Pre-Diabetes: the stage before

By Ana C. López, Nutrition Counselor, MyDiet™
Publicado:

Pre-diabetes can be considered the stage before developing type 2 diabetes. This condition goes often unnoticed because it is "silent" and doesn’t have any symptoms. Do you know what it is and how you can detect it? Read on and find out.

What is pre-diabetes?

Pre-diabetes, also known as “glucose intolerance” or “abnormal glucose tolerance,” is a condition in which levels of blood glucose (sugar) are higher than normal, but not high enough to diagnose diabetes. It is considered stage before or the "last step" before getting diabetes. 

How do I know if I have pre-diabetes?

Pre-diabetes is a condition that has no symptoms, so it can remain unnoticed for a long time. The only way to diagnose it is through a blood glucose test. The most commonly used laboratory test for diagnosing this condition is the fasting plasma glucose test,which measures blood glucose after fasting since the night before the test.

These are the reference values for blood glucose levels:

Normal

Pre-diabetes

Diabetes

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Less than 100 mg/dL

100 to 125 mg/dL

126 mg/dL or higher

Some situations may put you at higher risk for developing pre-diabetes (as well as diabetes). If you have one or more of these risk factors, you should consult your doctor to find out if you’ll need a pre-diabetes or diabetes diagnostic test:

  • Being overweight or obese.
  • Family history of diabetes (mother, father or siblings with this condition).
  • Being over 45 years old.
  • Physical inactivity  (doing less than 30 minutes of physical activity each day).
  • Ethnic background: African-American, Hispanic, Asian-American.
  • Having a baby over 9 lbs (4 kg) or history of diabetes during pregnancy (gestational diabetes).
  • Hypertension  (high blood pressure).
  • High levels of triglycerides (200 mg/dL or more).

  • Low levels of HDL cholesterol (less than 35 mg/dL).

Source:

American Diabetes Association (2005). All About Pre-Diabetes. Retrieved on January, 2009 from  http://www.diabetes.org/uedocuments/01.sp.PreDiabetes.pdf

American Diabetes Association. Frequently Asked Questions About Pre-Diabetes. Retrieved on January, 2009 from  http://www.diabetes.org/espanol/prevencion-diabetes/preguntas-frecuentes-sobre-pre-diabetes.jsp.

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