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grandparents, uncles, and aunts with the disease may also signify that you
are at an elevated risk.
The next most important risk factor is your BMI. If your BMI is over 25,
you’re at greater risk of the disorder kicking in. Yes, diabetes is usually
genetic, but fitness level and lifestyle can prevent, postpone, or trigger its
onset. This is especially important to remember because even if your family
has always carried genes for diabetes susceptibility, if no one within the fam-
ily has experienced excess weight, those genes may never have been
expressed, and you may be completely unaware that a genetic risk exists. If
you are the first person in the family to experience a weight problem, you
may also be the first person to tap into that genetic predisposition.
Another extremely important influence on one’s likelihood for develop-
ing type 2 diabetes is lifestyle. Is your lifestyle primarily sedentary? Do you
get enough regular exercise? Exercise, or lack of exercise, is a major deter-
mining factor in obesity and thus in the development of type 2 diabetes. The
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