Depression and Diabetes

If your eating habits and lifestyle aren’t perfect, you’re not alone. It can be tough to eat healthy all the time, maintain a healthy weight, and carve out time in your schedule for physical activity. So what happens when you don’t have a good handle on healthy lifestyle habits?

The obvious, right? Weight gain, a lower level of fitness, maybe even a lack of energy, or trouble sleeping? Sound familiar? Maybe there are other things going on in your life that are part of the problem. Left unchecked, unhealthy habits or problems in your life can lead to depression. And new research suggests that depression can also raise your risk for diabetes.

In the study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, researchers followed about 2,500 people for 4.5 years. And they found that people who suffer from depression are less likely to follow orders from their doctor and take preventive measures to improve their health. Go down that road long enough, and researchers found that you’re six times more likely to develop diabetes than someone who gets treatment for depression and makes healthy lifestyle changes.

If you think you might be depressed, talk to your doctor. Medication can help, and so can regular exercise, a healthy diet, good sleep habits, and adopting other healthy lifestyle factors. For many people who develop diabetes and other chronic conditions, poor diet over a long period of time is often a factor. But it doesn’t have to be.

If you need a little help learning to eat healthier, cut down on cooking time in the kitchen, and enjoy good food without the high cost of going out to eat all the time, we can help. Check out the selection of Diabetic-Friendly meals to keep your kitchen stocked with healthy food. Eat healthier, and you’ll be feeding your body essential  nutrients it needs for best health. And you’ll feel better, too, which can help you ward off diabetes and depression.