be considered type 2 diabetes yet. According to doctors, it is important to reverse it as soon as you get to know before it becomes a full-fledged condition.
Mostly, a consistent plan can help you with prediabetes reversal—within months or even years. However, doctors say reversal may be possible about 25 per cent of the time with lifestyle changes alone.
According to studies, at least 25 per cent of your prediabetes can be reversed with lifestyle changes in a year.
How can you reverse prediabetes with lifestyle changes?
According to experts, taking early action is the key. But it also depends on your age, weight, and the strategies that you successfully implement to lower your blood glucose levels.
Lifestyle changes
Exercise
Doctors recommend regular exercise or workouts for at least 150 minutes weekly. For your east, try and break it up into 30-minute sessions of your favourite exercise five times every week.Diet
Consuming a well-balanced diet that consists of nutritious whole foods can help you reverse prediabetes.
Weight management
Losing even 5-7 per cent of your body weight can help significantly reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Cut back on added sugars
Your blood sugar levels are directly related to how much sugar you consume. And so, you must make sure to cut back on calories and indulge more in nutrient-rich foods. Eliminate sugar-rich foods like:
- Bakery items
- Candy
- Packaged fruit juices
- Soft drinks
Proper sleep
Since your body carries out many essential tasks during sleep like hormone and metabolic regulation, proper, regulated, and uninterrupted sleep can help you reverse your condition.
Stop smoking and alcohol
Quit tobacco with immediate effect. Also, stop alcohol even if you indulge in moderate drinking.
Medication
Doctors say apart from the lifestyle changes that are needed, you must also regularly take your prescribed medicines, like metformin, which can help if you are not able to achieve enough improvement with lifestyle changes alone.
How to track your progress?
To get back to a diabetes-free life using reversing techniques, you need to be regular and consistent. Doctors say to do that you must track your progress at every interval, with the help of a notebook or mobile app. Important parameters that indicate prediabetes include:
- A1C levels between 5.7 and 6.4 per cent
- Fasting blood sugar levels between 100 and 126 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL)
Risk factors for prediabetes
Both uncontrollable and controllable factors for prediabetes include:
- Family history
- Age over 40 years
- Having polycystic ovary syndrome in women
- High blood sugar levels
- Low HDL cholesterol
- Sleep apnea
- Obesity or overweight
- Eating a diet high in saturated fats
- Indulging in low levels of physical activity
- Metabolic syndrome
- Smoking and drinking alcohol
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