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  • People with prediabetes have higher-than-normal blood sugar levels. This occurs when sugar goes not into the cells (to give them energy) but into the blood stream. If left unchecked, the condition greatly increases risk of progressing into type 2 diabetes. This is dangerous because diabetes can cause life-threatening damage over time to the heart and circulatory system and other parts of the body.

    Symptoms

    Review these signs that you may be at an advanced stage of prediabetes or have already developed type-2 diabetes: abnormally increased thirst and/or urination, unusual weight loss, extreme hunger, fatigue, blurred vision, infections that heal slowly or incompletely. Note: The Mayo Clinic points out that many people with prediabetes show no symptoms; it usually takes a blood test to diagnose. But anyone who develops the symptoms above should seek medical attention.

    Risk Factors

    Evaluate the risk of developing prediabetes by checking the following habits and characteristics. People are at increased risk if they are sedentary, overweight, related to people who had type-2 diabetes, African-American, Hispanic, Native American or Asian American. You are also at risk if you developed gestational diabetes during pregnancy or had a baby that was more than 9 pounds at birth; have high blood pressure, high LDL (unhealthy) cholesterol, low HDL (healthy) cholesterol, or a high amount of tryglicerides (a type of fat in the blood); are older than 44 years old (the American Diabetes Association advises anyone past age 45 to be tested for prediabetes); have polycystic ovary disease (which causes irregular periods, abnormal hair growth and weight gain).

    Preventitive Lifestyle Changes

    Eat healthy, high-fiber food and avoid high-fat foods and those with unrefined sugars (white bread, white rice, white potatoes and sugar). Also do regular, vigorous physical exercise for at least 30 minutes, five or more times a week, and lose excess weight--at least 5 percent to 10 percent of total body weight, the Mayo Clinic and the American Diabetes Association recommend.

    Medical Interventions

    Take oral diabetes drugs, such as metformin (Glucophage) and acarbose (Precose) to fight prediabetes, if prescribed by a doctor, especially if prediabetes is getting worse or when diagnosed with cardiovascular or fatty liver disease or polycystic ovary syndrome, the Mayo Clinic advises. Statins and other drugs to control cholesterol and high blood pressure medications may be necessary as well. Try alternative therapies. Bitter melon, cassia cinnamon, ginseng, gymnema and stevia are some foods and herbs that have been advertised as helping to treat prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, but studies of their effectiveness have been inconclusive, the Mayo Clinic reports.

    Source:

    New England Journal of Medicine

    Mayo Clinic

    Diabetes.co.uk

    Resource:

    American Diabetes Association

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