© duffieldderbyshire.co.uk - 2011 www.duffieldderbyshire.co.uk Appletree Medical Centre  (February 2012 update) by Dr. mark Browne Some might say I have over done diabetes, or at least spent just a tad too long explaining what goes wrong internally in people with type 2 diabetes. But with such a prevalent illness I feel justified in providing a short practical guide to the important things that can be done to slow the progression, prevent the complications, and control the illness. It is always better, I think, for the patient to control the illness rather than the reverse. I would like to be able to take the credit for being the clever doctor who through sheer hard work, determination, and attending numerous seriously interesting lectures, knows which are the most important treatments that are going to positively affect the control of the condition. And that the solution is a nice pill with no side effects. But unfortunately, that isn’t the case. Well, to be fair, I have been to some lectures. However, the most important elements for the proper treatment and control of type 2 diabetes are not what any doctor does but what the patient does. Namely, diet, exercise, and minimising weight gain. I’ll say it again (and in bold type) as it is the most important thing I’ve written about in the whole series on diabetes: diet, exercise, and minimising weight gain are the most important treatments for type 2 diabetes. I could go on at great length about what, and what not, to eat, but in summary: eat low sugar, low fat, low salt unprocessed foods in moderation. Meat, chicken and fish are OK but grilled rather than fried. A good saying I heard from a specialist dietician (this also applies to diets in pregnancy by the way) is “if the food on your plate looks like not much has been done to it other than cooking since it left the abattoir, fishing net, or was plucked from the ground, it’s probably a plate of healthy food”. There has been much research into the right amount and intensity of exercise to undertake in type 2 diabetes. Treading carefully between various recommendations I think a reasonable definition would be this: take enough exercise to make you perspire at least a little, make you at least slightly out of breath, and lasts for at least 40 minutes, at least 3 times a week. Any more than this is a bonus. Unfortunately many people can’t achieve this due to other conditions, but do as much as you can. If you are a type 2 diabetic with a normal weight, then you are firstly very lucky, but also quite a rare beast. For the rest, following the advice given above represents their greatest challenge. To quote the aforementioned dietician again, this time in relation to weight reducing diets: “Have a look at about 5 diets (e.g. Rosemary Conley, Atkin’s diet etc) and pick the one you think suits you best as that will be the one that is most likely to succeed”. She researched it properly and it proved to be a true, if somewhat axiomatic, assertion. Final episode next month! Dr. Mark Browne Appletree Medical Practice 47a Town Street Duffield Belper DE56 4GG Telephone: 0844 477 3476 From outside the UK:+448704230406 Fax:0844 477 3585 Out of Hours: 0844 477 3476 © duffieldderbyshire.co.uk - 2012