Behavior changes can help new diabetics lower heart risk

By Shereen Jegtvig NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Adopting healthier behaviors after a diabetes diagnosis may do as much as medication to prevent heart problems, according to a new study from the UK. People newly-diagnosed with type 2 diabetes were four times more likely to have a heart attack, stroke or other cardiac "event" if they changed nothing about their habits compared to people who adopted three or four healthier behaviors, like cutting out alcohol and getting regular exercise. "We wanted to produce information that would be useful for patients and practitioners and could contribute to the advice that patients are given after they have been diagnosed," said Grainne Long, who led the new study. "Having demonstrated the importance of diet (including alcohol consumption) and physical activity we want to motivate patients and practitioners to focus on lifestyle change as an important element of the management of type 2 diabetes," she told Reuters Health in an email.



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