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Nutritionist, say diabetes can be managed, prevented with appropriate diets
Nigerians are encouraged to consume a sufficient, well-balanced diet in order to live a healthy lifestyle, as this can help avoid diabetes, cancer, and other illnesses, according to Mrs. Ifeloluwa Akinyinka, a clinical nutritionist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital.
She provided the guidance in a Monday interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos, emphasising the importance of a healthy, balanced diet in both avoiding and treating diabetes.
It is not difficult to consume a balanced diet, according to Akinyinka, who also stated that knowing what to eat at when time is crucial.
A person's food and lifestyle choices may contribute to cancer. Eating a healthy diet can help prevent cancer, especially in women.
Eating a sufficient diet is simple. To ensure a balanced dinner, it is necessary to select at least one food item from each of the food groups in a sufficient amount.
"The food groups include fish, poultry, dairy products, fats and oils, fruits, vegetables, legumes, tubers, and meat. To improve our nutrient intake, we should include fruits and vegetables in our diets every day, the speaker continued.
The clinical nutritionist underscored that certain illnesses could be prevented or controlled with a healthy diet.
Those who have diabetes, she said, can control their condition with a healthy diet that includes foods high in both soluble and insoluble fibre.
The clinical nutritionist said the foods would help to combat free radicals that could be dangerous for them.
She explained that keeping weight in check, being active, and eating a healthy diet can help prevent most cases of type 2 diabetes.
She advised, “People that have diabetes should eat foods with complex carbohydrates like white oats, brown rice and whole wheat.
“The foods take time to be converted into glucose in the body, causing a steadier release than simpler refined carbohydrates, which spike blood sugar levels.
“Similarly, the intake of fat should be limited because it causes insulin resistance.”