I'm Too Young to Die

That's the first thought we had upon hearing that the husband was at risk for developing type 2 diabetes.  "He's too young."  Shit.

Now, if you've been living under a rock for the last decade- you may not be aware that type 2 diabetes is increasing at an alarming rate.  This type of diabetes is of course mainly considered a "lifestyle" disease because you typically get it as a result of a bad lifestyle.  Simple enough, right?  The good news is that because of this, you can also reverse it.  Yay!  I'm all for that!  And of course that's just what we did!

Diet is the first place you should start and that's what I'm going to focus on here.  Since we had already started on our food journey, this was pretty easy for us.  We had already started by eating less meat and cut out most of the fatty foods.  So yeah- you should do this too.  Then add in as many whole foods as you can.  Those processed foods are scary!  Lots of hidden salt and sugar so its best to make as many foods at home as you can.

Finally, do a little research on which foods are best for those who are at risk.  But because I'm totally awesome, here's a great article courtesy of Natural News.  This is a great list of 10 foods that are super easy to add in to your diet.  There's also some supplements you can take to help as well- the husband personally takes cinnamon and I highly recommend this one.  But as with anything- please do your own research and consult your own medical professional before starting on any major changes.

Oh- and if you're wondering how you're going to make these changes or get your picky family member to eat these foods, I'm here to say- it can be done.  The husband hated kale.  He also doesn't like blueberries or almonds.  But you know what- I got creative and now he happily eats them and enjoys it! True story.

Our preferred method of getting kale in our diets is by drinking these yummy Green Smoothies.  And I just concocted a Blueberry Smoothie that is equally fabulous.  Both are easy to make and provide a ton of health benefits.  Not too worry- I'll share the recipe below for the newest smoothie!

So the next time you hear that someone you know is at risk for developing type 2 diabetes- I hope you'll share this with them.  It's not too late.

Great for breakfast!

Blueberry Smoothie

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
3/4 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup milk
1 frozen banana
2 Tbls honey*
2 tsp chia seeds


Defrost your banana for 10 minutes prior to using.

Dump all ingredients in your blender and blend away.  This will make enough for 2 people and as always, please try to use all organic ingredients.

Enjoy!

*The honey is optional.  However, local, raw honey is SO good for you and I highly recommend you add some in if you have it.

Raw, local honey is where it's at!!!