The American Diabetes Association predicts that by the year 2050, one in three Americans will be diagnosed with diabetes. To make this fact a little more daunting, 86 million Americans (a large portion children & teens) have already been diagnosed with pre-diabetes, a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than normal. But there’s still hope! Children can prevent pre-diabetes & extra body weight by making these healthy lifestyle changes:
- Cut out all sugar-sweetened drinks (soda, juice, sports drinks & coffee drinks) & replace them with water.
- Eat more fruits & vegetables instead of candy bars or chips.
- Make healthy choices easily accessible in your kitchen, like on the counter, for example.
- No more fast food!
- Fill half their plate with colorful, non-starchy vegetables. One fourth should be a starchy vegetables or grains. The last quarter is for protein.
Courtesy of Kentucky.com