Defeating Diabetes
Brenda Davis & Tom Banard | Healthy Living Publications
280 pp | $14.95
ISBN 9781570671395
Levi Rickert, Native News Network
It is no secret to any American Indian or Alaska Native that there is a strong preponderance of the possibility of developing diabetes.
The numbers speak for themselves.
American Indians and Alaska Native are 2.2 times more likely to have diabetes compared to non-Hispanic whites. The death rate due to diabetes among American Indians and Alaska Natives is three times higher compared with the general US population. American Indians and Alaska Natives are three to four times higher at risk for developing cardiovascular disease with diabetes than Natives without diabetes.
Even with the dismal numbers associated with diabetes among American Indians and Alaska Natives, there is hope.
Earlier this year, hundreds of American Indians participated in the Longest Walk 3 – Reversing Diabetes. The Longest Walk was a walk across America, from the West Coast to Washington, DC, that sought to bring attention to the devastating effect diabetes has had within Native communities. The message of the Longest Walk also was American Indians can reverse diabetes.
American Indians are fighters; American Indians are survivors.
Beyond Native communities, we know diabetes is at epidemic rates among society.
A book called “Defeating Diabetes: A No-Nonsense Approach to Type 2 Diabetes and the Diabesity Epidemic” by a registered dietitian Brenda Davis and medical physician Tom Banard is a great tool for American Indians to pick up to read about how to defeat diabetes. Even the book’s title takes a position of strength.
Published in 2003, “Defeating Diabetes” is about making lifestyle changes about diet and exercise. Most would agree that that is a lot easier said, than done. But, the book is a quick read that provides common sense, backed with medical rationale, to alter lifestyles.
“Defeating Diabetes” contains many tables with information on fat counts, sugar content, and some 50 healthy recipes. Some of the numbers of contained in the book will make one think. For instance, one Mister Misty DQ Slush, 32 oz. contains 28 teaspoons of sugar; an ounce of hard candy has five teaspoons of sugar.
Weight control is paramount to one trying to defeat diabetes. The book’s authors provide “Seven Simple Steps to Lifelong Healthy Weight”:
- Set realistic goals
- Center your diet on whole plant foods
- Use beverages to your advantage
- Limit fat intake to not more than 25 percent of calories
- Build healthy habits
- Make physical activity a priority in your life
- Take care of your inner being
One chapter, “Kitchen Wizardry: Tricks of the Trade” will help the reader to better understand what to buy at the grocery store, with suggestions on where to shop, how to read food labels and food storage guidelines.
“Defeating Diabetes” is a practical guide on how to defeat diabetes. Do not buy this book for your bookshelf, it must be read and used. American Indians and Alaska Natives should have this book at their fingertips if they are truly serious about maintaining a healthy lifestyle and want to defeat diabetes.