BLOG - HOW FOCUSING ON FAMILY HEALTH CAN HELP FIGHT DIABETES

Diabetes is a serious disease which affects the amount of insulin your body produces and could lead to other health complications with the eyes, kidneys, and feet, so it’s only natural that you would want to ensure the health of your family is tip top to be able to prevent it. A lifestyle change for the whole house is going to be so much more effective for all involved if it’s done together.

Regular exercise

The first step is making sure you are all getting enough exercise. Get together with all the family and come up with some ideas on how you can all be more active, whether that’s together or as individuals.

Walking together as a family is a great way to up your daily steps, whilst spending quality time together too. Make things interesting by going on walks to beautiful places around the UK and visiting National Trust sites. If you’re all dog fans, then getting a dog can be an excellent way to force everyone out the house on a daily dog walk.

Other forms of exercise good for all the family is signing up for activity clubs. As different ages have different interests finding something each person enjoys is key. Saturdays are a great day for everyone to carry out their separate activities at the same time. The kids can join in with a football team or dance class while the adults can head to a Zumba or boxing class.

The key to exercising being part of your lifestyle is to make it realistic. There would be no point in promising to go to the gym four times a week as this would most likely be too much of a commitment to manage in the long term. Pledging to a small amount for everyone will also keep the fun of the activity alive. You will find yourself excited for your next dance class and may even want to up the frequency of how often you go, but this is a step further down the line for you to consider.

A healthy, balanced diet

The next step in the family prevention of diabetes is to have a healthy and balanced diet. Making sure that everyone has a breakfast, lunch, and dinner which will provide enough fuel so you are able to carry out your daily duties such as heading to work, doing chores or going to school.

Breakfasts of porridge topped with fruit, eggs or yoghurt with granola are quick and easy to make as well as sure to sustain your appetite through till lunch.

Lunches and dinners that consist of a balance between complex carbohydrates such as brown pasta and rice, a lean protein source such as turkey and a helping of veggies will keep the whole family happy and healthy.

Snacks are also not such a terrible thing, as long as they are done right. Get everyone involved in making granola bars, peanut butter bites, and ham & cheese pretzels and fill up the cupboards with them so they are readily available when you want a little something. Tasty snacks that have been homemade so you know exactly what has gone into them, what could be better?

Following these simple lifestyle changes can massively affect your health and even outlook on life.  Carrying out these changes with your family in full support will bring you closer together as well as healthier in the long term. Why not start with making the trade from high sugar alternatives to our products?

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