March is diabetes awareness month, which makes it a good time to talk about diabetes prevention and some of the myths about diabetes. Over 30 million Americans suffer from diabetes and it’s the seventh leading cause of death in the country – and unfortunately, there is no cure. Let’s dispel some of the common myths about diabetes:

• Diabetes is caused by obesity – Obesity may be a factor in triggering diabetes onset at a certain age, but it’s not the direct cause of diabetes. There are many other factors that lead to the development of the condition. Otherwise, the American diabetes rate, which is less than 10 percent, would be a lot closer to the obesity rate, which hovers around 50 percent.
• If you have diabetes, then you can’t eat sugar – Diabetes is a condition in which the body has trouble dealing with high levels of sugar; however, this doesn’t mean that patients can’t have any sugar at all. The amount of sugar they can consume depends on what kinds of medications they are on, but if consumed in moderation, sugar is not something they have to avoid completely.
• The use of insulin causes weight gain – This common misconception spread because weight gain can happen once a patient begins using insulin – but it’s not a result of the insulin. When blood sugar levels rise, glucose is excreted in a person’s urine. This causes some of the calories they’ve consumed to be eliminated. Once the patient begins using insulin, those calories remain in the body, which means that they may gain weight as a result of how many calories they are consuming.

Avoid these common misconceptions and make sure to eat healthily, exercise regularly and maintain a healthy weight to reduce the risks of diabetes. Whether you have been diagnosed with diabetes or not, it’s important that you have a good health insurance plan to take care of all your healthcare needs. Be sure to visit us at The Benefits Store today to find the right California health insurance plan for you.