What is prediabetes, how dangerous it is, and how to treat it

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

To avoid life-threatening complications, it is enough to eat right and move more.

What is prediabetes and how dangerous it is

Prediabetes Prediabetes is a condition in which blood sugar levels are consistently kept slightly above normal. This problem is not so great as to manifest itself as a serious impairment of well-being.

According to Prediabetes - Your Chance to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes | CDC American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 84% of people with prediabetes are unaware of their diagnosis.

However, prediabetes is a dangerous condition. First of all, its complications.

• The excess sugar that builds up in the blood damages the blood vessels. Thus, prediabetes increases the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases: arrhythmias, heart failure, heart attacks, strokes.
• Prediabetes means that the body has problems absorbing glucose. If they are not resolved, type 2 diabetes can occur - an incurable disease that will make you sit on pills for the rest of your life, and in the worst case can lead to the same heart attacks, strokes, loss of vision or amputation of limbs.

But there is good news as well. If prediabetes is detected in time, it can be easily corrected. So, to save yourself from possible consequences.

What are the symptoms of prediabetes

Prediabetes itself has virtually no Prediabetes symptoms. It is installed, as a rule, almost by accident: when the therapist, focusing on indirect symptoms, offers the patient to donate blood for sugar.

These subtle signs are the symptoms of type 2 diabetes:

• weakness, constant fatigue;
• excessive appetite;
• increased thirst;
• frequent urination;
• blurred vision.

Also, the therapist may prescribe this analysis if the patient complains of being overweight.

Normal Blood sugar test level of sugar in blood taken from a vein on an empty stomach is from 3, 9 to 5, 6 mmol / L. They say about prediabetes if the analysis shows values from 5, 6 to 6, 9 mmol / l.

One of the possible signs of prediabetes is darkening of the skin on certain parts of the body: the neck, armpits, elbows, knees and other joints. If you notice such changes, be sure to consult your doctor.

Where does prediabetes come from?

The exact reasons are unknown. It is assumed in Prediabetes that the tendency to high blood sugar levels can be inherited.

On the other hand, risk factors have been clearly established - habits and conditions that are highly likely to trigger the development of prediabetes (and type 2 diabetes). Here they are.

Excess weight

The more fatty tissue you have, the less sensitive your cells are to insulin. It is necessary for the body to begin to absorb glucose. The lower the sensitivity, the more sugar accumulates in the blood and the more noticeable the damage it causes.

Waist

From the point of view of the development of insulin resistance (this is the name for a decrease in the sensitivity of cells to insulin), the most dangerous fat accumulating in the abdomen is called visceral fat. Therefore, the waist circumference also suggests the risk of developing prediabetes. It is especially high:

• in men whose waist is more than 40 inches (101.6 cm);
• in women with a waist over 35 inches (88.9 cm).

Power features

The more red meat, sausages, sausages, and sugary drinks (soda, store juices) in your menu, the higher the risk of prediabetes. But fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains and olive oil reduce it.

Lack of movement

The less we move, the less energy our cells need. They stop drawing "fuel" - glucose from the blood. And so that the insulin produced in the body does not force them to get unnecessary, they reduce their own sensitivity to it. This is the first step towards prediabetes and subsequent illnesses.

Age

Prediabetes can occur at any age. But the risks increase after 45 years.

Bad dream

Sleep disturbances that prevent you from getting enough sleep (such as insomnia or sleep apnea) alter your hormones. And including reduce the sensitivity of cells to insulin.

Smoking

This is another reason why cells can become insulin resistant.

Other conditions

Prediabetes often develops against the background of:

• high blood pressure;
• low levels of "good" cholesterol (high density lipoprotein, HDL);
• high levels of triglycerides (a type of fat) in the blood.

The combination of prediabetes and at least two of these conditions is called metabolic syndrome.

How to treat prediabetes

Treatment is to bring blood sugar back to normal. This can often be achieved without pills. It is enough to just slightly change Prediabetes. Diagnosis and Treatment lifestyle.

• Eat healthy foods. More vegetables, fruits, whole grains, less fatty and high-calorie foods.
• Be more active. Try not to sit in one place. If you have a sedentary job and cannot change it, keep at least minimal physical activity. Walk, ride a bike, swim for at least 150 minutes a week, or give yourself a more intense exercise (run, dance, do aerobics, zumba, Pilates) for at least 75 minutes a week.
• Lose excess weight. If you follow the two points listed above, it will happen by itself.
• Stop smoking.

If your GP decides that your risk of developing diabetes is too high, you may be prescribed medication. For example, drugs that increase the level of "good" cholesterol and normalize blood pressure.