As the number of Americans diagnosed with diabetes has increased, so has the number with prediabetes. Knowing what this diagnosis means and what you can do about it could save your life.

Undoubtedly, you know having diabetes isn’t a good thing. But if you’ve been told you have prediabetes, is this reason to worry?

“Prediabetes isn’t a benign condition; if you receive this diagnosis, it should be a call to action,” says Ann L. Albright, Ph.D., R.D., president of health care and education at the American Diabetes Association in Alexandria, Va. “Once you get diabetes, you’ve got it; but if you have prediabetes, there are steps you can take to prevent it from progressing to full-blown type 2 diabetes.”

This is important because type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that often requires daily medication and careful management. People with the condition often develop serious complications, including heart disease, and are at an increased risk for blindness, kidney failure, and nerve damage.

In addition, even people with prediabetes can experience some adverse health effects. For example, they have a 1.5 times increased risk for cardiovascular disease, compared with people with normal bloodglucose levels.

Here are answers to some important questions regarding the condition.

Q: What are the indicators of prediabetes?
Before people develop type 2 diabetes, they almost always have prediabetes— blood-glucose levels that are higher than normal but not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.

Specifically:

• Someone with prediabetes has a fasting blood-glucose level between 100 and 125 mg/dl.
• Someone with diabetes has a fasting blood-glucose level of 126 mg/dl or above.

Q: What should someone diagnosed with prediabetes do?
Take action by exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, and losing weight.

“Studies have shown up to 58 percent of people with prediabetes can prevent or delay developing type 2 diabetes by exercising for 30 minutes a day and losing 5 to 10 percent of their body weight,” says Albright. “Fortunately, research shows losing just 10 pounds can really make a difference for many people.”

Albright also suggests people find a support system to help them make the necessary lifestyle changes.

“It can be your doctor, a family member, a dietitian, a workout partner, or a program offered at a hospital,” she says. “It’s important to have an ongoing source of encouragement to continue healthy lifestyle habits so you don’t get pulled off track.”

Q: What’s the medical treatment for prediabetes?
Some medications can help delay the development of diabetes, but diet and exercise work better, and unlike medications they don’t have risks.

If you have prediabetes, you’re at a 50 percent increased risk for heart disease or stroke, so your doctor should screen you for high blood pressure and high cholesterol and provide treatment, if necessary. You also should stop smoking.

Q: Could I have prediabetes and not know it?
Yes, because most people with prediabetes don’t have symptoms. People with diabetes may not have symptoms either, or they could have an unusual thirst, a frequent urge to urinate, blurred vision, or chronic fatigue.

“The good news is, although the lifestyles of many Americans increase their risk for this disease, the changes required to lower their risks are doable,” says Albright.

Barbara Floria spoke with Ann L. Albright, Ph.D., R.D., president of health care and education, at the American Diabetes Association in Alexandria, Va. For more information, visit www.diabetes.org and search for “prediabetes.”

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