High Cholesterol? High Blood Pressure? Pre-Diabetes? Diabetes Type 2? Diet, Exercise, Weight Loss and Lifestyle Changes Will Get to the Root of the Problem! Best Plan – Follow Your Assessed Individualized Carb # for Weight Loss.
Let this year be the year that you start taking the necessary steps toward a healthier you.
The best way to prevent or stop progression of chronic diseases such as diabetes type 2, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity and even most sleep apnea, is through diet, lifestyle changes, exercise and yes, weight loss. This should be the first step in addition to any prescription medication you are prescribed by your health care provider.
As a Registered Dietitian for over 20 years, working in various hospital settings and also traditionally educated, receiving my Bachelors and Masters from the University of New Hampshire, I consider myself middle of the road when it comes to health care approach. I know from my many years of working with patients/clients that no massive amount of “health food” supplements or any specific diet is going to cure your auto immune disease or cancer. On the other hand, I also know that many people are relying too heavily on medications for chronic diseases that diet, lifestyle changes, exercise and weight loss can help best.
I actually remember the time when the National Institute of Health cholesterol guidelines mandated that changing diet should be tried for three months as the first step in treating high cholesterol before putting anyone on drugs. I was reminded of these treatment guidelines from the past when I read a recent article by a Cardiologist actually trying to get some of her patients off statins or cholesterol lowering drugs. As she stated in her article, current treatment guidelines, representing the standard of care, only pay lip service to nutrition. Most preventative prescription medications are just covering up the downstream effects of poor diet and lifestyles. They will not cure or get to the root of the actual problem.
Here are some of the essentials to help you be successful at becoming a healthier you
1. Eat more like our earliest ancestors and use more lean meats, fruits, vegetables and raw nuts and avoid processed foods, especially too much processed bready carb. Processed foods are where you are going to find the chemical food additives, bad fats and salt.
2. For weight loss, work with a Registered Dietitian and follow your individualized daily carbohydrate number assessed for weight loss and distribute the carb evenly throughout the day.
3. Again for weight loss, accurately track your carb intake using an easy method such as a carb counter.
4. Get accountability through visits, weigh-ins and measurements with a credentialed health care provider.
5. Get continued education, reinforcement and support for your specific Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT) needs by working with a Registered Dietitian. Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT) is covered by most insurance.
6. Individualized exercise as able and OK’d by your Nurse Practitioner or MD.