Pizza is comfort food that can add pounds if not careful.

My next-door neighbor’s mother-in-law passed away last month. She was 61 years of age. She died from complications of type II diabetes. My neighbor said she loved her food and would not alter her eating habits.

Forty years ago, diabetics died almost ten years sooner than non-diabetics. Significant improvements were made in awareness, education, and treatments. As a result, ten years ago, deaths from diabetics compared to non-diabetics dropped to just over a couple of years. However, recently the trend is moving back towards the ten-year mark from the 1990s.

Complications from diabetes can lead to amputations (lower leg/foot), blood sugar emergencies that require immediate hospitalization, loss of vision, neuropathy (painful nerve disease), kidney failure, heart attack, stroke, and premature death.

Diabetes is a disease. A simple definition is that the body cannot control the level of blood sugar. Four out of ten Americans are obese. Three out of ten Americans are overweight. That leaves three out of ten Americans at a healthy weight.

Physical inactivity, overeating at meals, genetics, overindulgence in carbohydrates, increased frequency of eating, and some medications are the primary causes of overweight and obesity. These factors add up over time and the ability of the body to produce and respond to blood sugar becomes abnormal. The body produces more insulin than it should.

There is a time lag between healthy insulin control and a gradual loss of insulin sensitivity to a major glycemic control problem. Not all overweight people have diabetes. Not all thin people are non-diabetic. It is not a disease that can be determined by looking at a picture of a person.

It is a disease that you must get diagnosed properly by your physician. The current pandemic exacerbates the conditions that lead to being overweight – eating more comfort foods (sugar-laden), inactivity, stress, and more. Many people prefer to not cook and eat from packaged foods. This can also increase the risk of gaining weight – more calories typically in packaged foods compared to home-cooked meals.

What can be done easily at home during this pandemic and a limited social life? One, choose to eat from salad plates rather than dinner plates. Eat only what is on that plate. Two, do not go back for seconds. This can work with foods ordered from restaurants. Transfer food from their containers to your salad plate and leave the rest for later. Those are two simple, easy options that can be done whether you are overweight or not.

Three, use EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) to counter hunger cravings. I found that EFT works well for me in many areas. I also found that I need to do them for a minimum of eight minutes to be effective. My preference for EFT options is Brad Yates.

Go to YouTube and type in ‘EFT and food cravings.’ Watch two or more short videos to get the idea of what to do. Follow the person providing instructions on the video. Tap in the same places and repeat the same words out loud. There is no cost (free), other than your time. Plan to do the EFT process for at least three weeks. Here is a link to Brad Yates of YouTube addressing cravings – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdFBVCZZbXg

Sitting around the house, watching television, worrying about a job or paycheck, restricted contacts with family and friends, and other factors during this pandemic will probably lead to a few more pounds being added to your body if you don’t take actions to curb it. These three suggestions – smaller plate, no seconds, and EFT – hopefully, will give you an advantage in fighting in the incremental increase in your waistline.

And, if you are not getting an annual physical, please consider doing it. It is better to fix something on the front end than to address it for the rest of your life when diagnosed when you are older. Diabetes creeps up just like those few extra pounds turned into many extra pounds over the years.

Live Longer & Enjoy Life! – Red O’Laughin – https://RedOLaughlin.com

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