Lower your risk of diabetes with healthy eating, exercise

Thomas Koroscil is a doctor at Wright State Physicians Internal Medicine and an associate professor of internal medicine at the Wright State Boonshoft School of Medicine.

Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. More than 29 million people in the United States have diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. In 2012, 86 million Americans age 20 and older had prediabetes.

Diabetes occurs when there is too much glucose, or blood sugar, in the blood. If it is not treated, it can cause blindness, nerve damage, kidney disease and other health problems.

To raise awareness about diabetes and healthy living, Wright State Physicians Internal Medicine is participating in American Diabetes Month throughout November.

“Most people with diabetes have type 2. Research has found that moderate weight loss and exercise can prevent or delay type 2 diabetes,” said Thomas M. Koroscil, M.D., Ph.D., a doctor at Wright State Physicians Internal Medicine and an associate professor of internal medicine at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine. “Anyone age 45 years or older should consider getting tested for diabetes, especially if you are overweight. Additionally, people younger than 45 who are significantly overweight and have risk factors for diabetes, such as a family history of diabetes, also should be tested.”

Additional risk factors include being of African American, American Indian, Asian American, Pacific Islander or Hispanic American/Latino heritage; having a history of gestational diabetes or birth of at least one baby weighing more than nine pounds; having blood pressure measuring 140/90 or higher; having abnormal cholesterol with HDL “good cholesterol” 35 or lower; or being physically inactive, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Making healthy changes can greatly lower your risk for type 2 diabetes,” Koroscil said. “To help prevent type 2 diabetes, watch your weight, eat healthy and get more physical activity.”

For more information, visit wrightstatephysicians.org/im or diabetes.org.

To schedule an appointment with a doctor at Wright State Physicians Internal Medicine, call 937-223-5350.