Change your lifestyle to combat diabetes

Diabetes can be prevented or controlled through lifestyle management, according to one expert.

Angela Chalmers, Boots pharmacist, explained that reducing sugar intake, eating healthily, exercising regularly and abstaining from smoking can help to ward off or cope with diabetes.

For those with the condition, "eating regularly throughout the day, aiming for foods with low GI carbohydrate", can assist in controlling symptoms.

GI carbohydrates release sugar slowly to ensure that blood glucose levels remain stable.

Stopping smoking is also essential, Ms Chalmers advised, as nicotine promotes insulin resistance and erratic blood sugar.

To prevent diabetes, avoiding unhealthy foods with high refined sugar levels is vital, as it prevents abdominal weight gain - one of the main causes of Type 2 diabetes.

When a person stores fat around their middle they are at greater risk of "insulin resistance, cholesterol problems and ... some cancers", Ms Chalmers said.

This risk is heightened if the weight gain occurs during middle age, according to a string of recent studies.

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