By Catherine Hansen

TYH: Reducing Type 2 Diabetes Risk Among First Nations

Oct 17, 2017 | 11:31 PM

If you’re of First Nations descent, you are at a higher risk for diabetes. In Canada, indigenous Canadians are 3 to 5 times more likely to develop diabetes in their lifetime. The same is true for indigenous populations around the world. But as we learn in this week’s To Your Health report, you can take steps to reduce your risk.

(Announcer:)  And now, “To Your Health”. Brought to you by Hart Drugs, Third Avenue Pharmacy and the Phoenix Pharmacy.

(Catherine Hansen – Reporter:)  Diabetes can strike anyone, however, Indigenous Canadians are more likely to be struck than members of the general population. And the reason goes back to colonization with the introduction of flower and processed sugar.

(Matt Summerskill – Mobile Diabetes Clinic:)  “With colonization came the disposition of traditional territories, the creation of reserves, more sedentary lifestyles and increased urbanization. And over time, a lot of those problems have perpetuated in not just type 2 diabetes, but other chronic diseases.”

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(Hansen:)  When you eat, your body turns your food into sugars, or glucose. At that point, your pancreas is supposed to release insulin. Insulin opens your cells to accept the glucose, producing energy. But with diabetes, that system doesn’t work. The Province’s First Nations Health Authority says Indigenous Peoples should focus their effort to prevent diabetes on high-risk factors, including obesity.

(Summerskill:)  “We need to think about type 2 diabetes as not a problem that somebody has done as a result of individual behaviours, but as larger, systemic structural issues with a whole bunch of factors at play.”

(Hansen:)  Other key risk factors for the disease include smoking, inactivity, stress and poor eating habits. Avoiding these factors can go a long way.

(Summerskill:)  “Now, if I had diabetes, one of the things I have to think about is how much sugar is in that food, what medication may I need to take and is the food I ate and the medication I took going to effect my mood, my energy levels and my appetite for hours down the road. And these are significant stressors in the day-to-day life.”

(Hansen:)  According to experts, the best way to avoid diabetes is to maintain a healthy lifestyle, including a healthy diet. More information is available from the National Diabetes Association at www.nada.ca. To your health, Catherine Hansen, CKPG News.