Healthy on the Inside: Helping Kids Prevent or Manage Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is a serious and growing problem among children, teens and young adults in the United States, affecting both physical and mental health. Here is how families can help prevent, delay or manage it — inside and out.

A growing problem

Recent studies predict that type 2 diabetes among children and teens will increase over the next 40 years. Many people know the risk of type 2 diabetes rises with age; fewer know it can develop at any age. Childhood overweight and obesity, which raise the risk, are also increasing.

Mental health and stigma

Diabetes is linked not only to physical problems but to depression, stress, anxiety and stigma. Diabetes stigma means negative attitudes or judgments toward someone living with diabetes. Many people wrongly assume that someone with type 2 diabetes brought it on themselves. That stigma can lead to low self-esteem, poorer mental health and less motivation to live healthily — especially damaging for young people who are still working out who they are.

Healthy on the inside

Being "healthy on the inside" means being mentally healthy so that you and your family can reach your physical health goals. It also means health is about how your body feels, not how it looks. Parents can model healthy attitudes and behaviors so their children see how it's done.

Build a healthy relationship with food. Labeling foods "good" or "bad" can bring guilt and worry. Focus instead on how often you eat them:

Food is neither a punishment nor a reward, and it's fine to enjoy an occasional treat without guilt.

Make physical activity fun. If you treat exercise as a chore, your children may too. Make movement part of family time and play. Being active — games and sports, walking, swimming — is a skill, and starting early gives kids plenty of practice and good memories, building a lifelong habit that supports health and helps prevent type 2 diabetes.

Connect mental and physical health. Self-esteem and a healthy attitude support healthy behavior. How you talk about health and weight to and around your children matters, even when you think they aren't listening. Teach them positive self-talk — speaking kindly to and about themselves — to help them handle challenges like type 2 diabetes.

More support

• Prediabetes or diabetes yourself? The lifestyle change program of the CDC-led National Diabetes Prevention Program teaches people with prediabetes to make lasting healthy changes that can prevent or delay type 2 diabetes. It is designed for adults, but the skills can help the whole family.
• Living with diabetes? Ask your doctor for a referral to diabetes self-management education and support (DSMES) services, where a diabetes care and education specialist gives personalized support you can bring home to your family.

Sources

Rewritten from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention article "Healthy on the Inside" (public domain), in hubnx's own words. Its stock photograph is not reproduced.