An expert shares advice on supporting a partner. It helps the healthier spouse, too.
Are you married to someone who has type 2 diabetes? Turns out, you need to watch over your own health. In a study published in BMC Medicine, researchers found that the spouses of people with type 2 diabetes are 26 percent more likely than spouses of people without diabetes to also develop type 2.
Research suggests that spouses often share similar eating habits because they typically prepare and eat meals together, said Amy Ryder, LDN, CDCES, a dietitian at Vanderbilt Health.
A healthy diet helps maintain normal weight, which is important in preventing and managing diabetes. Regular physical activity is also important, and so are regular check-ups with a health care provider.
There are also other risk factors for diabetes that are beyond control, such as family history and age.
Ryder offers these five tips on how those with diabetes and their spouses can have healthier (and happier!) marriages:
1. Get educated.
Education is an important first step. The Vanderbilt clinic has four diabetes educators on staff: two nurses and two dietitians to work with patients to help them understand their condition and manage it. When a spouse or partner knows how diabetes is managed, they are better equipped to provide meaningful support and help their loved one.
2. Don’t be the diabetes police.
It’s helpful when spouses view diabetes as something to work on together. Making positive choices together is helpful when couples work as a team, rather than one person monitoring or criticizing the other. While grocery shopping, for example, when one partner is keeping diabetes in mind, it can significantly influence the other partner’s ability to manage their condition. It’s not helpful to be the diabetes police, which comes across as annoying and can breed resentment and anger.
3. Be supportive over everything else.
Diabetes is a chronic illness, one that must be managed over the long term. Support from a loved one will only help the person with diabetes. Support can be in the form of grocery shopping and meal preparation — purchasing only foods that have a good effect on the blood sugar and avoiding purchasing tempting foods.
4. Use exercise to bond.
Couples may choose to get their physical activity together, such as taking a walk in the evenings or attending a fitness class together, which may lead to increased communication and closeness in the relationship.
5. Watch out for depression.
People with diabetes can be more prone to developing depression. It’s important to recognize this in your spouse and encourage your spouse/partner to do something he or she enjoys and helps with relaxation, like watching a funny movie, having a date night or playing with children. It’s important to know that if the sad feelings or lack of self-care don’t improve, a partner can and should encourage their loved one to get help from a mental-health professional.
