The doctor shared her own experience
Appearing on BBC’s Morning Live, NHS GP Veena Babu issued a warning to people this Christmas. Urging people to enjoy themselves but to remain careful, she said that at this time of year we are eating food we don’t usually eat – and in more quantity. Because of this, people need to ensure they’re careful – especially if they’re diabetic.
Stressing that the foods and drinks we consume are often high in saturated fat, salt and sugar, she cautioned: “If you have diabetes, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy yourself or have a treat, but we have to be mindful about how we go about it. There are two common types of diabetes – type one, which is often genetics – there’s not much we can do about that. Type two, which 90% or more of which people have, this is where if it’s early we can reverse it and we can improve it.”
Sugar doesn’t cause diabetes
She also busted a myth that is often spread on social media, saying that “people think eating a lot of sugar leads diabetes. Do you know it doesn’t?” with the TV hosts shocked. She explained that “eating a lot of sugar makes you obese, obesity a risk factor for diabetes. So it’s not a direct link. If you’re not doing much exercise, that is more of a risk factor as well”.
Who is at risk of diabetes?
Passionate about “encouraging everyone to manage” what they do this Christmas after the death of her mother, who had diabetes, she opened up about her personal experience and said that she died shortly after a kidney transplant and is the reason why this topic is so close to her heart.
Revealing those who are at risk, she said: “There are some groups that are naturally more at risk like ethnic minorities, specifically Afro-Caribbean, South Asian. They have up to six times higher risk, so they may have to try a little bit harder and this is something people don’t realise.”
Diabetes sugar check warning
She further added that “if you are taking insulin or medication that drops your blood sugar levels, you want to test your sugar more frequently in the day. So if you’re doing it two or three times, you may want to do it four or six times in the day to keep an eye on it. If it drops below four that could be hypo or if it drops above 14 that could be hyper. And both sides have complications. You don’t be on either end”.
The health guru said that “if you are diabetic or pre-diabetic, keep an eye on the labels and see how much fat and sugar is in” what you eat and be mindful of stock cubes or gravy that are high in salt or sauces that are high in sugar.
What you need to do at Christmas
The doctor said that it’s crucial people follow these pieces of advice if they want to enjoy themselves at Christmas but also ensure they are not doing anything to worsen their health condition. “You don’t want to come out of Christmas in worse health than you came in”, she warns. The list includes:
- Serve yourself
- Limit intake of processed meats
- Steam your vegetables
- Use reduced-salt stock cubes
- Fill up on veggies
- Try low-sugar sauces
- Swap cream for yoghurt
- Check nutritional info at restaurants