People who have diabetes or prediabetes often have issues with obesity. Many of those people know that they are overweight, but do not know that they have prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.  There are serious risk factors related to the role of obesity in diabetes.

The Obesity and Diabetes Epidemics 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that approximately one in every ten people in the U.S. have diabetes. More than one in three adults in the U.S. have prediabetes. An estimated 84 percent of them do not know that they have it.

It is important to note that being overweight does not cause diabetes. That is a myth. The fact is that researchers consider obesity as the leading risk factor for diabetes.

Obesity is also a major risk factor for many other serious, even potentially life-threatening medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease, fatty liver disease, hypertension, and certain types of cancer.

I am Waiting for My Doctor to Put Me on a Diet 

There is no reason to wait until you receive a specific diet plan from a doctor or dietician. You likely already know how to eat healthily. There is no specific “diabetic diet.” That is another myth.

You increase your risk of having diabetes or prediabetes if you are overweight. You risk experiencing serious complications such as diabetic ketoacidosis or diabetic retinopathy if you are overweight and do not lose weight.

Losing just a few pounds, around five to seven percent of your body weight, reduces your risk of diabetes, and the risk of experiencing complications related to obesity and diabetes.