Quick overview of what we’ll cover in this blog post:
- What is prediabetes?
- How to assess your prediabetes risk
- What you can do to control your risk
More than 1 out of 3 Americans are prediabetic, and more than 80% don’t they have it. That’s about 84 million people who are at risk of prediabetes, which also puts them at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
Prediabetes has no clear symptoms and can go undetected for many years until serious health problems arise. But prediabetes is much more manageable than the age-related diseases that it leads to. That means we could potentially prevent these conditions by recognizing prediabetes risk factors.
So, just what is prediabetes, and how can you tell if you’re at risk?
What Is Prediabetes?
Prediabetes is when your blood sugar levels are elevated, but not high enough to be classified as type 2 diabetes.
Prediabetes is a warning sign for diabetes and other age-related conditions like heart disease, chronic kidney disease, and stroke. When cells don’t respond normally to insulin (a hormone made by your pancreas to let blood sugar into cells), your pancreas overworks to produce more insulin to try to get cells to respond. After awhile, your pancreas can’t keep up. As a result, your blood sugar rises – causing prediabetes.
Besides high blood sugar, those with prediabetes may also have insulin resistance, or when our bodies don’t effectively use insulin. This turns more sugar into fat, which causes us to feel more tired after eating, and feel hungrier sooner. Over time, this cycle causes unseen damage within our bodies, increasing our risk for age-related disease.
We can think of prediabetes as sitting on a fence – on one side is age-related disease, and on the other is good health. The bad news is that prediabetes is one step away from lower quality of life. The good news is that prediabetes is easily reversible with the right lifestyle interventions. As long as we know how to recognize prediabetes risk factors, we can work to prevent it.
6 Signs of Prediabetes Risk
The problem with prediabetes is that many of its most telling symptoms are happening at a cellular level. This makes prediabetes symptoms difficult to recognize, which is why so many Americans don’t know they have it. But there are 6 easy ways that we can tell if we’re at risk of prediabetes:
- Having a BMI greater than 25
- Being physically active less than 3 times a week
- Smoking or excessive alcohol consumption
- Being 45 or older
- Having a family history of diabetes
- Having polycystic ovary syndrome or gestational diabetes
The more of these risk factors you have, the more likely you are to develop prediabetes. If you have several, it may be time to get your blood sugar tested with your primary care physician.
How to Control Your Prediabetes Risk
You can test you prediabetes risk at home by completing the American Diabetes Association’s prediabetes risk test. A high score on this risk assessment means that you may have prediabetes, but only a prediabetes test can tell for sure.
If you don’t have a family history of diabetes or you’re not 45 or older, your doctor may not be screening for prediabetes. But you can always order a Core Longevity Panel to test your prediabetes risk with your AgelessRx prescriber.
You can also take control of your health by tracking your blood sugar levels with a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM). A CGM is small sensor place on the back of your upper arm that automatically monitors your glucose day and night and allows you to see the results on your smartphone. You can then share these results with your doctor to discuss at your next visit.
If you are at risk of prediabetes, then Metformin to help lower your blood sugar levels. A clinical trial organized by the Diabetes Prevention Program Study showed Metformin can reduce our risk of prediabetes by as much as 31%. You can see if Metformin is right for you be requesting a free visit with one of our expert prescribers, who will provide a prescription if appropriate.
With our Core Longevity Panel, a CGM, and Metformin, you can easily manage your risk for prediabetes. But you should always consult with your primary care physician to develop a risk-aversion plan tailored to your unique health history. Your doctor is who will help you down the right side of the fence, so you can avoid age-related disease and live a healthier, longer life.
Note: The above statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
FAQs
How do I test for prediabetes?
An A1C test, a fasting plasma glucose (FPG) test, or an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) are among the most popular methods of testing for prediabetes. Your doctor will recommend any of these tests to diagnose prediabetes, depending on your goals and unique health history. Prediabetes must be confirmed with a lab result and cannot be diagnosed based on the presence of risk factors like high BMI or excessive smoking.
Is metabolic syndrome the same as prediabetes?
Metabolic syndrome is a group of 5 risk factors – high blood sugar, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, high BMI, and low HDL – that can lead to diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. While metabolic syndrome shares many of the same risk factors as prediabetes, they are not the same condition.
Prediabetes is like having type 0.5 diabetes: you very nearly have diabetes, but you’re not quite there. Prediabetes describes a group of risk factors that contribute specifically to diabetes, while metabolic syndrome is a more generalized group of risk factors that contribute to cardiovascular disease.
Does type 2 diabetes always start with prediabetes?
Before people develop type 2 diabetes, they almost always have prediabetes, according to the American Health Association. This makes prediabetes much more urgent than we may expect: we all know someone who has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, but very few of us know someone who has been diagnosed with prediabetes. That means that many people have the opportunity to reverse their prediabetes before it develops into type 2 diabetes, but they may not know it. Understanding and recognizing the risk factors of prediabetes is perhaps the most important step to preventing type 2 diabetes.