According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in three American adults have prediabetes, a condition that
means someone is at a higher risk for developing Type 2 diabetes as well as heart disease and stroke. Here’s how to find out if you have prediabetes and how you can take action to prevent or delay Type 2 diabetes or other serious health conditions.
Risk factors for prediabetes
Prediabetes doesn’t usually show symptoms, which is why it’s important to talk to your primary care physician (PCP) about getting tested to know for sure. A simple blood test will confirm if you have prediabetes. Risk factors for prediabetes
include:
- Being older than 45 years old
- Having a family history of diabetes
- Being less physically active (less than three times a week)
- Having a history of gestational diabetes (diabetes during pregnancy) or giving birth to a baby that weighed more than nine pounds
- Having high blood pressure or being overweight
If you have any of these risk factors, you should talk to your PCP to see if testing is needed. Getting tested for prediabetes is easy and generally involves bloodwork.