Indulging in our favourite foods is part of a relaxing holiday, but habits formed on holiday can be hard to drop once the suitcase is unpacked and we’re back to our everyday lives.
For Alozie Benson, 57, an accountant from South London, a wonderful holiday to Nigeria led him to have to make some important lifestyle decisions.
“I have type 2 diabetes in my family, and I knew I had some of the risk factors. My GP was monitoring my blood sugars regularly, and after my trip to Nigeria they became worried and recommended that I start taking medication for the condition.”
But Alozie was reluctant to take medication at this point, feeling that he understood the causes, and knew what changes he needed to make.
“I knew that after my trip to Nigeria that I’d got into bad habits that I could change. I wanted to just assess what I was putting into my body – and to make better decisions rather than starting medication.”
Alozie’s GP recommended that he take part the pilot of a new healthy eating and physical activity programme created with, and for, people of African and Caribbean heritage living with type 2 diabetes.
For more on the study, please visit www.heal-d.org
“The HEAL-D groups were fun. The talks and conversations we had during the sessions were about the sorts of foods I eat, and the exercise advice was relevant too.
“I was given a resistance band, and began working out at home, following the exercises they gave me. I also began running at my local park and I’ve been able to keep this up too.
“The team were really clear about the changes I needed to make to my diet. I learned so much about portion size, and understood the changes I should be making to quantity and the ingredients I used in recipes. For example – before Heal-D I would have a daily dose of full plated pounded yam. I didn’t realise that what we call pounded yam was, on average only 30% yam, the rest were other ingredients that made up the full bag we purchase in the shops. Heal-D showed me the difference in calories between what we buy in the shops and cooking fresh yam, and what a difference it can make to your blood sugar. I realised I needed to cook more from scratch.
“The changes I made because of Heal-D have worked for me, and I’m pleased to say that I have been able to reverse and manage the type 2 diabetes by diet and exercise.”
“Since being on the programme I’ve also been recommending it to people at Church and other local gatherings and anyone that I see that is at risk of type 2 diabetes.
“It’s great that the team are carrying out this research to discover how effective the programme is. I’d recommend taking part in Heal-D to anyone eligible to take part.”
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