Despite what recent reports may say, diabetes is on the rise. And although it is easily preventable, many people refuse to make the lifestyle change to do so. A recent study published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine found that having diabetes in midlife can age your mind about five years faster than it should. The study, conducted by scientists at Johns Hopkins University, gathered data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Studies (ARIC). The researchers selected about 15,800 middle-aged adults in the United States to follow from 1987 to 2013. The researchers evaluated their cognitive function during three of the five visits throughout the study. During the visits, researchers compared the amount of mental decline associated with aging and other health factors of the participants. The researchers saw a 19% mental decline with participants who had poorly controlled diabetes. The researchers also saw smaller declines for people who had controlled diabetes and pre-diabetes. Because diabetes is associated with the lack of insulin in the body, the excess sugar can impact the body’s vascular systems, causing blindness, nerve damage and kidney disease. The best predictor for type 2 diabetes is being overweight, which accounts for 90 to 95 percent of diabetic cases. It’s is important for people who are overweight to get active and moving because it could significantly reduce their risk of obtaining type 2 diabetes. It’s important to maintain a healthy diet because, along with exercise, a healthy diet can also offer protection against diabetes, thus offering protection against mental decline. Information gathered from Fox News