National Healthy Lunch Day: Lunch right with every bite

November is National Diabetes Month, and 2015 marks the 75h anniversary of the American Diabetes Association. The ADA is commemorating the occasion with the “Eat Well, America! ^sm” campaign, a month-long promotion of recipes, shopping suggestions, and healthy eating strategies designed to help people enjoy their food while reducing their risk for type 2 diabetes. For more information about the campaign, check out ADA’s National Diabetes Month pamphlet here, or check out their healthy eating toolkit here.

November 17th is National Healthy Lunch Day, and the ADA is encouraging Americans to make or buy a healthy lunch and share photos of their lunches via social media with the hashtag #MyHealthyLunch. For more information about the event, check out the ADA’s website here.

There are many ways to use your lunch to reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes:

• Eating more leafy greens can reduce the risk by 15%
• Choosing whole grains over refined grains can reduce the risk by 40%
• Eating less red meat and processed meat can reduce the risk by 20%
• Cutting out sugar sweetened beverages can reduce the risk by 25%

Diet modifications like these are some of the many teaching points from the National Diabetes Prevention Program, a program designed to help people with prediabetes use behavioral change to reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. To learn more about the DPP in Colorado, visit our website. For a list of CDC recognized DPP programs in Colorado, click here.

Don’t forget to share your healthy lunch on social media with the hashtag #MyHealthyLunch!