The best way to prevent diabetes is to make some lifestyle changes:

Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight raises your risk for diabetes. Calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI) to see if you’re at a healthy weight. If you’re overweight, start making small changes to your eating habits by adding more whole grain foods, fruits, and vegetables. Start exercising more, even if taking a short walk is all you can do for now. If you’re not sure where to start, talk to your doctor.

Eat healthy:

• Eat lots of whole grains (such as whole wheat or rye bread, whole grain cereal, or brown rice), fruits, and vegetables.
• Choose foods low in fat and cholesterol. Read food labels. If you eat 2,000 calories per day, you should eat no more than 56 grams of fat each day.
• Limit your salt intake to less than 2,300 mg (about 1 teaspoon of salt) each day.
• If you drink alcohol, limit it to no more than one drink (one 12-ounce beer, one 5-ounce glass of wine, or one 1.5-ounce shot of hard liquor) a day.

Get moving. Try to exercise for at least 30 minutes most days of the week. Some suggestions:

• Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
• Take a brisk walk on your lunch break.
• Park at the far end of the parking lot and walk.
• Get off the bus or subway a few stops early and walk the rest of the way.
• Walk or bicycle whenever you can.