Diabetes – Genes load the gun, unhealthy lifestyle triggers it!

Not all that you get in inheritance is good and for the keeps. Same goes for certain diseases like diabetes, which has a strong connotation with one’s family history.

Both my parents are diabetics (Type II). Their parents were too. Am I next in the queue?

Possibility is indeed high considering my increasing waistline, unhealthy eating habits and lack of physical activity (let me put the onus on my 9 hr desk job!).

With a strong family history to shoot my chances up of getting the disease, as a proactive measure, I took an appointment with a Diabetologist. I am glad I did that!

On discussing my case and family background with him, my physician also was of an opinion that diabetes does have a strong genetic influence and that’s why categorised as a genetic disorder.

He said,

• If either of the parents is diabetic, then the chances of the person suffering from it increase by 20-30%
• If both the parents are diabetic, the probability increases up to 60%
• If diabetes is present in two generations, the person then falls into a high-risk zone

A high-risk group is the one where people are above the age of 35, obese, have a family history of diabetes or females who have had diabetes during pregnancy. Such people should check their blood sugar levels at regular intervals (once in six months).

People genetically predisposed to the disease should observe healthy eating habits, regular exercise and keep the weight within normal limits.

Moral of the story: Since you can’t change the legacy of diseases, change your lifestyle!