What is Pre-Diabetes

If you’ve been told that you or someone you love has been diagnosed with pre-diabetes then the first question you’re probably asking is “What is pre-diabetes?”. The second would likely be whether it will necessarily lead to type 2 diabetes. Don’t worry about asking questions about this kind of thing since they’re quite logical and natural considering the impact that diabetes can have on long-term health and lifestyle.

To begin, pre-diabetes is a condition that occurs when your blood sugar levels are higher than normal. This typically means that they are within the range of 100 to 125 mg/dl (5.5 to 7 mmol/l). Though these levels are not quite to diabetic proportions, they are still quite high.

That being said, if you already have high risk factors or if you don’t make any positive changes to your lifestyle, then you can make the condition worse and it may lead to type 2 diabetes. The risk factors include:

• A family history of type 2 diabetes
• Your age (your risk increases with your age)
• Your ethnicity (there is a higher risk in non-Caucasians)
• A history of gestational diabetes
• Having polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
• Having insulin resistance
• Severe obesity
• Having cardiovascular disease

Any of these risk factors can mean that you have an increased chance of developing type 2 diabetes. For example, if you are a non-Caucasian person in his fifties with a family history of the disease, then you have a much greater risk than someone else who does not have these factors. You will need to make the right lifestyle changes to do your best to prevent it.

The trouble with pre-diabetes is that it is often present without causing any symptoms. One factor that seems to be strongly related to pre-diabetes is obesity, however this is not always the case. Anyone who is quite overweight or obese should have their blood sugar levels checked once a year during their annual physical. Noticeable symptoms of type 2 diabetes can include increased thirst, frequent urination, fatigue, blurred vision, frequent infections, excessive hunger and unexplained weight loss.

If you have pre-diabetes and do not make the necessary lifestyle changes needed, you may simply be topping off that final risk factor that will make all the difference in triggering the development of type 2 diabetes. Most obese people with pre-diabetes will develop type 2 diabetes within 10 years if they do not lose at least 5-7% of their body weight. A pre-diabetes lifestyle should include efforts to help your body to control its own blood glucose levels. This will mean that you’ll need to ensure that you begin to lose excess weight and that you eat a healthy diet and exercise moderately every single day. If you don’t do these things, then it will be as though you’ve made your own choice to continue your condition.

Remember that every little thing that you do can make all the difference for working to keep pre-diabetes under control and avoid its development into a situation where you will be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Even replacing your unhealthy snack in the evening with a healthy one and going for a good brisk walk every day (enough to make you sweat a bit and increase your breathing rate) can be an excellent start.

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