Some health conditions tend to sneak up on you.
High blood pressure, for example. It has no symptoms but can cause devastating disease.
Prediabetes is another example. While it does have some symptoms, prediabetes is a condition many adults don’t realize they have.
Prediabetes means your blood sugar levels are higher than normal. If it’s not addressed, it can lead to type 2 diabetes.
“One out of three adults in the U.S. has prediabetes, and most of them don’t even realize they are at a higher risk of becoming diabetic,” said Amber Douglas, DO, an internal medicine physician with Endeavor Health.
In 2021, 97.6 million Americans aged 18 and older had prediabetes, the American Diabetes Association reports. That same year, the ADA reported 38.4 million Americans had diabetes, with 2 million diagnosed with type 1 diabetes — a chronic autoimmune disorder usually diagnosed in childhood. In type 1 diabetes, the body does not produce insulin and in type 2 diabetes, the body is unable to use insulin properly.
People with diabetes are at a higher risk for heart attack, stroke and kidney failure. Diabetes can also cause permanent vision loss by damaging blood vessels in the eyes, and problems with feet from nerve damage and poor blood flow.
While type 1 diabetes can't be prevented currently, type 2 diabetes is a disease that frequently arises because of lifestyle choices that include minimal physical activity, obesity and unhealthy food.
And fortunately, prediabetes can often be reversed.
Some risk factors for prediabetes include:
- Being age 45 or older
- Being overweight
- Having a family history of type 2 diabetes
- Being physically active fewer than 3 times per week
- A history of gestational diabetes or having given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds
“Not everyone who has type 2 diabetes is overweight. There is a genetic component to the disease,” Dr. Douglas said. “But carrying around extra pounds (and a lack of exercise) makes you more likely to get it. An active lifestyle that includes healthy eating can make you less likely to develop the disease even if it runs in your family.”
There are often no obvious symptoms of prediabetes other than a higher-than-normal blood glucose level. However, sometimes people with prediabetes experience the symptoms of diabetes, such as:
- Frequent urination
- Extreme thirst
- Extreme hunger, even though you are eating
- Extreme fatigue
- Blurry vision
- Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal
- Very dry skin
- Tingling, pain or numbness in the hands and feet
Fortunately, like high blood pressure, prediabetes is a condition that can be treated to avoid it developing into diabetes.
Cutting back on added sugar, eating a healthy diet, losing weight and exercising regularly are the primary tactics to avoid diabetes.
If you have symptoms, tell your doctor and ask about the steps they would recommend you take.
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