As more Canadians develop diabetes each day, this season’s sugar-plum fairies look more sinister than sweet to health professionals.
Almost one-quarter of Canadians — about nine million — have diabetes or prediabetes, a condition that worsens with inaction, according to the Canadian Diabetes Association.
“It’s about thinking ahead. The holidays are a wonderful time and people should have a good time and enjoy themselves, but if they don’t look after their diabetes, they’re not going to feel very well,” says Sharon Zeiler, the Canadian Diabetes Association’s manager of education and nutrition.
But research by Vancouver-based health care marketing research firm MD Analytics found that a lot of Canadians with diabetes — particularly the younger ones — aren’t taking it too seriously.
Eighty per cent of people over age 45 said they use their diet as a way to manage diabetes, compared to 64 per cent of respondents between 18 and 34. Results are based on a 30-minute online survey completed by 1,008 people with diabetes from across Canada earlier this year.
Yet obesity, which can largely be managed by diet and exercise, is a major risk factor for Type 2 diabetes It makes up 90 per cent of diabetes cases in Canada. (Type 1 or juvenile diabetes is an autoimmune condition which prevents the pancreas from producing insulin, often from a young age.) Type 2 diabetes usually occurs in people over 40 — although younger Canadians are becoming more likely to develop it — and also reduces insulin production.
“The idea is to make people more mindful about eating,” said Zeiler in a telephone interview from her Toronto office.
That means eating slowly and enjoying each bite rather than gulping down a big meal. It’s easier to do this if hosts plate up the meal before setting it on the table or set up a buffet away from the dining table so that people are aware when they get up for seconds — or thirds — of mashed potatoes and gravy.
Another hint is to use smaller plates that fill up with less food and also cutting sweets like pies, brownies and fudge into smaller serving sizes, she said.
Eating three healthy meals a day at regular times helps keep blood sugar levels even. High blood sugar — also called hyperglycemia — causes major damage to the body over time particularly the eyes, kidneys and blood vessels to the hands and feet.
Yet only people over the age of 65 were consistent about eating breakfast with 84 per cent saying they did so daily, according to the MD Analytics survey. That rate dropped to 50 per cent for the 18 to 34 group.
Zeiler says it’s up to the person with diabetes to take control, particularly if they are travelling, by having healthy snacks on hand like nuts or cheese and crackers to hold them over if they have a delayed mealtime. Hosts can help by having whole fruit available for a guest to eat at any time.
Complications from diabetes not only lead to a greater burden on the health care system, but also suffering for individuals and families. Eighty per cent of people with diabetes will die from a heart attack or stroke and it’s the most common single cause of kidney failure and blindness in Canada.
Aboriginal Canadians are hit harder than any other group with rates three to five times greater than the rest of the population. New Canadians of Asian, South Asian, Hispanic or African descent also have a higher risk.